The Solstice Saga: Blood Solstice
by Hollowgo
Summary: AU. With two twisted vampires hunting her down for the past four months, Bella thought her life was forfeit. That is, until she accidentally stumbled into the home of a future seeing vampire waiting for her forever. Alice/Bella. Rated T for language and violence. COMPLETE.
1. Prologue: Hopeless

**A/N: Hello to anyone who stumbles upon this for their first time. I've decided to post this here as a disclaimer and a welcome/warning to any who are interested in this wacky fan fiction of mine. First and foremost, it was my first, so it's pretty choppy and rough in a lot of areas. I'll admit that now, and I realize that may turn off new readers, but I wanted to be honest. It's not a perfect story. Far from it. :P It was, however, a learning experience for me as a writer, and I'd like to think that my work has improved a great deal since I finished this very long tale. **

**I'll say this now: there's a lot of filler, a lot of fluff and, despite being rated M in the past, there is no sex scene involved. Many readers were disappointed, but I didn't want to rush into that sort of thing for a first story. Regardless. Many have enjoyed it despite it's flaws, and I'm grateful to them for it. So if you're here for the first time, I'm happy to have you and I hope you enjoy what you read. If not, that's perfectly fine. There are many other great Bellice stories out there.**

**So w****ithout further ado (and please ignore my dumb author's notes, I don't know what I was doing with those aside from being random), I give you my first ever written fan fiction (Twilight, romance, femslash and finished work). Enjoy.**

**One last thing: Stephenie Meyer owns Twilight and all its characters. I own my characters and my ideas only. **

**Prologue: Hopeless**

I don't remember how long I've been running for. If I thought on it, I probably could, but I can't. I can't think. I don't have time to think. I just have to keep moving. Even though I know it's hopeless. It won't matter how far I go. The hunters will catch me. They always do.

No matter what I do or where I go, I always fail. I'm not fast enough. I'm not strong enough. I cannot win, yet I still keep trying.

Why? Why do I drive myself knowing there is no hope? I don't understand it. Every time I try to stop, my heart aches. It isn't a physical ache, but a mental, emotional one. I feel like my heart is telling me that I haven't reached my destination, even though I've been on the move for months.

Each time I sleep—sometimes it's at night, sometimes by day, I don't sleep for very long—I have the same dream. The dream is of me running, of course, but it isn't me running away from anything. No. I'm running towards something. I'm running towards a voice calling my name, telling me that I'm almost there. The voice is musical and full of love and hope, calling to me.

Sometimes I think my subconscious is mocking me.

Still. Maybe I'm suicidal. Maybe I'm just stupid. But deep down, somewhere, there is a part of me that believes me heart is pulling me to the owner of that heavenly voice, which my subconscious has labeled my savior. I don't believe it. I can't be saved. I'm doomed to die one way or the other.

As I race against time, my mind swarms with questions that may never be answered, dreams that have been thrown into the wind and worries about the things to come.

I do not know what lies ahead for me. I dare not try to hope for the best, knowing that hoping will only bring disappointment and the reality of my situation crashing down on me. So what can I do, if not hope? I don't know.

I do, however, know one thing.

There is no hope for Isabella Marie Swan.


	2. Game

**Disclaimer: I do NOT own Twilight in any way, shape, or form. I do, however, own any OC.**

**Game**

I stared silently at the row of trees in front of me. They were oak, I think, or maybe redwood. It didn't matter, I suppose, but I wanted to absorb the tranquility around me, no matter how fleeting it was. I could hear birds singing their sweet songs in the distance, almost beckoning me. But I ignored them. I had to. I took a deep breath, taking in the scent of pine and flowers, and started moving. It wasn't a spring, there was no way I had the strength for that, but I sure as hell wasn't taking my time either. I couldn't afford time anymore.

I know only a few things for certain.

Number one, I am sick of seeing nothing but fucking trees. I enjoy admiring their beauty, yes, but I am tired of seeing them. Everywhere I go; it's always trees, trees, trees. I'm beginning to wonder why there are so many goddamn trees in the first place. I hate it when they're all bunched together too and it's practically impossible not to trip over a damn root or run into one. I cannot for the life of me name the number of times that's happened.

Number two, I'm in Washington. I don't know where exactly, since I haven't seen a map in Lord knows how long. I think I'm in some shitty town called Forks. I wouldn't know. Then again, I guess that doesn't matter either, does it?

And number three, I, Isabella Marie Swan—though I prefer Bella since Isabella makes me feel…old—am a dead woman. I was the moment I met _them_ four months ago. Wow. Four months. Four fucking months of my life gone with the wind. It's sad, really. There was no birthday party. There wasn't much of anything aside from me running for my life and the sick, twisted torture that my pursuers enjoyed inflicting on me.

I laughed to myself as I thought back to that night when my life became Hell itself. When the abnormally klutzy Bella Swan became a game, a fucking toy, for a race of beings no sane human would have ever thought existed. Vampires. They were real, alright, and I knew it. It was insane and mind-boggling, but it was true. Too bad no one I tried to tell ever believed me. Then again, they usually ended up dead anyways.

If I hadn't been stupid and easily influenced, maybe I could have avoided it. Considering my luck, though, it would've happened one way or the other. Maybe God hates me. That's what I tried to tell myself at first. Then I changed my mind. If God hated me, I'd be dead. Besides, I didn't believe in him/her/it having direct influence on us humans. So I just blamed my fucking luck, which stinks, by the way.

I think the worst part is that I remember it all so clearly, as if it happened yesterday…

_Four months ago; Phoenix, Arizona_

_It was hot out. It wasn't too "oh-my-God-I'm-dying" hot, but I was still sweating a bit as I walked across the street. I didn't know where I was going. Anywhere, I guess, but home. _

_Ha. Home. What a fucking joke that was. I didn't have a home. I didn't know what happened to my birth parents. I had no one in my life that cared for me. No aunt or uncle or grandparents or friends. Nothing. I was alone. I hated it. I loathed it, honestly, but there was nothing I could do about it. _

_My so called "family" were my foster parents with three other kids. They didn't care much for me. They never did. They thought they would be getting a beautiful, brainy daughter with a future. Nope. They got me. I guess they were okay as far as foster families go. I got food, clothes, a bed to sleep in and schooling. But that was it. There was no love, no attention, no bonding. _

_I suppose that was one of the reasons why I had decided to run away. I hated my "siblings". Okay, they weren't even close to being siblings. We didn't have the same last names. And we rarely ever slept under the same roof. They were out partying or getting drunk or staying with friends, the stuff I never had._

_I didn't have an exact destination. I just wanted to keep moving, hoping I'd find something or someone of interest to me. I didn't figure out until later how bad an idea that was. I had left in the early afternoon around twelve-ish. By now, it was six thirty. The sun had gone down and it was starting to get dark out. _

_I had wandered down a random street, only to find that the street and the streets around it were deserted. No people, no cars, no open stores. I walked down a block or so before my conscious began to mock me. It called me a fool for leaving and a coward. Me and my stupid inner voices. I started to get ideas about going back to my shitty home to my non-existent family. Looking back, it might have been. But I didn't. I kept walking._

_Another hour passed and I was growing incredibly bored. So I finally gave in and decided to head back home. That's when I saw them._

_There were two of them, both of them like no one I'd ever seen before. There was a male and female. The male had dark blonde hair in a ponytail, narrow eyes and a youthful face. The female had long, fiery colored curly hair. Both of them were young looking. Both of them had pale skin. And both of them were unnaturally good looking, especially the woman._

_I was transfixed by the beautiful woman. She had almost a feral quality to her, the way she looked, dressed and moved, but my body didn't listen to the warning signs pulsing through my brain. It was strange; really, how this was the day that I discovered that I was a lesbian. Great timing, that's for damn sure. Not._

"_Hey there, sweet thing," greeted the male. Now, normally when someone says this they are drunk, high, horny or some combination of the three. This person, however, was none of the above, and his voice showcased this fact. It was eerily…soothing._

"_Er, hi," was my unnecessarily nervous—though somewhat typical—response to his statement. I could see smiles on their faces, though, because of the way the lighting worked, I could not see their eyes. If only I could've at the time._

"_Where's a pretty young thing like you heading at a time like this?" the woman asked. Dear God, her voice was even more enticing then the male's. It was seductive, and was practically begging me in._

"_Home," I answered automatically. _

"_Aw, now why would you do that? The night is young and there's fun to be had," stated the male. Yeah, too bad I didn't know what kind of "fun" he had meant until it was too late._

"_Yes, sweetie, certainly you have time for a little bit of fun, right?" asked the woman. Her voice was doing things to me, things I didn't understand. The way she spoke sent shivers through my spine, though I wasn't sure if they were of pleasure or fear. _

"_Um, well, I kind of have to g-go," I stammered. The sad thing was that I wasn't stammering out of fear._

"_Oh, won't you please reconsider? I'm sure I can make your night worthwhile," the woman purred. Oh. My. God. I couldn't move. Her voice was too fucking enticing. I couldn't look away. _

"_O-okay," I responded. And then my body started moving before my brain could and within seconds I was standing in front of them. _

_No sooner had I reached them was my nose bombarded with the most amazing smells my nose had ever smelled. They were superb, delicious even. I couldn't define the flavor, since it smelled like a mixture, but the woman's scent was the best. She smelled amazing. I couldn't help but breathe in the heavily euphoric scents, which only made me want more._

_I heard soft chuckling and opened my eyes to see them smiling at me. What I hadn't noticed until then was that they were both wearing sunglasses. In the dark. Plus, they were wearing surprisingly heavy looking clothes. In Arizona. During the summer. What. The. Fuck. _

"_Aren't you guys hot?" I asked, again, my mouth being slightly faster than my brain._

"_Do you think so?" cooed the woman. I didn't mean it like that. But then I gawked at her flawless form, and saw the alluring smile form on her lips. My knees felt weak and I felt my heart skip a beat. She stepped towards me as the male stepped back, inches away from my face. My heart felt like it was doing a fucking triathlon. And damn was I blushing. _

"_Um…" was all I could say. She smiled wider and sniffed the air before licking her lips._

"_Well, honey? Do you think I'm hot?" she asked seductively. _

_I. _

_Can't. _

_Control. _

_Myself._

"_Yes," I whimpered. _

_That was enough of a response. Seconds later she crashed her lips to mine and sweet God in heaven if I didn't faint right away. Her lips were cold and rock hard, but smooth. And the taste…the taste was out of this world. Combine that with how good she smelled and I'd say it was orgasmic. Which I almost did right there. _

"_Mm, you taste delicious," the woman purred against my lips. She moved slowly, using her tongue to further the intense pleasure I was feeling. I was barely able to keep myself standing as my lips were dominated by hers. I made no effort to fight back. I loved it too much. It felt so fucking good. Ugh._

_I moaned softly as she continued, pressing her icy tongue into my mouth. I felt her wrap her arms around me in a stony grasp, shuddering at the cool temperature of her skin. In the back of my mind, I wondered how she could be so cold despite wearing warm clothes. But the pleasure and the hormones outweighed rational thinking. _

_Her kissing became stronger, as did her tongue. It soon became clear that she was one hundred percent in control of me. I was her puppet, but I didn't care. I had all but forgotten that the male was still there, watching with an amused smirk on his face. _

_Eventually the need for me to breathe cut in. I had been so mixed up with being kissed by this woman that I hadn't breathed. I squirmed around in her strong grasp as my heart sped up, but her grasp was firmer than should be possible. It wasn't humanly possible, for crying out loud. I started to struggle viciously, but her lips kept coming. I tried pushing her off. No. It was like pushing a damn rock. I tried screaming, but it was muffled against the moaning._

_As I felt my life being drained, I resigned myself. I figured if I was going to die, I might as well die being kissed like this. It sounded good to me. _

"_Victoria," said the male. Victoria stopped instantly and stepped away. I gasped and breathed in the much needed air. I heard them both laugh._

"_Such a fragile creature," mused Victoria. "But she smells divine. Don't you agree, James?"_

"_Indeed she does, my sweet," cooed James, cocking his head to the side to appraise me. _

_I stared at them, uncertain. Part of me wanted more from Victoria. More kissing, more pleasure, anything to appease my raging hormones. I panted quietly while I waited for whatever they did next. I didn't want James to try, though. I wanted the woman. I kept my eyes on her for that reason._

_Victoria lifted her noise and took a long whiff of the air before smirking. "Mm, your arousal is quite delicious smelling too, my dear. I think you're perfect."_

"_Yes, I think so too," agreed James. James slowly began to walk around me, grinning as he did. _

_My eyes darted from him to Victoria, wondering what they were planning to do._

"_Perfect for what?" I asked weakly. _

_Victoria licked her lips and removed the shades. Her eyes were closed as she moved closer to me before she opened them. I gasped. Her eyes were blood red. They weren't normal. There was something inhuman about them. That's when my brain decided to work._

_Cold skin. Red eyes. Stone like body. Superior strength. Why did all of these traits seem oddly familiar to me?_

_James, who had done away with his shades as well, breathed in before laughing._

"_She's the second human whose scent has called to me like this. The first got away. I don't intend to make the same mistake again." Wait. What? What did he mean "second human"? What the fuck was this "not going to make the same mistake again" shit?_

_I was starting to get scared. My heart beat was picking up. Victoria cocked her head to the side and sneered at me._

"_You poor diluted little creature," she chuckled. "You have no idea what you've gotten yourself into, do you?" James, who had walked a complete circle around me, stopped now and smiled in a mocking-yet-friendly way at me. _

"_Tell me your name," he said. _

"_Isabella Swan. I prefer Bella." Stupid fucking mouth! _

"_Well then, Bella," he began, smiling wider. "I'm afraid you're going to have to play our game now."_

"_G-game?" I asked, stepping back. About damn time my body started responding to my brain._

"_Oh yes, it's our favorite game," James stated, stepping forward. "You see, my mate here and I are hunters. We make a game out of each hunt we have. I believe you humans have a book relating to something similar, yes? Well, our game is more fun."_

_I stared at them with disbelief. What the hell was going on? Were they serious?_

"_I don't think she gets it," muttered Victoria, who shook her head in disdain. _

_James looked at me sadly. "Ah, that is so typical for humans. Tell me, Bella, do you know what we are?" he asked. It wasn't a rhetorical question. I looked at them, I mean, I really looked at them. My brain threw out random ideas as to what they were. Serial killers? Rapists? Sick, twisted motherfuckers? Well, maybe all of the above. But he didn't mean it that way. No, his words had another meaning._

"_Would you like a hint?" purred Victoria. I sheepishly nodded. She smiled a wide, ominous smile, revealing her white, glistening teeth. My heart froze at the sight. _

_I smell good to them. They have pale skin and red eyes. They're cold and hard and without a heartbeat._

_No._

"_Say it," James said, licking his lips._

_No. No. No._

"_Yes," Victoria chimed._

_It can't be. No, this is not fucking happening! This can't be happening! They aren't real!_

"_We-" James began._

"_Are-" Victoria added in a low whisper._

"_V-vampires," I whispered. _

_They both laughed a loud, blood-chilling laugh that made my spine erupt in shivers. I stepped back, thinking I could run away from them, but before I could blink Victoria was gone from where she had been and was standing behind me. I felt her cold breath caress my neck, causing all the hairs to stand up in fright. My breath caught as I struggled with what to do._

"_Ho! She got it right!" cackled James. Victoria eyed me hungrily. _

_I don't know why, but I somehow thought I could run away. I spun around and dashed in the opposite direction only to be caught by a pair of granite like hands. Victoria smiled sweetly as I flailed about in her arms. I could hear James laughing louder behind me._

"_As if you could outrun us," she chided playfully, licking her lips. Sweat dropped off my faces as I tried to scream, but a cold hand clamped my mouth shut. _

"_Aw, let her scream!" whined James mockingly. _

_Oh God. I'm dead. They're gonna kill me. Shit, shit, shit!_

_They seemed amused by my terrified expressions since they both laughed again. Their laughter made me shudder in terror until they stopped and glanced at one another. _

"_Let's go someplace more suitable," said Victoria darkly. My body went limp in her hands, but she didn't even seem to notice. _

_I'm not sure what happened next, but before I could fully register it, I was lifted into the air and moving around so fast everything was blurred. Not but seconds later was I thrown onto a wooden floor, rolling around a few times before stopping. I blinked several times and saw that I was inside a warehouse of some type. It was nearly pitch black, but the pale skin of the two vampires illuminated the darkness._

_Vampires. _

_I don't fucking believe this. How can this be? How can vampires exist? It's not possible! Yet here they are, looming in front of me, waiting to kill me. I'm going to die. Tears started to drip down my cheeks as I realized how pitiful my life had been. I'd missed out on so much. I never got an "I love you", never went to a dance or out on a date. My life was meaningless and now I was going to die. Pathetic. That's what I am. Worthless._

"_Oh, stop crying already," groaned Victoria. "You won't be dying tonight, little human." _

_Wait. What?_

"_Where's the fun in that?" James asked, as if reading my mind. "Well, I suppose you __**will**__ die eventually, but tonight is when we start our game."_

_Through the tears, confusion and fright I remembered him mentioning a "game" before. What the hell game was he talking about? Then again, I'm dead anyways, it doesn't matter. My body began to shake violently from the fear, a delayed reaction of sorts, I guess. _

"_Aw, poor baby," mocked James. "Now, stop that. I'm going to explain the rules of our little game. You might survive if you play it well." The last sentence sounded both truthful and mocking._

"_W-w-what d-do you m-mean?" I stammered weakly, not moving from where I was on the floor. _

_James smirked. "Well, let me start by telling you that I am one of the best trackers in the world."_

"_That he is," Victoria cooed, adding to his disgustingly smug smile._

"_You see, Isabella, I love to hunt. And you, my dear, are my newest target."_

"_W-why?"_

_He shrugged innocently. "Well, for one thing you know what I am. Secondly, and more importantly, is your scent. You see, all humans smell good to us. Some have stronger scents then others, scents that make our mouths water a mile away. These are the humans I choose as our targets. And before you ask "why do you hunt", I do it because it's fun. Simple."_

"_Now then, let me explain the rules to this game. Rather than just kill you now, I'm going to give you a fighting chance at survival. I'm going to give you ten days. The first five will be yours to run as far away as you can. I don't care where you go or how you get there, that's up to you. After the first five days, we will begin pursuing you. If you can avoid us for five more days, then I'll let you live and call off the hunt. Does that sound fair?"_

_I didn't respond at first, taking in the information he was presenting me. Victoria walked over to me and stomped on my right forearm, causing me to cry in pain._

"_Yes!" I yelled, rubbing my throbbing arm once her foot was removed._

"_Good. Here's the thing, though. If we catch you before those last five days are up, we're going to torture you. Not kill you, since that would be boring. But we'll give you a little reminder to do better the next time. Oh, this is going to be so much fun!" James seemed giddy about the idea, sending a new wave of terror through me._

_Victoria knelt by my side and smiled at me._

"_Don't worry, Isabella. We won't be too rough. But I must say, I'd like a taste of your blood before we go." Before I could respond she grabbed my right arm and lifted the sleeve up. Then her teeth sank into the underside of my upper forearm. I screamed in agony as her teeth tore my flesh and felt the blood leaving my body. After a moment she tore away, licking the blood trickling down her lips. _

"_How was it?" James asked._

"_Delicious," Victoria moaned. Her eyes were pitch black as she stared down at me. "I've never tasted blood this good before. I can't wait for another taste." She leaned in again, but James grabbed her shoulder and threw her back._

"_Now, now, Victoria, play nice. Let the venom burn her for a while, and then suck it out. We don't want her turned, now do we?" She growled, but nodded nonetheless._

_That's when it started. I felt a sudden burning sensation course through me, especially my forearm. It felt like my skin was on fire. Everything hurt. I screamed in pain as the fire erupted through me. I writhed around, struggling to move, but the burn didn't leave me. _

"_Stop the fire! Oh God, stop the fire! It burns!" I shrieked. I couldn't hear the two vampires as I continued screaming as the pain increased. _

_God, kill me. Kill me, kill me, kill me! _

_KILL ME!_

_I don't know long I screamed and writhed for. But at some point, I saw a head of red hair near me and felt teeth in the spot where the burn was the worst. Then the burning slowly disappeared. I stared up to see Victoria smirking at me as she pressed her icy lips to mine one last time. I could taste my own blood on them._

_The last words I remembered were a faint, mocking whisper._

"_Sleep well, Isabella. Tomorrow you start our game." Then she was gone. And I fell unconscious._

That's how it had started. I had woken up the next day, sore and soaked in sweat and tears. At first, I had thought it was some nightmare. But I was still inside a warehouse and I saw the bite mark on my forearm. It was white and cold to the touch, making me shiver. It had been real.

I had sat there and cried to myself for an hour before my body began moving. The last four months were the worst. I tried as hard as I could to think of ways to avoid them. Yet they always found me, always smug. At first I had tried to run, but that never worked. So the moment I saw them, I resigned to my fate. The torture had always been the same. They'd beat me, bruise me, insult me. They wouldn't make my bleed, though, since that would make things too difficult. I didn't get why they didn't just kill me.

Victoria had bitten me quite a few times. James didn't have the same control as she did, hence why he was always standing away, watching with glee. I had six bite marks on my right arm. Apparently she was going to cover my entire body or some shit.

I didn't care anymore. I didn't fight it. I couldn't fight it.

New tears had formed in my eyes as I recalled the horrid memories. I had slowed my pace down so as to not fall over anything, but ended up tripped and landing flat on my face anyways. I winced at the impact and stood slowly. I had a multitude of bruises on my arms, chest, back and legs. My face was probably scuffed up too. I wiped the dirt off of me as best I could as I slowly continued my moving.

Why was I still doing this? Why was I still running when I knew it would be pointless?

As I pondered my sanity, I saw something in the distance. It was a house. The house was large and white, and looked almost empty. I neared the house, slowly, staring at it with wide eyes. It was quite beautiful looking. I wondered who lived out here.

My stomach growled suddenly. I realized I hadn't eaten for a day and a half now. Ha. I hadn't had an actual meal in four months, truth be told. I slowly crept towards the house and glanced around casually. I didn't see anyone. I slowly treaded to the door and put my ear to it. I didn't hear anyone. I took a quick glance in a nearby window. Nope, nothing.

"Here goes nothing," I murmured quietly to myself. Without letting my conscious get the better of me, I made a mad dash inside the house.

Over the last four months I had to survive by stealing food and clothes. I didn't have money and I couldn't get a job, so there was no other way. My clumsiness often made it difficult, but I somehow managed to escape each time without getting caught. I got better as time went on and smarter too. I couldn't stop my clumsiness, though.

No sooner had I sprinted into the vacant kitchen did I slip and land on the floor with a thud.

Damn it! Stupid smooth floor!

I cringed at the pain since I had banged my right knee, which was already pretty bruised. I got to my feet in a hurry and glanced around nervously. No one. I didn't allow myself a sigh of relief as I bounded to the refrigerator and quickly and quietly opened it, praying there was something edible in it. And there was. Wow. There was A LOT. The fridge was chock full of various foods and unopened beverages. I gawked at the sight before slowly going to grab something.

"Is there something you'd like?" a calm voice asked behind me. I froze in place as my heart skipped a beat. Oh God. I'd been caught. Shit.

Slowly I turned around, expecting to see someone with a gun or a knife or a phone. It was none of the above. Instead, I saw a woman with long, caramel colored hair and a heart shaped face, smiling at me. It wasn't a sinister "you're fucked" smile, but a warm, gentle smile.

I just stared. She was beautiful, that much was for sure. But something about her seemed oddly familiar. Oh. Pale skin, unnatural beauty. Fuck. Not another one!

"PLEASE DON'T EAT ME!" I shrieked, instantly shielding myself from an attack that didn't come. There was silence after my outburst and I couldn't help but sneak a peek. The woman was staring at me, wide-eyed with alarm and confusion.

"Dear, I'm not going to-"

"Don't lie to me!" I shouted, tears forming in my eyes. "I know what you are!"

She seemed even more surprised by this and desperately tried to find something to say. I didn't want games.

I couldn't stop myself from shouting. "I know what you are," I repeated warily, stepping back. "The pale skin, the beauty, the eyes, the-" I stopped suddenly when I noticed something. Her eyes. They weren't blood red like the ones from before. They were…gold? What the hell?

"Your eyes aren't red…" I murmured, staring at them.

She sighed and shook her head. "No. My family and I feed on animals."

"Oh," was all I could say. The room suddenly began spinning as all my emotions hit me at once. Shock, fear, worry, pain…and a small glimmer of hope. I realized then that it was also exhaustion and my world slowly began going dark. The vampire woman looked at me sadly and warmly as I fell into her cold, gentle arms. I could only manage a few words as I faded into unconsciousness, silently praying to myself for them to work.

"Please don't kill me…"

**A/N: So I've been aching to do my own Bella/Alice story for a while now. I started thinking about a good way to start it that wasn't the same as the book. That's when I got this little idea. I thought it sounded good, so I went with it. Honestly, I think it turned out pretty decent.**

**So, a few things. There are only two canon pairings among the Cullens (Carlisle and Esme and Rosalie and Emmett). Jasper has an OC named Amara as a mate, while both Edward and Alice are single. There will be other minor differences here and there, but I'll make note of those as the story goes on.**

**Anyways, I hope this was a good chapter. Review if you wish.**


	3. Angel

**Disclaimer: I do NOT own Twilight. Stephanie Meyer does. As if I need to repeat it.**

**Angel**

As I fell deeper into slumber, I dreamt. Correction, this was no dream. It was a nightmare. It was a reminder of pain from the past, pain both inflicted on and by me. The memories never left. They haunted me in my sleep and when I was awake. Past sins that dragged me further into the darkness of my own world. I'll never forget. I can't forget. I wish I could…

_I had been on the run for a month now. I was somewhere north, I didn't know where exactly. My body was aching. I was starving and tired. Mostly, though, I was afraid. I knew I was going to be caught by them, by the hunters. I had been caught twice before. The first time had been the worst in terms of punishment. Victoria did most of it, beating me down until I was barely able to stand anymore. I never bled, though. But the bruises still remained. _

_I wanted this time to be different. I hoped I could get away. At the very least, I hoped I could find protection. Ha. Yeah, right, like anyone will believe me when I tell them I'm on the run from vampires. This is bullshit. _

_I hate my life, seriously._

_It was day four of the hunt. I remembered keeping track of each day because, well, my life DID depend on it. I had been wandering around a dirt road. My legs were sore, so running wasn't an option. I tried, but I always ended up falling. So here I was, covered in dirt and bruises, when a car pulled up several feet in front of me. _

_I was nervous to say the least. I was too tired to be able to defend myself if the need called for it. So I silently prayed to God that somehow this was a kind Samaritan out trying to help a girl whose life was practically meaningless. _

_To be honest, I think God __**does**__ exist. Because that's exactly what it was._

_As I neared the car, one of the doors opened and out stepped a curly haired woman who looked to be in her thirties. She took one look at me, shook her head and motioned for me to come forward. I did, slowly of course._

"_Now why in heaven's name are you out here all by yourself?" she asked with a bit of an accent._

_I didn't know what to say, really. I mean, I sucked at lying. But I sure as hell couldn't tell her the truth either. So I decided to go with a half-truth. Besides, in my mind, if she was willing to give me a ride I would use it to my advantage. I'd eat their food, sleep wherever I could, shower and thank them before leaving. I couldn't get attached to them. I had to use them. I hated myself for thinking that way, but it was best._

"_I ran away from home and now I'm lost," I admitted sheepishly, hanging my head._

"_Oh, you poor dear," the woman said, touching my shoulders. "Well, would you like a ride with us sweetie? We've got food and an extra bed at home. What do you say?"_

_Bingo. I smiled politely at her. "Thank you, ma'am, I'd appreciate that. I don't want to be trouble, though."_

"_Nah, don't be that way. It ain't no trouble at all," she replied. "Hop in."_

_So I did. I got in this stranger's car and we drove off. It was a long, but peaceful drive. I spent most of it listening to her slowly talk about her family. Her name was Samantha and her husband was Roger. They had four children; two sons and two daughters. Their oldest child was Daniel, 22, followed by Jackson, 19, Sarah, 17 and the youngest, Christina, 15. _

_Samantha spoke about her family for about ten minutes before asking me why I ran away. My story, which I had been using since my life had become void, was a mixture of half-truths and lies. I was a seventeen year old only child that was abandoned by her abusive mother into the hands of incompetent foster parents who kicked me out after I was wrongfully blamed for crashing their car. I tried to make amends, but they refused me, so I simply ran away. Throw in some tears and sorrowful expressions, and the deed was done._

_It's sad, really. My tears weren't fake, they were real. I cried not only because of the underlying truth in my brief tale, but because I was using this woman's kindness. I hated myself for it. Somewhere in my consciousness I branded myself a monster on par with the monsters hunting me. I didn't dwell on it, though. _

_Samantha believed me instantly and promised me that they would take care of me. I thanked her, even though I felt guilty. Well, almost guilty. Truthfully, a part of my brain was telling me that once I had gotten what I needed that once I left it would be a repayment for their kindness. That way, they wouldn't have to suffer or be killed. _

_It's a shame that I hadn't known at the time how wrong I truly was._

_We reached her house about twenty minutes after she had picked me up. It was a good sized cabin that screamed "homey" at me even at a distance. Not that I was complaining. _

_Samantha called out the rest of her family, who came out one at a time till they were all standing there, gawking at me. She then proceeded to introduce everyone and inform them of my story and that she had offered me a room. None of them seemed to mind. They seemed excited._

_Truthfully, I wondered why in God's name she was so kind to me, a complete and total stranger. Why did they care so much? I was nothing. I was nobody. And for fuck's sake, I was being hunted by vampires! Well, they didn't know that, nor would they._

_So, naturally, the rest of the day I did what I had intended to do. I sweet talked them into feeling sorry for me, I showered, and got some new clothes and I ate their food. They were all surprisingly nice to me, especially little Christina. After dinner I remember being shown my room. That night, I cried to myself. I cried for as long as I could, hating myself for what I was doing to these people. And I cried because I knew that I needed to leave as soon as possible. _

_After crying for what felt like hours, I finally drifted off into a dreamless sleep. It's odd, because that was the first night I'd gotten actual sleep for a month. Yeah, that's a bad thing._

_I woke up having my shoulders shaken gently. I opened my eyes slowly to see Samantha looking at me with concerned tears in her eyes. What? What the hell happened?_

"_Thank goodness!" she shouted, relieved. "Dear, I thought you were dead! You've been asleep for so long…"_

"_How long was I asleep?" I asked after finding my voice. Damn slow working brain._

"_Three days!" she exclaimed._

_Whoa, hold on. Three days? What the fuck? Is that even possible? No way! Then again, I did feel really good._

"_Did you say three days?" I asked, completely lost. She nodded. "Is that even possible?" Now I was repeating my thoughts._

"_Well, dear, I believe so. When was the last time you got a good night's sleep?" she asked in a softer tone._

"_Um, a month?" Her eyes bulged out of her head. Fuck. I quickly tried to amend my statement. "I mean, I slept, but not for very long is all."_

"_That's not healthy at all missy!" she shouted, shaking her head. "No wonder you looked like the walking dead!" _

_Walking dead? Oh, fuck. Three days. That means it was day seven. Shit. I had to get out of here._

"_What time is it?" _

_She seemed surprised by the haste in my tone. "It's five in the afternoon." Five in the…seriously what the hell is wrong with me? Ugh!_

"_I have to go," I stated. I tried to move, but she pinned my arms down._

"_Oh, no you don't! You are in no condition to be leaving!"_

"_You don't understand! I need to leave!" I protested, squirming out of her grip._

"_Why? And where are you supposed to go with no money?" she shot back. _

"_I…" I couldn't form an audible response. I just ran. I pleaded my body not to fall as I dashed out the door, past the shocked family members shouting with concern and surprise. I ran out their door and down the dirt road leading to their cabin. And then I stopped. Or rather, I was stopped. Two sinister pairs of glowing red eyes were staring back at me. _

_Fuck. My. Life._

"_Hello Isabella," purred Victoria. _

"_Hmm, I'm a little disappointed. I was hoping to stretch this one out a bit longer," complained James with his usual grin. _

_I started backtracking. They both smiled and slowly walked towards me. _

"_Who are you two?" asked a voice behind me. It was Roger. I hadn't realized I was still near their house. Shit!_

_James and Victoria seemed amused._

"_I didn't know you had friends, Bella," James stated, grinning. _

"_Mm. They smell lovely too. Not as good as you, of course," added Victoria. _

_I froze. I wanted to shout to Roger to run like hell. But it was too late for that. I turned to see him pointing a shotgun at the two vampires in front of him._

"_Ooh, big scary gun," laughed James. "You gonna shoot us? Go on, try it."_

"_Get behind me, Bella," ordered Roger. "And you two back off."_

"_What are you going to do about it, old man?" mocked Victoria._

"_I'm warning you,"_

_What happened next was sudden. In the blink of an eye, Victoria blurred in front of Roger. Startled, he yelped and pulled the trigger. I closed my eyes for a moment, and then heard a loud noise. I opened them to see Victoria holding a bullet with her left index finger and thumb. James was twirling the shotgun around amusedly. _

"_What…what the-" Roger was on the ground, shocked._

_Victoria grinned and in one brisk movement flicked the bullet with her fingers. Roger collapsed, dead, a hole in the center of his forehead. I gasped. James jumped onto Roger's body and sank his teeth into him while Victoria slowly walked towards me. I was frozen where I stood, terrified. _

_Victoria stopped, looked around me and grinned. In a flash she was gone and I heard a gasp and another thud. I turned to see Victoria burying her teeth into Samantha's neck, whose eyes went white in an instant. _

"_No!" I shouted. Victoria looked up at me, blood dripping from her mouth. _

"_Oops. Sorry, Isabella," she said with mock sympathy. She licked the blood from her mouth and appeared in front of me, grabbing my arms. Fuck._

"_I have an idea," James said, blurring to Victoria's side. He was still holding the gun. "It might be fun. And if you do this, Bella, I promise you won't be tortured this time. Sound good?"_

_I wondered what sick, twisted scheme was boiling in the back of his head. Suddenly Victoria moved and we were inside the house now. I didn't see the others. I wondered where they were._

_As if on cue, Christina walked out, rubbing her eyes. She glanced at me, then at Victoria and James. She seemed entranced by them as I had been when I first met them. I saw the look in their eyes as they stared back at her._

"_N-no!" I shouted, eyeing James. "She's just a kid!" _

_James glanced at me and feigned a hurt expression. "What? Dear Bella, do you really think that I am that vile that I would kill an innocent child? Surely you're mistaken!" _

_I opened my mouth to speak, but was cut off by a snapping noise and a muffled scream. I quickly turned. _

_Oh. My. God._

_No! No, no, no, no! NO! FUCK NO!_

_Christina was lying on the floor, her body lifeless. Victoria stood over her, grinning maliciously._

"_So fragile," Victoria purred._

_I exploded. "YOU FUCKING BITCH! YOU BITCH!" I practically flung myself at her, rage consuming me. She sighed and stopped me with a single finger. Her fist connected with my stomach abruptly after, causing me to lurch forward in agony._

"_Stupid girl," she giggled. James laughed too._

"_I don't understand you humans and your pointless attachments. Oh, that reminds me." He grabbed me and pulled me back before placing the shotgun in my hands. I stared down at it, confused. Then realization hit me._

"_No…" I breathed._

"_Oh, yes. You're going to finish the others off," James ordered, smiling at me. "It's either that or you receive double the torture."_

"_I…I can't!" I shouted. "I won't! I'm not a killer!"_

"_Oh, come now, Isabella. Do you really care about a couple of insignificant lives? Do they mean anything to you? No, they don't. You care about yourself. That's all there is to it.__** You**__ are what's most important in your life. You owe them nothing. Think about it. Think of the fun! Besides, dear, do you really want to go through more torture?" Victoria asked._

"_Do it," James purred. 'If you don't, we will. And we'll make them suffer. Don't let them suffer, Bella. Make it quick and painless. You'd be doing them a favor."_

_Victoria moved closer to me, her face inches away from mine. "Do it," she breathed._

_I tried to black out the rest of the images from my mind. In the end, I couldn't do it. I couldn't pull the fucking trigger and save them from an agonizing death. Instead I watched. I watched as they were tortured beyond human endurance. I remember the screams. I remember the blood and the faces. I remember the self hatred. I remember the anger. I remember the tears. I remember wishing God would kill me. I remember trying to kill myself._

__

But mostly I remember the choice that I refused to make. How easy it should have been to pick up that gun and take away their pain. But I was too weak, too fucking pathetic.

And as the two demons stood above me, their soulless laughter echoing amongst the carnage, I realized something.

I was not a human.

I was their slave. Their toy. I was worthless.

I was a monster, no better than them.

I had killed that night. I killed an entire family by allowing them to take me in. It was my fault. Their lives had ended because of me. I did nothing to stop it.

_Monster. Murderer. Slave.  
_

_The memories fade away, leaving me standing in darkness. The pain, fear, hatred, anger and sorrow wash over me, causing me to fall to my knees and cry. I am lost. Alone. _

_Why? Why me? Why am I the one cursed? Why did it have to be me? Why?_

"_Bella…"_

_That voice. I know that voice. It's the same voice from my dreams. To me, it sounds like the voice of an angel._

"_Go away angel, I don't deserve you," I cry. _

"_Bella…" she called again. "You aren't a monster."_

_How could the angel say that? How could she think that? Of course I was a monster. The things I did…_

"_Were not your fault, Bella. You had no control over them. You are a gentle, loving person. You are no monster," the angel stated. "And you are beautiful too."_

_No. I can't accept that. I won't. I just…can't…_

My eyes slowly opened, dampened by the tears that fell caused by the nightmare. I shook off the painful images and realized that I was lying on a couch, a pillow beneath my head. Where was I?

I sat up, a bit too quickly, and felt a surge of pain shoot through me.

"Fuck! Ow…" I grumbled. I heard a soft chuckle in front of me and looked up, yelping in the process.

The vampire woman was there, sitting on a chair several feet away from me. Now I remember. I had broken into her house, she had caught me and…I was still alive? What the hell? She seemed to notice my growing distress and looked at my sorrowfully.

"I'm sorry for scaring you earlier, dear," she said softly. Her voice was so sincere…so warm. It was nothing like the fear inducing voices of the other two.

"Um…y-you aren't g-gonna eat m-me?" I stammered.

She looked at me with warm golden eyes. "I wouldn't dream of hurting you, honey," she replied, smiling at me. Again, it wasn't a twisted or evil smile, but a gentle, loving one. Her smile dropped for a moment and she laughed harmonic laugh. "I'm sorry; I suppose "dream" is the wrong word to use since I don't sleep. But I have no intention of harming you."

"Um, okay…" I mumbled. I was confused by the fact that she wasn't going to hurt me, but for some reason I trusted her. Her eyes glowed with sincerity. I couldn't find it in my heart to not believe her. It was so…strange.

She smiled kindly at me. "My name is Esme, by the way. Esme Cullen."

"I-I'm…Bella Swan." I cannot believe I am telling her my name! It's just like the first time! Only, well, I'm not being helplessly seduced or some shit like that. Alright, so it wasn't _just_ like the first time. This time was completely different.

"It's very nice to meet you, Bella," she said happily.

"Er, yeah, it's…nice to meet you…Esme…" I can't help the fact that I'm still nervous as hell. I mean, okay, so she isn't going to hurt me.

Then what the fuck _is _she gonna do with me?

"Are you hungry?" she asked, lifting an eyebrow. "I can make you something if you'd like."

Wait. What? "You can cook?" I asked, surprised.

She smiled and nodded. "Yes, actually, I trained myself by reading cookbooks and watching the Food Network. My husband Carlisle works as a doctor, so sometimes I come in and cook for his patients. It's quite fun, actually."

"W-wait? Husband?" She nodded pleasantly. "How many of you a-are there?"

"Oh, goodness me, I forgot. There are eight of us altogether. Carlisle and I live here with our six adopted children. I have three sons and three daughters; Emmett, Edward, Jasper, Rosalie, Amara and Alice."

"A-are they here?" I asked. I was becoming worried.

"No, no, they aren't here dear, don't worry," she said. "Carlisle is at work and the kids are all out doing their own things. I called Carlisle to let him know what happened and asked him to tell the kids to stay away for a while. I didn't want to frighten you further."

I stared at her as she explained, dumbfounded. Why did she care so much?

"Why?" I asked incredulously.

"Why what, dear?" she replied, confused.

"Why do you care so much about me? Why are you being so _nice_ to me? I broke into your house, for God's sake! And…and…I mean, I _know_ that you're a vampire! Yet here you are being friendly to me…I just…I don't understand." I may have been a little harsh, but I mean, come on, what the hell am I supposed to think?

Esme looked at me sympathetically and sighed. "My family and I don't drink human blood, Bella. We don't believe in it. We aim to be like humans, to live in peace with them. We don't believe in pointless violence either. And I, for one, am not about to turn away a lonely girl who looks like she hasn't eaten or slept in months because she broke into my house."

"Bella, I know you're scared of me. I don't know what past experiences you've had with our kind, but I assure you that I have no bad intentions towards you. If you wish to leave, I won't stop you from doing so, but I would like you to stay. You're scared and you look hurt, so I'd like my husband to look you over when he comes home. Please, dear, I want you to trust me. No one in my family will harm you."

I was speechless. I mean, seriously. Wow. Is it a bad thing that I believed every word she just said? I don't understand. She just radiates this warmth and concern that feels so real I feel as though I can't disbelieve her. When I look into her eyes, I only see love, something I've never known my whole life. I've known this woman for a short period of time, and hell, she's a vampire, but she's been more motherly to me then my mother had ever been.

"Okay," That was my answer. I didn't know what else to say, really. Esme seemed pleased regardless of my short answer.

"Would you like something to eat?" she asked. I opened my mouth to answer, but I stopped when I heard a car pull up outside. I grimaced, hoping that the others hadn't decided to come home all at once. THAT would be awkward.

Esme tsk-ed and shook her head. "I had a feeling she would be showing up soon." She then noticed my confused and startled face and smiled at me. "Don't worry, dear, it's only Alice. You'll like her. She's a sweet girl. I'll tell her to behave." Esme stood up slowly and paced herself as she walked away. I guess she did it to try and ease me, since I knew she could get to the door in seconds. I was oddly thankful for her kindness.

Rather than watch her, though, I decided to look around the house from my seat on the couch. I mean, I was curious about the kind of home vampires would be living in. I was surprised, to say the least, that their home looked fairly ordinary. No coffins, no skulls, no chains, no spikes, none of the shit I'd seen in most vampire movies.

Then again, I doubted the movies were _anywhere_ close to being correct about vampires.

My eyes bulged when I took in the living room. A giant, plasma screen TV adorned the walls with an expensive DVD player beneath it, not to mention several game systems. The walls were decorated by paintings, pictures, masks and scrolls, several shelves here and there, some with trophies, others with miscellaneous objects that seemed to have their own story behind them. I was amazed. Everything looked so bright and stunning. It was all so foreign, yet so vaguely familiar to me. I wonder how-

"Hi!" chirped a high pitched, melodious voice. I was so startled I leapt off the couch and crashed onto the floor.

"Ow," I groaned, rubbing my sore bottom.

"Alice!" scolded Esme. I blinked out of the temporary daze I was in and looked up in annoyance only for it to fade in seconds as my mouth dropped the floor.

Standing before me was perhaps one of the, fuck it, _**the**_ most beautiful girl I'd ever laid eyes on. She had a head of ink-black hair that stuck out in a halo of spikes that made my hands twitch with the urge to run my fingers through it. Her face was cute, with a small nose, thin eyebrows and dimples near her enticing red lips. And her eyes…God, her eyes looked like swirling pools of honey that I found myself lost in. Vampire or not, she looked like an angel.

"Sorry about that. I'm Alice," the angel said, extending a hand to me. Her voice sounded as heavenly as she looked. It was strange, though. It sounded so…familiar…

It took me a moment to realize that her hand was still extended. Embarrassed, I accepted it, only to jolt my hand back the minute it touched hers. It wasn't so much the fact that her hand was icy cold that bothered me. I was used to that. But the second they touched, a strange, electrifying jolt surged through my body. It wasn't painful, just surprising. And it felt kind of good, too.

I glanced up at her to see that she too had a similar reaction, but her hand came back. I mumbled a "sorry" and took it again, allowing her to lift me up with ease. It was strange seeing someone like her be that strong. I mean, the girl was thin—not oh-shit-you're-anorexic-thin, just skinny—yet toned and was a few inches shorter then I was, about 5'1 or 5'2 to my 5'6.

"So, what's your name?" Alice asked, smiling.

"I'm B-Bella Swan," I answered, staring down at my feet.

"It's nice to meet you, Bella," Alice stated excitedly. I looked at her and gave her a sheepish smile. I didn't know how to respond, really. Neither Esme nor Alice said anything. We all just stood there, no one knowing what to do or say next. Talk about **awkward**.

My stomach, thankfully, had a mind of its own and started growling. I flushed in embarrassment at the loudness. Alice giggled, which only made it worse.

"Oh, Bella, I'm terribly sorry. I'll make you something to eat," Esme said, vanishing into the kitchen. Seeing nothing else to do, I sat back down on the couch. Alice sat next to me, her golden eyes never leaving. Is it weird that I like the fact that she's staring at me?

"Are you okay?" Alice asked. I turned to see her looking at me concernedly.

"I'm just…I dunno. I feel lost. Out of place. I didn't expect to be taken care of by vampires, for one thing. And I-" I paused for a moment. "Oh, shit. What day is it?"

"Saturday," she answered.

_I still have a few days._ "Um, thanks."

"Bella…" Her voice was gentle and a wave of familiarity hit me again.

Esme appeared then and placed a plate in front of me with a sandwich on it. I looked at it hungrily and without a word dove into it. I hadn't eaten an actual meal for over three weeks. It was nice to get some food in me. I forgot my manners in that moment, I even forgot that there were two vampires there watching me. I stuffed myself, moaning softly at how amazing the food tasted. The sandwich was gone in about two minutes flat, followed by the glass of water that had been next to it. Afterwards I laid back into the couch and sighed.

"That was delicious," I said, more to myself.

I heard Esme chuckle. "Thank you, dear. When was the last time you ate?"

I flushed, suddenly remembering I _wasn't_ alone. Both Esme and Alice had been watching me, fascination in their eyes, Alice especially. I felt a little uncomfortable, which must have been noticed by both of them since they softened their gazes.

"Um, I haven't really had a decent meal for a few weeks," I admitted. Esme's eyes practically bulged out of her head.

"A few _weeks_? Good God girl! No wonder you look so skinny!" she shouted. "That changes things entirely! You are hereby not leaving until you get some food in you." I gawked at the firmness in her voice as she finished. She sounded so…motherly.

But wait. I couldn't stay.

"I can't stay," I muttered, staring down at the table.

"Why not?" Alice asked, raising an eyebrow.

"I…I don't want to be a burden on you," I replied. Well, it wasn't a _total_ lie.

"Nonsense dear, you're no burden," Esme sang. If only they knew.

"Bella, may I ask you something?" I hesitated for a moment before nodding. "How do you know about vampires?"

Ah. I knew at some point that question was going to come up. They wanted to know how I knew about them. Then they would kill me. Everything else was a cover story for me to spill it. My heart began beating as I eyed her nervously.

"Why should I trust you?" I asked in a low voice. She looked at me with a mixture of hurt, concern, annoyance and understanding. "You don't even know me." She looked at the table, then, thinking to herself.

"But I want to," whispered Alice, so quietly I almost didn't hear. I don't think I was meant to hear it either, but I did. I stared at her, surprise etched into my face. She sounded sincere.

"Why?" I pressed. "I'm some human while you're a beautiful vampire. Why would you want to know _me_? Besides, I thought vampires fed on humans!" I don't know where this was coming from, but the words flew from my mouth before I could think.

Alice rubbed her temples and sighed. "Esme told you we don't drink human blood, Bella. She wasn't lying. We drink animal blood. Please believe me when I say that we don't want to hurt you." Her golden eyes pleaded me, smoldering for my understanding.

"But why do _I_ matter? I'm not your friend or part of your family!" I was babbling now, oblivious to the tears streaming down my cheeks. Alice remained silent, her eyes burning with emotions I couldn't register. My mind was buzzing. What do I do? What do I say?

_They're vampires! They can't be trusted!_

_They're so nice, though. _

_It's a trap! They're just waiting for the right time to strike._

_They said they don't hunt humans._

_That was probably another lie._

_Their eyes are gold. They can't fake that._

_They may be nice, but what about the others? What if they say otherwise?_

_Esme said her husband is a doctor. A vampire doctor that's around blood. That's saying something._

_What does it matter? They still can't be trusted. _

_They could help. There are eight of them and only two hunters. They could protect me._

_Why would they want to? I'm worthless. I don't deserve their help._

"I don't deserve your kindness. I'm worthless…" I repeated the words in my head, because they've always been true. I didn't deserve any kindness. I always brought pain to those who showed it to me. I started to stand, but I was stopped by two cold hands. Alice cupped my cheeks and forced me to look her in the eye.

"You are **not** worthless, Bella," she said firmly. Those orbs of honey made it clear that she meant what she said.

"But…but…" I was full blown crying now. I couldn't hold it in anymore. I wasn't used to being treated this way. I wasn't used to feeling this way either.

Why? Why did she care? I don't get it.

Alice pulled me into her shoulder as I continued crying. My body decided to move on its own and eventually I had my arms wrapped around her granite body, not caring anymore what she was. She held me for what felt like hours of crying before I felt her lift me. Through my blurred vision I saw that she was carrying me upstairs and in seconds I was in a different room.

She gently placed me onto a bed and pulled up the covers, using her cold hand to stroke my head. I couldn't object even if I wanted to. I couldn't stop crying, but the tears had lessened as fatigue began setting in. Alice leaned closer until her lips were inches away from my ear.

"You are not a worthless human, Bella. You are beautiful. We won't abandon you, Bella. We want to help you. Please, trust me. We'll protect you." She then quietly left the room, leaving me to myself. As my world faded into slumber, I thought about how sincere she sounded. I thought about her words, how kind they were. Then a realization hit me.

Her voice.

I don't know for certain. Maybe its wishful thinking, maybe I'm just insane. But I think…

It sounded just like the angel from my dreams.

**A/N: Yay, chapter two is finished. Ugh. It took forever. ****Honestly, I couldn't figure out what to do to get it to my liking. I mean, I kept going back and rewriting it. I finally decided to stick with this, though I still struggled with ending it. I dunno. I guess I'm pleased with how it turned out, but at the same time, I'm not. Maybe it's not that good. Who knows. I did what I could, though.**

**Alright, so. For those of you that are confused by the first part (which was twisted, yes, I know) it was a dream.**

**And for those of you wondering why I had that done to Bella, it was to add depth to her character. She's lost in a world that most don't know exist, not knowing what to do or who to trust. She's haunted by her own past and desperately seeking help. I wanted Bella to be more then just a clumsy girl who haplessly falls in love with a vampire. No, I want to build that up first (or try to, anyways). There's more to Bella's past, of course, and that will come into play gradually.**

**If you're wondering when the Cullens will discover that she's being followed, that happens soon. I'd say the next chapter, but we'll see.**

**Reviews are welcome. Sorry if this isn't as good as the first chapter.**


	4. Trust

**Disclaimer: I don't own Twilight. Yadda yadda yadda. Stephanie Meyer does. Yadda yadda yadda. You know this already. I do, however, own Amara, since I made her up.**

**Trust**

I felt a myriad of different things converging inside of me at once. Anger, pain and confusion were among them, but they weren't the strongest. I felt a faint glimmer of hope. I don't know why, but I did. And despite the fact that I was in a house full of vampires, I actually felt safe being there. Is there something wrong with my brain? They're vampires, for God's sakes, they're dangerous, even if they don't hunt humans. Then again, I guess the thought of there being vampires that were good—for whatever that word is worth nowadays—had struck me before, but I'd never thought I'd find out in my lifetime.

I didn't dream for the first time in ages. Instead, I simply lay in a realm between consciousness and unconsciousness silently until I could hear voices. At first, I couldn't make out what was being said. They were soft and almost impossible to hear. Soon, though, I was able to listen in on the conversation they were having. Each voice was unique and seemed to have a musical quality to it, a different kind of unnatural tone. Combined, the voices created an odd symphony.

I listened with interest as each voice spoke, memorizing each tone.

"Are you out of your minds? How could you reveal our secret like that?" Her tone was deep and sharp, doing little to hide the underlying rage. It was fierce, yet still beautiful sounding.

"Rosalie, she knew what I was before I even spoke to her." A sweet, harmonic voice filled with gentleness and warmth. I recognized it. It sounded like Esme.

The female, apparently named Rosalie, snorted with disdain. "Well why is she still here, then?"

"She's scared, alone and hurt, Rose. What do you expect us to do? Abandon her?" That voice, the one from my dreams. Sweet and soothing, like ringing bells. Alice.

"Why does that matter? She'll just be another problem for us!" shouted Rosalie.

"IT MATTERS TO ME, DAMN IT!" roared Alice, darker and more violent sounding than ever. Her outburst was following by a crashing noise and several hisses.

"Girls, please, stop this. Rosalie, try and understand that we cannot abandon her, regardless of her knowledge. I simply will not allow it. Besides, she's injured and I'd like to check over her when I have a chance." This voice was male. It was older sounding and full of authority, but as gentle and compassionate as Esme's.

"I agree with Carlisle. She should stay." Another male, this one deeper, but calming.

"Oh? And how are the two of you going to handle her scent?" asked Rosalie.

"Hey, cut us some slack, Rose. We've been doing pretty damn well for ourselves so far." The last female voice was flutelike, but with obvious edginess.

"Amara is right, Rosalie. We're doing better," agreed the calm-voiced male.

"So what do we do?" asked a third male, louder and gruffer then the first two.

"I say we kick her out. Her problems aren't ours to worry about," growled Rosalie.

"Shut up, Rosalie!" hissed Alice.

"Why do you care so damn much?" the fierce girl demanded.

"Because I…she…"

"She thinks that the girl is the one from her visions," answered the calm male.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa, what visions?" asked the louder male.

"You never mentioned this earlier, dear," stated Esme, sounding slightly hurt.

"I'm sorry Esme, I really am. I didn't understand them myself until recently. And then I saw her and I…I think she is the one, you're right Jasper."

"Alright, I'm lost. Would you care to give us some details Alice?" the flutelike female, Amara, asked.

"Look, for the past few months I've been having visions with this girl, Bella, in them. I heard her voice and I could see vague details, but they were mostly blurry. All I know is that I saw her coming to us and…well; I think she's the one."

"The one what? You're not making any sense, Ali," Amara groaned.

There was silence for a moment, then a gasp.

"Alice, that's wonderful news!" sang Esme.

"Wait…you don't mean…?" the loud male began.

"Yes, Emmett. I do."

"Awesome! It's about damn time you found someone!" Emmett boomed happily.

"This…this is unbelievable. She's human, Alice! Do you have any idea how dangerous this is? For her, for us? Ugh! No wonder Edward ran off!" There was another hiss, followed by a door slamming shut violently.

"Rose…" Emmett's loud voice softened. "Aw man, not this again."

"Emmett, dear, could you please go and talk to her?" Esme asked.

"Yeah, of course I will. Hey, tell me when she wakes up. I wanna meet her!" Emmett boomed. He must have departed because of the door opening and closing, loudly again.

"Emmett brings up a good point," the gentle male, Carlisle, pointed out. "If she knows what we are and she's scared of us, obviously she won't trust us. We need to build her trust without frightening her too badly. Again, I'd also like to check to see if she's hurt at all."

"I'll do it," offered Alice. "I've looked at all the different scenarios, and I'm the best choice."

"Amara and I will hunt and stay away for a while, at least until she's comfortable," stated the calm male, Jasper.

"If she's as scared as you say, that could take weeks," grumbled Amara.

"It won't. Trust me, Amara," Alice said firmly. "And I know what you're going to ask, and the answer is no. I'm always right, remember?"

"Fine, fine, jeez. I'm just looking out for you, sis. I'm not going to throw a hissy like Rosalie, but I still worry. What about Edward? Who's going to tell him?"

"It's best if he finds out when he returns. That way she'll be more adjusted to us," Alice stated.

"Alright, let's go Jazz,"

"Take it easy with her, Alice," warned Jasper. The door opened and shut again, though it was gentler then both prior times.

"Alice, when was the last time you hunted?" Carlisle asked concernedly.

"I had to hunt after I put her in my room. I've never met a human who smelled this good to me before. I could barely control myself. But I'm fine now."

"Are you sure, dear? We can watch over her if you'd like," Esme offered.

"Thank you, but I'm fine," Alice insisted. "I looked into it and it'll be fine, I promise."

"Alright, Alice. I trust your judgment. Esme and I will depart to give you some privacy," Carlisle stated softly.

"Don't forget her human needs, dear," Esme added.

Around this time, my consciousness finally came back to me. I let out a quiet yawn before rubbing my eyes and sitting up, taking my surroundings in. The first thing that I noticed wasn't what I saw, but what I smelled. The entire room smelled…amazing. Okay, it smelled better then amazing. It was like aroma heaven or some shit like that. Better than any perfume store I'd been in, that's for sure. The strange thing was that I couldn't really put my finger on what the scent was. It was incredibly sweet smelling, like chocolate, vanilla and strawberry all at the same time.

Okay seriously, what the fuck is wrong with my nose?

I _cannot _stop breathing in this delicious scent. And it's everywhere. Her sheets, her pillow, the fucking atmosphere is filled with this wonderful smell. I took in several deep breaths, relishing in the deliciousness.

"Mm," I moaned quietly.

"Are you enjoying yourself?" I recognized the beautiful voice immediately and blushed, turning to see Alice standing near her door with an amused smirk on her face.

"Um, hi," I murmured, my cheeks red with embarrassment.

"Hi yourself," she giggled. I'm not sure why, but hearing her laugh calmed me down. It was like listening to wind-chimes. It was so…serene.

Wow. What is it with this **effect** she has on me?

"So, um, thanks for…uh, letting me stay in your bed," I murmured, staring at the door rather than at her.

I still wasn't accustomed to being taken care of like this. Hell, I wasn't accustomed to being polite to people either—not that I wasn't, I'm just more used to faking politeness then being genuine. She gave me a dazzling smile in response.

"You're welcome. Did you rest well?" I nodded silently, turning my gaze elsewhere. It was hard to look at her and _not_ stop. I'd never seen anyone as beautiful as her in my entire life. And now that I was almost positive that I was hearing her voice in my dreams _before_ I actually met her, I was a little lost to say the least. I mean, I can't just go "hey, I've been having dreams about you". Vampire or not, there are limitations to weirdness, I'm assuming.

Then again, what do I know?

My eyes began wandering about. Her room was actually quite nice. It was a good sized room with walls painted springtime yellow. Several framed photos and a few paintings aligned the wall directly to my right. I could see two dark brown shelves, each filled up with different objects. One was chock full of CDs from top to almost bottom. The other was mostly books, though I could see a few sketchbooks and art supplies on the bottom. Perhaps the most notable aspect of her room was the closet, which practically dwarfed the rest of her room. I could tell without even looking inside of it that this girl loved shopping.

"Do you like it?" Alice asked, breaking me from my reverie. I blinked a few times and remembered that she was still in the room, staring at me expectantly.

"Er, yeah, it's…really pretty." God, why was this so fucking awkward for me? Damn it!

"Thanks!" she chirped, unfazed by my hesitation. "I do have to give Esme most of the credit, though. She helped design my bed, the shelves and the closet. Without her expertise, it'd be pretty messy in here." I nodded silently again, uncertain of what to really say. I hadn't noticed until then that Alice hadn't moved from her position near the door. My guess was that she was doing her best not to frighten me. I felt kind of guilty, though, since this was _her_ room after all.

"Bella?" Her voice cut through my thoughts abruptly as a look of curiosity adorned her face.

"Yes?"

"Would it be alright if I sat in the chair next to you?" she asked, gesturing towards a lone chair that I somehow didn't notice before. I thought about it for a moment, and then realized that she really was trying to get me to trust her. Why not? What have I got to lose anyways?

"Sure," I told her after a moment. She smiled at this and gracefully twirled over to the chair before sitting in it. We stared at one another for a moment, my brown eyes gazing into her swirling golden ones. Content. That's how I felt looking into her eyes. Even if her facial expressions were hard to read, her eyes were pouring out sincerity and kindness. Whatever arguments that I had made against the idea of talking to her were long gone now.

The silence, however, started to get awkward. She was looking at me as if waiting for me to say something, but I didn't know what. Finally I had to break it.

"So, um…" I started, still uncertain. She smiled.

"I'm sorry if this is awkward for you, Bella. I was actually hoping we could take this time to get to know each other better, you know? That way we could build a mutual trust between one another. Does that sound good?" I could tell by her eyes how much she wanted this. Honestly, I wanted it too.

"Yeah, that sounds fine. Do you want to start?"

"Sure!" she piped with a grin. "So, what's your favorite color?"

_That's simple enough._ "I like blue, mostly. But I'm also fond of green and purple." I watched as she took this information in as if it was the most interesting thing in the world. "I'm guessing yours is red?" Shit! Stupid! I cupped my mouth in embarrassment, praying she wasn't offended. To my relief, she actually smiled wider.

"Yellow, actually," she said in a teasing voice. "I like the ones you mentioned too. And yes, I do like red, but it isn't one of my favorites. I hate pink and orange. Pink is too girly for my tastes and orange is just…" She stopped and seemed to struggle to find the right word.

"Obnoxious?" I offered.

"Precisely!" she agreed. I couldn't help but snicker at her enthusiasm.

"I know what you mean. And I hate pink too. I especially hate it when guys wear pink because they think it's "manly" or whatever shit they come up with. I think it's ridiculous in general."

She burst into a fit of giggles. "My brother Emmett had to wear a pink shirt for a week once."

"Why?" I asked, amused.

"Oh, he made a bet and lost it. You should've seen him. He's a pretty burly guy, so imagine someone like that wearing a thin pink shirt," she giggled. I couldn't help but join her. I liked this.

The awkwardness was gone again. Right now, even though we barely knew each other, I felt as though we were close friends. It was weird, but surprisingly comfortable.

"So, uh, what sort of hobbies do you have?" I asked. I figure something basic to counter hers would work best, right? She seemed surprised. Ha. She probably thought I'd throw out a vampire question. No, I think I'll save those for another time.

Her surprise quickly became a big grin. "I love to dance, sing and draw. I also like designing clothes and playing music." She paused for a moment to let that sink in. I noticed a glint in her eyes as her smile became wider. "But my _favorite_ thing to do? Shopping!" She sang the last word out more enthusiastically then I'd ever heard before and I couldn't help but laugh.

"You don't like the color pink, but you love shopping?" I asked between my laughing.

She stuck her tongue out at me in an adorable fashion. "Shut up!" We both burst into laughter, though hers was beautiful and mine was…just bland. It seemed like I was inferior to her in every way. At least, that's how I saw it. She was this beautiful, graceful super-being while I was dumb, clumsy Bella. Honestly, it wasn't fair. But I didn't complain.

I noticed her eyes silently appraising me. Wait. Was she checking me out? I blushed slightly as I watched her eyes scan me up and down before stopping to look into mine. She cocked her head to the side and looked at me curiously.

"What?" I asked. Did I have something on my face? Were my clothes too revealing? Gah! Since when do I even care?

"How long have you had that outfit?" she asked, pointing at it with amused distaste.

I thought about it. How long…um, let's see…

"A week I think," I answered.

Her eyes bulged. "You've been wearing that for a whole _week_?"

I grimaced and nodded embarrassedly. "I've been washing it whenever I got the chance…" She narrowed her eyes at me. "Hey, give me a break, alright? It's not like I can afford to buy new clothes!"

Her face softened as a realization seemed to hit her. "You stole these." It wasn't a question. I hung my head, shame written all over my face and nodded. She shook her head and tsk-ed. "Well that just gives me an excuse to take you shopping at some point."

She wants to take me shopping? What the fuck? Why?

I opened my mouth to ask her, but stopped when another thought came into my mind. I've been wearing the same clothes for a fucking week. How is she not complaining about the smell? God, that is so embarrassing.

"Um, hey, Alice?" I asked, stammering out of embarrassment and nervousness. She looked up at me. "Do you, um, maybe…have, a…"

"A shower?" she finished. Phew. I thought I'd never be able to say it…

"Yeah and, um, some extra clothes? Because, I mean, these probably stink and I'd hate for you to have to smell them all day…" I trailed off, choosing to stare at the wall instead of her. She leaned forward slightly and sniffed me, which made me turn redder then a tomato.

"I don't think you stink," she said simply. "I think you smell wonderful." My face felt like it was a hundred shades of red. I noticed Alice lean away from me, her face becoming more rigid. Why was she...? Oh. My heartbeat. Shit, I forgot about that. But she just said I smelled wonderful for God's sake! How the hell am I supposed to act? Tell her "gee it sure is nice to know that you think I smell good, miss vampire"? Then again, I guess it was a compliment. And it did sound kind of nice coming from her…

"Er, thanks," I murmured, trying to calm myself down. She only meant it as a compliment, nothing more.

After a moment of silence, her face softened.

"I'm sorry that I made you feel uncomfortable, Bella. It was a slip of the tongue, I swear. But, I mean, I do think you smell good." She paused for a moment and sighed. "To answer your previous question, though, yes you can use our shower and yes I'm sure we have extra clothes for you to wear." She smiled when she finished, completely dazzling me again.

"Thanks. I appreciate it."

She held up a finger. "But, my father, Carlisle, would like to check over you before you do, just to be safe."

I considered it for a moment, and then nodded. "Okay, that's fair. When is he going to get back?"

"He'll be ba-wait, how did you know he was gone?" she asked.

"I, um, kind of heard you guys talking downstairs," I admitted. Alice stared at me for a moment, clearly surprised. Was it that surprising that I had heard them? Her face became normal after a moment as a smile touched her lips.

"He'll be back in another hour. They're giving me time to help ease your fears. He's a very compassionate man, Bella. You'll like him. You don't mind the checkup do you? He'd feel a lot better if you allowed him to. So would Esme. And I would too." She whispered the last part so quietly I wasn't sure if she had said it at all.

There was only one thing that concerned me. The scars. I knew the bite marks still remained and I wasn't sure how they would react. I still hadn't told them about how I knew about vampires. I knew that they would ask again. I thought again about whether or not I trusted them.

_Should I tell them? _

_Well, if I don't, they'll find out regardless. James and Victoria would end up here eventually._

_There are eight of the Cullens and only two of them. They'd destroy them, hands down._

_Would they protect me, though? I doubt that. Hell, maybe they'd work __**with**__ them._

_No. I don't think they would. I think they'd fight, whether to protect me or themselves. _

_Maybe I should say nothing and sneak away during the fighting._

_No! I'm sick of running away! I'm sick of being a coward! And I'm sick of people getting hurt because of me! _

_Alice should know. She can tell the others._

_They don't need the full details, do they?_

_It might work better if they do. _

_Tell Alice the truth, damn it!_

_I trust her. She should know. She's been nothing but nice to me. So has Esme._

I made my mind up then and there. I would tell her. But not now. No, I'd tell her later. Right now, I wanted to ask her a bit more information about vampires. Just to be safe.

"Alice, can I ask you a few questions?" She was staring at the wall, her golden eyes glazed over. She didn't move or respond to me. "Alice?" Again, no response. Now I was starting to get worried. Was she hurt? Hungry? What the hell was going on? "Alice?" I tried again. Still nothing. My heartbeat started picking up with worry.

I slowly began reaching my hand, aiming to touch her shoulder to get her attention. My hand was inches away when her hand suddenly snagged my wrist. I yelped and jolted back with surprise.

"Oh! Bella, I'm so sorry!" she exclaimed. "I'm sorry; I didn't mean to scare you!" She apologized profusely, her honey eyes filled with grief.

I quickly composed myself. "Alice, its fine, you just scared me is all. I mean, you weren't moving and I was getting worried something was wrong. Are you…okay?" I stretched out the word as a precaution. She blinked several times as her face softened. I let out a sigh of relief inwardly. I didn't like to see her sad or upset. It made me feel bad. I wonder why?

"I'm fine. I didn't mean to scare you, really. I was..." She seemed to debate telling me for a moment before continuing. "I was having a vision."

"A vision?" I asked, quirking an eyebrow.

She nodded. "Yes. Some vampires, myself included, are blessed with extra talents that we call gifts. My gift is the ability to see the future," she explained. I gaped at her, stunned.

"That is so fucking cool..."Alice chuckled musically at my remark.

"Yes, I'd say it is. But I don't see the future in the way you're thinking, Bella. My visions are subjective. I can only see a person's choices and the outcomes of said choices. If they change their minds, then the future changes and I won't know what will happen. Sometimes I get visions at random that I have no control over. Other times, though, I can look into the future on my own time, regardless of what I'm looking at. What you just saw was the former."

I took a moment to absorb this new information, drawing it in like a little kid being read a story at bedtime. I could tell Alice found my reaction amusing since she seemed to struggle keeping her face straight. I rolled my eyes at this before opening my mouth to speak.

"So can the rest of your family do cool shit like that?" I asked, completely forgetting any form of etiquette I had used earlier. Alice didn't seem to mind, though.

She shook her head. "No. Only Amara, Jasper, Edward and I have gifts of our own."

"What can they do?" I asked.

"Well, Jasper is an empath. He can feel other people's emotions and influence them however he wants. He usually uses his gift to calm people, but he can make them feel whatever he wants them to. It's not always easy for him, though, since he's always taking in the emotions around him. It's especially hard when the emotions he feels are incredibly strong, since they tend to radiate off of him," she explained.

"So if I'm feeling depressed, all I'd have to do is go see Jasper to get a dose of happiness?" I asked.

"Yup, pretty much," she giggled.

"What about Edward? What can he do?"

"Edward can read minds," she said simply. "He can hear everyone's thoughts around him at any given time. He says that the thoughts are quiet at first, like background noise, but grow louder when he focuses in on them. From what Edward's told me, he can block out thoughts, but it takes more effort when there are more people around him."

"So I guess there's no such thing as privacy in this house, huh?"

"You've got that right," she groaned. "It's bad enough we can hear everything that goes on. With Edward it's near impossible to think anything without him hearing it. I've learned how to keep my mind on other things, though, to throw him off. He gets really annoyed by it, which only makes it funnier."

"I don't know if I could live with someone who was in my head all the time," I stated, cringing at the thought of it.

"You get used to it after a while, I guess. But yeah, it can be difficult at times," she sighed.

"I think, if I were in your place, I'd think dirty thoughts just to piss him off. Or think of some girl-band song and sing it over and over again," I chuckled. It's amazing how cool with the fact that a person in this house could read minds I was. Well, he wasn't _in_ the house right now, from what I remember. I'd have to ask Alice about that later.

She joined me in laughing. "I've actually done that before. He got so annoyed he had to leave for a week to get the song out of his head!" she chuckled. I smiled and enjoyed the sound of her beautiful laughter, allowing it to ease me. Then I remembered her mentioning her sister, Amara.

"What about your sister? What can she do?" I asked.

Alice's face became more serious, so serious it worried me a bit. She was silent for a moment, staring at the sheets while trying to find the words to use, no doubt. After a minute or so of quietness, she took in a deep, unneeded breath and sighed.

"Amara's gift is far more severe then Jasper's, Edward's and mine. She doesn't like to use it unless it's direly necessary because of how destructive it is. She can manipulate the element of fire, you see," she explained. "She can bend any body of flame to her will, which makes her extremely dangerous, especially to other vampires. Amara has gotten better at controlling her gift over the years, but she doesn't have perfect control yet. That's why she hesitates when using it."

I could tell by the look in her eyes that there was a story behind this. I wondered if she would be willing to share or if her sister would be the one to divulge it. I looked at her with wary curiosity, not knowing whether I would be overstepping any boundaries by asking about it. She noticed this and gave me a small, sad smile.

"Amara is the newest member of our family, but I love her dearly. She…has a sketchy past that's caught up with us from time to time. It never ended well for either side, but we always managed to avoid any major conflict. She feels guilty for her past actions and she's doing everything she can to atone for them. I can't say much, but I will say that we've moved several times because of her gift getting…out of hand, I would say. But none of us hold anything against her. I'm sure that, when you two get better acquainted, she will be comfortable talking with you about it."

"I'm sorry…" I murmured.

"You have no reason to apologize, Bella. You're curious. There's nothing wrong with that." Her smile returned to the dazzling grin it had been earlier, which made me feel better. "Honestly, I'm surprised you haven't been asking me all the usual vampire related questions."

I flushed. "Well, um, I, uh, was thinking about it, but…"

"Go ahead and ask, Bella," she giggled.

I ran down all the "typical" questions in my mind and decided I'd just throw them all out at once.

"Okay, so do you sleep in coffins?"

Alice rolled her eyes. "No. No coffins. We don't sleep at all, actually." Well, the dark circles under their eyes made more sense. Alice's face fell slightly, a hint of sadness in her eyes. "Sometimes I wish I could sleep, though, just so I could dream the way humans do. I want to know what it's like, just once in my life."

Ugh! Again with the damn sad face! Why does she keep doing that? It makes me feel guilty!

"It's not that great, really," I said, trying to make her feel better. Of course, the nature of the dreams I had been having lately prevented me from saying anything more.

Alice smiled at me. "You don't have to do that, silly Bella. Now, what else would you like to know? I'm fully aware that there's more."

"Um, okay. What about sunlight? Do you burst into flames or something? And what about stakes, holy water, crosses and garlic?"

Again Alice let out a trill of enchanting laughter before answering.

"Slow down there, Bella," she giggled. "Alright, first of all, no, we don't burn in the sun. We can't go out in the sun for reasons that I'll show you another time." I frowned at that. What, she couldn't give me an exact answer? "Trust me, Bella; you'll like it if I show you." Damn psychic.

"Now, to answer your other questions. First of all, none of those things can kill us. Stakes don't even hurt us, really. Our bodies are naturally harder than a human's, so a stake would just break if it was trying to stab us. Crosses don't do anything either, though I'm rather fascinated by them. As far as holy water goes, there's no such thing. Water blessed by a priest doesn't count, despite what some humans seem to think. Honestly, I have no idea where they come up with the idea."

"Garlic?"

Alice rolled her eyes. "Garlic just stinks to us. Most human food does, but garlic is incredibly potent and it hurts our noses when we smell it. That by far is the most ridiculous method humans seem to believe can kill us. Really, it stinks and nothing more."

"So…how_ do_ you kill a vampire?" I asked.

"Are you planning on killing me?" Alice asked in a deadpan voice.

I was shocked. "W-what? N-no, of course not!" I shouted. "I w-was just curious and-" I was cut off by a cool finger being pressed to my lips.

"Relax, Bella, I was only joking," she giggled. Her face became serious, though. "Fire is the only thing that can kill a vampire. Even if our limbs are ripped off, unless we're burned, we cannot die. And yes, our limbs can be reattached, though it takes time for them to fully heal."

I had my answer. Fire. That's what could kill a vampire. No wonder Amara was so dangerous.

I still had a ton of other questions to ask her. How did she become a vampire? How old was she? How did she meet the others? How does someone change into a vampire? Why did Edward leave? What did she mean by "the one"? But there was one that had been nagging me since she mentioned her gift earlier. What had she seen?

"Can I ask what your earlier vision was about, Alice?" Her face became gravely serious, her gold eyes appraising me, looking deep into mine.

"I saw that we'll be having some visitors soon," she answered.

My heart skipped a beat. Fuck. I had completely forgotten about James and Victoria. What was worse was the fact that they'd be here soon. Shit, shit, shit!

"Bella…" Alice's voice softened as she scooted closer to me. "I know you know something about this." I gulped and nodded. She reached out her hands and gently touched my shoulders. "Please, Bella. Tell me. You don't have to tell me everything, but tell me what's going on. You can trust me, Bella."

I took a deep breath, formulating my response. I did trust her. Somehow, I knew I could the moment we met, but my mind had argued against it. If she really was the angel from my dreams, then I needed to trust her.

"Alright," I said softly. "I'll tell you."

**A/N: Oh my God, super cliffhanger!**

**Okay, not really. I didn't want to make the chapter too long, okay? I'm gradually making them longer as I publish, but I promise I won't end up making them 9,000 words or something like that. Or maybe I will. People seem to enjoy the longness of it. I do. And I write a lot to begin with. Meh. Whatever.**

******So, first off. Yes, I know in the canon Twilight series there is a vampire who can manipulate all the elements. Well, I changed that around. Whether or not that vampire (Benjamin I believe his name was) will show up in this story, I do not know. But Amara is here. You can expect a lot more details on her history in the future, just so you're sure. I've been planning it out for some time now and I believe it is relatively original. But you guys can be the judge(s) of that when the time comes.**

******Secondly, I know the whole "musical voices" thing is weird. I'm sorry if you found it confusing, it's just something I thought would be kind of cool to throw in. I thought it sort of gives you an idea of how they sound in Bella's mind. Oh, and no, she isn't dreaming it, she's just sort of between consciousness. If that makes any sense. If it doesn't, then my bad.**

**If you're beginning to grow impatient with the way things are going (from what I've seen, people like the pace, but just in case a few of you are) I apologize in advance, but I'm not going to rush into things. I want this to take its time. You can see how Bella still struggles with the idea of trusting Alice (hence the chapter title) up until the end. She's not one hundred percent, but it's building, you know?**

**I hope you all enjoy this chapter. Reviews are welcome and appreciated, as I'm sure everyone knows.**

**I'd actually like to thank everybody (I always send you a thank you reply, but I feel like doing one here too) for reviews, especially the really long ones (you know who you are). I love seeing that and it really makes me feel good about my writing and it helps push me forwards, you know? So thanks girls and guys.**


	5. Scars

**Disclaimer: Must I say it? Yes? Ugh. Stephanie Meyer = creator of Twilight and owner of Twilight. Me = creator of Amara and any other OC. Badda bing.**

**Scars**

Alice stared at me silently and expectantly, waiting for me to begin. The problem is I didn't know _how_ to begin. But I _need_ to tell her. God, why can't I just spit it out?

"Bella," Alice's gentle voice interrupted my thoughts. I shifted my gaze from my lap to her eyes, those beautiful pools of gold that smoldered with warmth and friendliness.

I bit my lip lightly and sighed. "The two vampires from your vision are after me." There.

Alice's soft gaze hardened ever so slightly, but her eyes refused to leave mine. She was obviously waiting for me to give her more details, but I was afraid to for whatever reason. Did I still not trust her? No, that isn't it. Then what?

I knew why. I didn't want to remember. I didn't want to have to relive the painful images again, even though my dreams had taunted me night after night by doing just that. The memories were permanently ingrained into my brain. I remembered their twisted smiles, their heartless laughter. I remember their blood red hungry eyes. The scars. I remembered the scars the most. Each time teeth sank down into me, each time I felt like my body was on fire, the hours I spent writhing in unimaginable pain, wishing they would just kill me and end it.

The physical, mental and emotional scars that the hunters had brought on me would never disappear. I tried everything I could, but I could never make them go away. The bite marks, eternal reminders of my ruined life, were especially painful. Every time I looked in the mirror, I saw Victoria and James, baring their teeth in an ominous smile, looking back at me.

I suppose the fact that I was about to commit to trusting a vampire, the race of beings that I didn't think existed until it was too late, the beings that had tortured me and hunted me, was another fact that stopped me from going on. But when I thought of this, my dreams came back to me. Not the nightmares, nor the emptiness, but that voice. That heavenly voice that kept urging me forward, making me feel warm inside. Alice had the same voice. And I could see in her gold eyes that she wanted to know. She wanted to help. She wanted to make my pain go away.

I'm not sure she can, though.

"I…I don't know…" I trailed off, looking down at my lap. I couldn't look into those angelic eyes. I couldn't face them.

"Start from the beginning," she said softly. "When did you meet them?"

"Four months ago," I answered. "I…I had been wandering around at night when I first saw them, standing in the distance. At first, I didn't think too much of them, but then I started to feel myself pulled towards them. I don't know how, honestly I never figured out why. All I know is that I had been in the wrong place at the wrong time." I could feel tears beginning to form in the back of my eyes and did the best that I could to push them back.

"Why were you out at night alone?" she asked.

"I, um, was just bored," I lied. She obviously wasn't satisfied by my answer, but she didn't press. I went on with the story, wanting to get it over with.

"They started talking to me, acting all nice and shit. I tried to walk away, but the more they talked, the more drawn in I was and eventually I couldn't resist them anymore. The woman kind of…" I paused, wondering if Alice needed to know _that _detail. "She, er, forced her lips onto mine." I noticed Alice's eyes darken slightly. Fearing her reaction, I quickly continued. "That was when they revealed what they were to me. I had fallen into their trap and there was nothing I could do about it. Next thing I know, they'd taken me to a warehouse."

Alice tensed up as I continued. I could see that her eyes were slightly darker then they had been before. She seemed to be struggling to keep herself composed for reasons I didn't understand. Her hands were twitching nervously, like she wanted to strangle something, but at the same time she looked like she wanted to hug me. She did neither, though, so I took in another breath and started up again.

"That's when they told me that they were going to start…hunting me," I murmured. The tears were coming back with reinforcements this time. Alice tensed even further, biting down on her bottom lip. She looked more like a statue then a person now. "They said that if I could avoid them for ten days, they'd let me live. I knew they were lying, but I didn't have a choice. And then the woman, Victoria, bit me-"

"SHE _**WHAT**_?" Alice roared, jumping onto her feet. I looked at her in surprise to see her eyes seething with rage. Her upper lip with curled back exposing her teeth and her brows knitted together, forming a furious expression on her face. Not only that, but her fists were clenched tightly, causing the veins to be visible. I could even see the veins on her forehead because of the fury written on her face. She looked ready to kill.

And that sight right there gave a whole new meaning to the term "angel of death".

"Y-yeah, s-she b-b-bit me," I stammered, feeling weak and inferior in front of this angry vampire. Alice noticed my fear and clamped her mouth shut, struggling to soften her face. But her eyes remained blazing with animosity.

"Where?" she asked through gritted teeth.

I slowly began lifting my right sleeve, but her cold hands were there seconds later, practically tearing the sleeve off. Once she stopped I heard her gasp and saw her take a step back. Alice's eyes were now wide with anguish, pain, regret and sorrow, mixed in with the anger. It was a strange sight to behold, watching all these emotions dance about in her smoldering honey eyes.

"B-Bella…" she murmured weakly, taking in the sight. I grimace and glanced at my exposed arm, taking in the six bite marks permanently etched into my skin. They were silvery white crescent-shaped scars, forming a jagged line on my upper right arm. I could remember each and every time Victoria sank her teeth into my arm, the agony it caused as I writhed around in pain following it, and Victoria biting down again. I didn't understand how she had done that, really, but I didn't care to ask right now, as I was taking in Alice's expression.

Alice looked utterly devastated. I could tell by the array of emotions on her face that she either wanted to cry, comfort me and rip off someone—probably Victoria's—head in fury. It seemed as though neither her body nor her brain could make a decision though, since all she could manage to do was stand there, gaping at the scars on my arm with an unfathomable expression.

"How did…" her voice trailed off as she stared at the scars for a moment before looking into my eyes. Her gold eyes seemed faded, almost like she could start crying any second. But no tears ever fell. I knew that, since she was technically dead, she couldn't cry. That made the sight all the more depressing for me to take in. I swallowed a sob that tempted to leave my throat before doing the best I could to answer her question.

"T-they…caught me every t-time," I choked out. "Sometimes t-they would t-torture me, s-sometimes I w-would be bitten, and sometimes…I…I…" Tears were now pouring down my cheeks. Having to remember and actually see the scars, plus taking in the sight of the heartbroken angel in front of me, sent me over the edge. I sobbed as quietly as I could manage, turning my gaze to m lap. I couldn't bear seeing someone as beautiful as Alice look as sad as she did, especially if it was for me.

"Oh Bella…I'm so sorry this happened to you," Alice whispered sadly. Seconds later I felt two cold arms wrap around me and pull me into a tight, but gentle embrace. I didn't say a word; I simply buried my head into her left shoulder and cried. At first Alice was stiff as she held me, but after a few moments she started to rub circles on my back in an attempt to soothe me with one hand while she slowly rocked me back and forth. I felt like a child being held by its mother, yet I found this fact oddly comfortable.

We stayed that way for several minutes until my eyes were dry. Neither Alice nor I moved from our position, though, which I was honestly thankful for. It was the first time in my life someone had actually comforted me, and for some reason the fact that it was Alice doing it made me feel even better. Eventually she pulled away and wiped a stray tear from my cheek, gazing at me with honey colored eyes filled with tears that would never fall.

"I don't know what to do, Alice. I tried so hard to run from them. I tried everything I could think of, but it never worked. I tried fighting them, but that never worked. They made me feel weak and powerless every time. I constantly just wanted to die. I tried to end it myself on several occasions, even, but I was too much of a coward to do it…"

Alice cupped my cheeks with her hands. "Hush now, Bella. It'll be okay. You're safe here. My family and I will protect you, I promise."

"W-what?" I was surprised. I had wanted this, but the fact that she sounded so willing to do it confused me. "Why would you want to protect me, Alice? I'm just some insignificant hum-"

"Isabella Swan, you are_ not_ an insignificant human," she disagreed, looking at me straight in the eyes. "My family and I won't just idly sit around while an innocent girl's life is being threatened. I'll be damned if I'm going to let them hurt you again, Bella. You may not understand it now, but the minute the moment you walked into this house you became a part of this family. I NEVER want to hear you say that you're insignificant again, or worthless or any other derogatory word, you hear me? Now, we'll help you and that's final."

She stood up and slowly began walking towards the door. I didn't understand.

"Why the fuck do I matter so much to you?" I shouted. She turned towards me, slightly surprised. "You don't know me! I'm a stranger to you, and yet here you are saying you and your family will protect me! I don't understand you, Alice! What if your family says no? What then? Why do you care so much about me? I just…I don't get it and it's driving me insane…" I ran my hands through my hair, trying to calm myself. The tears were threatening to return, but I did nothing to push them back this time.

Alice closed her eyes and took a deep, long breath before turning to face me.

"Bella," she said calmly.

"Yes?"

"If you really want to know why I care so much, then I won't hold it from you." She stopped and walked towards the shelf nearest to her, grabbing what looked like a sketchbook from it. "Look inside this. You'll find your answer." She handed it to me before turning on her heel and walking towards the door again.

"Where are you going?" I asked meekly, feeling ashamed of myself for snapping at her.

"I…I need to hunt," she answered. I didn't get a chance to respond since she was out the door in a heartbeat, leaving me alone. Was it me or did she sound like she was lying? I sighed and bit my lip, pulling my sleeve down before glancing at the sketchbook in front of me curiously.

How could the answer be in here?

I opened the sketchbook up and started looking over the drawings. The first drawing I saw was a beautifully drawn picture of Esme. The next was one of whom I assumed to be Carlisle, followed by the remaining members of her family. Each picture was masterfully drawn and colored and really made the really captured the liveliness of the individual being drawn. She even drew a picture of herself. Following these were sceneries, like a lake surrounded by trees, a sunrise, the full moon, a waterfall and a meadow.

The picture of the meadow really stuck with me. While the other scenery drawings were equally beautiful, there was an extra element added into the meadow picture. A person. I couldn't see many details since the person was in the distance, but it looked like a female. I continued looking through the following pictures and saw something similar in each. Each was a drawing of sceneries and in each was the same mysterious figure, always drawn in the distance.

And then I came to the last picture. I gasped.

The last drawing was of a girl with long brown hair, chocolate covered eyes and smooth, pale skin. It took me a moment to realize that this wasn't just some random person. It was me. She had drawn me in a way I hadn't even known existed. Could this girl really be me? She looked beautiful, full of life and color. I wasn't anything like that. Yet despite my protests that this wasn't me, all the features were the same. She had my thin lips, my small nose, my heart shaped face and the same facial structure. I was flabbergasted. No other way to describe it.

"So now you see," came Alice's voice behind me.

I spun around to see Alice standing near the door, looking down at the floor. Her eyes were lighter then they had been earlier, but her face was grave. I could see the emotions from earlier still resonated in her gold orbs, yet she was trying her best to keep composed.

"Alice…I don't understand," I admitted, taking another look at the perfectly rendered drawing of myself.

Alice sighed. "I wanted to wait until you were more trusting of me before I showed this to you. But I can't stand to hear you talk so poorly of yourself and I think you have a right to know the truth. Bella, you know what my gift is." I nodded. "Well, the truth is, I knew you were coming."

"You k-knew?" I asked. "How long?"

"I'd say it's been about a year," she admitted. I gasped again. "I started having visions of you a long time ago. I didn't see you clearly at first; I just heard your voice. And that was enough to transfix me. I didn't understand the vision at first, so I kept it to myself. A month later I had a similar vision, but I saw your outline. It started to progress over the next few months, giving me another glimpse of you. Each time I was mesmerized, aching to know and see more. I was obsessed with finding out who you were, Bella."

She pointed to the sketchbook in my hand. "Every time I tried to take my mind off of things by drawing, I always drew you, or rather, what I had seen of you. Those made me obsess even more until you were all I could think about. I wanted to know your name, see your face, but I could only make do with your voice. Four months ago, that all changed." She took several steps towards me, but kept her eyes on the sketchbook in my hands.

"How did it change?" I asked.

Her eyes drifted to meet mine then. I saw tenderness, warmth and longing.

"I saw you. After all the headaches I got trying to see you, all the painstaking hours spent lost in my visions doing anything I could, I finally saw your face. To say I was transfixed by you would be putting it mildly. Bella, you were the most beautiful person I'd ever laid eyes on. In all my years wandering this Earth, I'd never been so mesmerized by one person. I didn't know you then, but my dead heart ached to. So I decided to draw you as I had seen you and silently pray that the day when you would enter my life would come sooner than later." She took another step forward and placed her hands on my shoulders.

"Then I had a vision of you entering the house and being caught by Esme. I was elated. I knew I had finally gotten the chance that I had been thinking about for a full year. I was bouncing about my car so much I almost crashed into someone's house." She laughed her sweet laugh before smiling at me. "I was excited beyond all belief and rushed home. Of course, I had a vision of me bursting into the house and scaring the living hell out of you, which I didn't want. I did the best I could to calm myself down, which worked out slightly well, I'd say."

The smile slowly faded into a look of sadness as she turned her gaze downwards. I saw a flicker of anguish and anger flare into her eyes, but she quickly masked them.

"But I didn't know that you knew what I was. I hadn't thought of that and I hadn't seen it. That changed things a bit. I was worried. Worried that somehow the reason you were here had to do with other vampires. I didn't want to press you for details, but I slipped up. I saw the anguish and pain on your face. I knew there was something behind it and I wanted so badly to hug you and let you tell me. I didn't, though, because I was also aware that you didn't fully trust me."

Her eyes darkened again as she looked hatefully at my arm.

"And then I saw that. You telling me made me furious. I was seconds away from tearing my room into pieces because I was so upset. You started to cry, though, which broke my dead heart and I did what I could to swallow my rage to comfort you. Truthfully, I left to blow some steam off, not because I needed to hunt. I ran off a ways and destroyed everything in sight. Every tree, rock and animal that had the misfortune of being near me is now dust. It's not enough, though. I won't be satisfied until I've torn those bastard's heads off myself." Her rage was self evident as she hissed the last words, taking me by surprise.

"Alice…" My voice broke through the shell of fury as she looked back up at me with sorrow.

"Oh, Bella, I'm truly sorry you had to suffer. I can't imagine the pain they've caused you. I wish I had met you sooner. I'm so sorry."

My mind was spinning, but the sincerity and pain in her voice made me break down into tears again. Alice pulled me into her shoulder and softly hummed into my ear, easing me with her gentle voice. She thought that the bite marks were the worst part, the worst scars. No. They weren't. Only I knew, and I couldn't bear to tell her. How could I tell an angel that I killed people? How could I tell her that I had ruined so many innocent lives? I couldn't. I didn't have the heart for it. I didn't want to think about that, though. I pushed those thoughts away and instead focused on the warmth emanating from Alice as she held me.

When we broke away, we did so slowly this time. Alice leaned forward and lightly placed her lips to my cheek. That little action made me blush furiously, forgetting the fact that I had been crying my eyes on not once but twice on her shirt mere seconds ago. She smiled at that, but the smile was small. I tried to smile back and did so with moderate success. I sighed.

"I'm sorry about how I acted earlier," I murmured, hanging my head sheepishly.

"Don't be. I know how hard this must be for you, so I understand," she reassured, placing a hand on my shoulder. "Bella, look at me." I did. "I want to be your friend, Bella. I know this is a lot to take in, but I truly want to be friends with you. I understand that this may be hard, so I'll take it easy. Just know that you can open up to me whenever you choose to. I promise I'll be here for you. That's the least I can offer you."

I knew she meant it. I knew she meant every word. It made me feel things I've never felt before, hearing these words. I didn't know what to make of them or how to act on them. I stood there, gawking at her for a moment, struggling to figure out what to say or do. A thought hit me, one that I didn't like. She didn't know everything. She said she wanted to. I was afraid of that.

My thoughts were broken when I saw Alice was staring at a wall with a blank face. I wondered if my lack of speech had hurt her feelings. Shit. Damn it, Bella!

"Er, thank you Alice." I managed. She blinked and looked back at me with a soft smile.

"You're welcome. Oh. Carlisle and Esme will be here soon. You can turn down his offer, if you want…" She glanced at my now covered arm and clenched her fists again.

"I think it's only fair that they know," I told her. "Though I…I don't really look forward to repeating my story again."

"You don't have to, Bella."

"They'll find out sooner or later, Alice," I pointed out.

"I'll tell them," she offered. "I can't bear to see you cry again, Bella."

"T-thanks…" We gazed into one another's eyes for a moment. It's amazing how lost I find myself when I look into her eyes. They're so inviting, even when she's upset. God, it's practically impossible for me to turn away. She didn't seem uncomfortable, since she was looking back as intently into mine as I was into hers. Her eyes glazed over for a few seconds before she turned away and gestured towards her door.

"They're here. Come, I'll introduce you." She took the sketchbook from my hands and put it back before taking my hand and leading me out of her room. After traversing the stairs, she gestured towards the doorway where Esme and the man I knew as Carlisle stood, both smiling warmly at me.

Carlisle was by far one of the most handsome men I'd ever seen before. He was young looking with slicked back blonde hair and had the same amazingly beautiful eyes and pale skin that both Alice and Esme had. Also like Esme was the fact that he seemed to radiate gentleness off of him, which I discovered as I slowly walked towards him.

"Hello Bella," he greeted. "I'm Carlisle." He took a step towards me and casually extended his hand, which I graciously took. I noticed the casual attire that he was wearing, as well as the different dress Esme was in. Were they trying to look nice for me?

"It's nice to meet you, Carlisle," I replied, smiling at him.

"How are you feeling, dear?" Esme asked, meeting her husband's position.

"A bit better," I admitted, glancing at Alice, who smiled at me.

"Alice, would you mind telling me why there is a row of destroyed trees in front of the house?" Esme asked in a motherly tone. Alice cringed slightly before looking at her mother. I didn't miss the "I'll tell you later" glance that she gave Esme, which Esme seemed to understand.

It was easy to forget the earlier pain while I was in the presence of both Carlisle and Esme and I welcomed the warmth in the room. However nice it may have been, though, the fact that I was still human seemed to hit me when I realized a very essential human fact.

"Um, Alice?" She glanced at me curiously as I fought back the blush forming on my face. I was too embarrassed to say anything, so I prayed that if I had decided it that she would see and help tone down my embarrassment. Her eyes went wide for a moment before she giggled.

"Up the stairs, third door on the left," she said. "We'll wait outside." I gave her a thankful smile before turning to Carlisle and Esme who seemed a bit lost.

"Um, I'm sorry for being so rude, but, uh, I need…"

"She needs to use the restroom," Alice finished. Both of them took on understanding looks and smiled at me before excusing themselves from the house. Alice and I met each other's eyes for a moment before she followed suit.

I scurried up the stairs and followed the hallway until I got to the bathroom. Yeah. I had been holding it for a while now and had almost forgotten when I had been swept into the moment. Stupid human needs, I swear. Ahem. Minutes later I washed my hands and exited. They had a nice bathroom, that's for damn sure. The scented candles were a nice touch. Either way, it was definitely better than having to go in the fucking woods.

When I returned downstairs, all three of them were waiting for me. Alice had an amused look on her face, which made me blush slightly. Her amusement furthered itself when I got to her.

"Did you remember to flush?" Alice asked through barely restrained giggles. I turned three more shades of red and stared at the floor. Damn it, Alice.

"Alice!" Esme scolded. "Leave the poor girl alone." Carlisle cleared his throat, ending Alice's giggling.

"Well now, Bella, I trust my daughter hasn't been too much trouble?"

I smirked at Alice, who shot me an evil look. I couldn't help but chuckle.

"She hasn't been too much trouble, Mr. Cullen."

"Please, call me Carlisle," he said, still smiling. "Now, I'm certain either Esme or Alice have told you that I am a doctor, correct?" I nodded. "If you'll allow me, I'd like to check you over for any injuries. Esme said that you were bruised when she moved you to our couch the first day you were here. If you aren't comfortable with it, I can have Alice or Esme present."

I glanced at Alice, whose eyes smoldered with sympathy.

"I'd like them both present, actually. It's not that I don't trust you or anything. I'd just…prefer it."

"Alright then, let's take this into my office, shall we? Would that make it less awkward for you?" he asked. He seemed intent on making sure I was comfortable, which was nice, but unexpected. He was every bit as kind as Esme was. I wasn't used to that.

"Um, sure," I responded. He smiled at that and led us back upstairs to the first door to the left.

His office was very neat and open spaced. His desk was the largest aspect of it, with various books and papers neatly arranged on the top. The walls were aligned with paintings that my eyes wanted to wander to, but I kept them looking forward, knowing what was to come. Carlisle stopped in front of his desk and turned to face me. Esme went to stand to the left while Alice remained by my side, her face blank. I could see that she was dreading this, though I guessed it was for a different reason entirely.

"I'm sorry that this isn't very roomy for you," Carlisle apologized. "Now, Alice, if you would?"

Alice walked over to me and looked at me for approval. I nodded and she quietly removed my shirt, though I kept my right arm covered. My upper chest had several small bruises and a few cuts, as did my lower stomach. Most of the more severe bruises had healed since I had been here, that much I knew. Carlisle briefly looked over my body and nodded to himself. He walked over to his desk and retrieved a box of bandages before handing them to me. I saw from the corner of my eye that Esme was looking at me sadly.

"Do you have any other bruises? Such as on your legs?" Carlisle asked.

"I've seen a few of them. I'll wrap them up later," Alice offered, to which I nodded at.

"Good. Well, Bella, it seems that you have a couple of minor injuries. Nothing too severe. I suggest that you bandage them up after your shower."

"Will do, thanks." Carlisle noticed that I was covering my right arm up and looked at it curiously.

"Is there something wrong with your arm?"

I grimaced. "Um, well, not exactly. I, um…" I dropped my shirt and heard the surprised gasp from both him and Esme. Their eyes were wide as they took in the bite marks on my arm. Alice turned away, clenching her fists again.

"Bella!" Esme exclaimed, stunned. "Oh, honey…"

Carlisle walked over to me and looked down at the bite marks, horror, confusion and sorrow in his eyes. He looked at me, then.

"Bella, how did this happen?"

I retold my story to them, giving the same details that I had given Alice—minus the kissing thing, since I didn't think they needed to know that little detail. Esme immediately wrapped me in her arms after I finished, causing me to shiver from the cold skin contact, but I made no effort to pull away. Though her body was cold, her embrace was full of warmth. Carlisle shook his head sadly before running a hand through his hair and pacing back and forth.

I pulled me shirt back on and stood there, staring at the floor. I felt Esme embrace me again, which I happily accepted. I was getting a bit more used to the affection, that much was for certain. Alice kept her eyes on the wall, biting her lip silently.

"I'm afraid I don't have anything to heal those," Carlisle said sadly. "And I am truly sorry that you had to endure that. Had our family known…" He trailed off, uncertain of how to continue.

"You poor thing…" Esme murmured.

"Alice, you told us that you had a vision of them?" Carlisle asked.

Alice nodded. "Yes. They're on the move. They'll be here in a week's time. I can't see what they plan to do, but I'm certain that as long as Bella is here, they won't come near us."

"Good. Bella, I'd like you to stay here for a while." I nodded. "And Alice tells me you're concerned that we might not agree to protecting you? Well, I'd like to take the time to assuage your worries. You will be protected. You will be safe. I promise you that no harm will come to you. What Alice told you earlier was true. We now consider you a part of this family, one way or the other." He finished this with a warm smile.

I felt more tears coming. Damn it, why did I have to cry so much? I hated it! I hated crying because I felt so weak and pathetic for doing it. But I couldn't stop myself. It was like every major emotion I felt made me cry.

"I…thank you…I don't know what to say," I choked out between sobs. I couldn't help but cling to Esme as she hugged me a third time. This woman was so loving. She was far better than my birth mother, that much I knew. I sobbed into her shirt as she rocked me steadily. I felt Carlisle place his hand on my shoulder to further comfort me as Alice wrapped her arms around my waist. I cried harder then.

All this love. All this affection. I had never been treated this way before in my entire life. I'd never felt it. This was all so new to me, it was overwhelming. Two days ago I would have never imagined that I would be feeling this. Then again, two days ago, I expected the worst.

Now things were different. These vampires, this family, had already sworn to protect me. Alice had told me that she wanted to be my friend. I wanted to be her friend too. It was a yearning inside of me that made me want this. I yearned for her friendship for reasons I didn't understand. And then there was Carlisle and Esme, who I barely knew. And yet, even in the incredibly short period of time that I had known Carlisle, the two of them had acted more like parents then my birth parents had ever done. It was all so sudden, yet it all felt right.

I felt that empty feeling inside of me slowly dissipate. It had started two days ago, but now it seemed to almost be non-existent. I felt good. I felt relieved to have gotten some of the painful memories off of my chest, like a great weight had been lifted.

I trusted them. I could see the sincerity in their eyes. They meant what they said. They would shield me. They would keep me safe. I was grateful for that, beyond all belief. My tears of pain were now tears of joy and surprise. Eventually I stopped sobbing and pulled away from the embraces. Esme smiled at me.

"Would you like to take a shower, dear?" she asked. I nodded. "Alright. Alice, would you please get Bella a towel?" Alice smiled at me before disappearing. Carlisle smiled at me before looking at Esme.

"I'll call the others back. They should know. I'll tell them everything."

"I think it best that they meet Bella first. That way it'll be easier for them to get acquainted," Esme offered, glancing at my arm before looking back at Carlisle. Carlisle seemed in agreement. "Come along now, Bella. Alice is waiting for you with a towel."

We walked out of Carlisle's office as he grabbed a phone and started dialing. Alice was waiting near the bathroom door with a towel in one hand a several clothes in the other.

"I borrowed some of your clothes, Esme. I hope you don't mind. I noticed that Bella's your height, so I figured that worked out better than mine," she stated. She seemed…upset by this?

Esme chuckled. "I agree. And yes, that's fine." She turned to give me another hug before departing, leaving just Alice and I. Alice gestured for me to follow her into the bathroom, which I did without a word.

Is it bad that, despite after all that's happened, that the first thing I thought about was Alice taking a shower with me?

What? She's _hot_. Like, seriously. I was beginning to drool at the thought of it when Alice cleared her throat to catch my attention. I blinked and realized that I had actually been staring at her the whole time I had been thinking that. I flushed embarrassedly. Alice seemed partially amused and partially distracted by something else.

She handed me the towel and placed the new clothes near the side before pulling me into an embrace. I was surprised at first, but welcomed it. I had adjusted relatively well to being hugged by now, since Esme had given me like twenty of them since we had met. Not that I was complaining or anything like that.

Neither Alice nor I spoke as we stood there hugging. It felt good, even better then hugging Esme.

"Thank you, Bella," she whispered.

"For what?"

"For opening up to us. I know I can't say it enough, but I'm sorry for what's happened to you and I will do everything I can to make it up to you." She kissed my cheek and danced out the door, leaving me utterly stunned.

She. _Kissed_. Me.

Holy shit. My face was hot and redder then a tomato as I moved my hand up to touch my cheek. I just stared after her, completely dazed. I mean, she just kissed me for crying out loud.

Well, okay, she kissed my cheek. But her lips fucking _touched_ me. Me, for crying out loud! Did she know I was gay? I mean, was she implying something or teasing me or-

_Whoa, whoa, whoa. Calm down, Swan, calm down. She was just being friendly._

_I think she likes me._

_She wants to be my friend, so of course she likes me._

_Gah! Stop thinking! Get in the damn shower!_

Seriously, why is that I always end up having these annoying mental debates every time I'm around her? God it is _so_ damn annoying.

I pushed all thoughts away as I stripped down and entered the shower. I enjoyed the sensation of having the warm water pour down on me. It had been way too long since I had actually showered. Way too long. I closed my eyes and just soaked it all in.

So far, today had been strange day. I had learned a few things about vampires. Alice had a picture of me because she had had visions of me before we even met. I had told my story to the three nicest people I had ever met in my entire life. They promised to protect me.

I felt good. I felt like a great weight had been lifted off of me. I wasn't worried about being killed by any of the vampires in this house. I had accepted that they were good. Hell, I wasn't even afraid of James and Victoria. At least, not right now.

But I think the main reason that I felt so good was that I truly believed that the scars in my mind were slowly beginning to heal.

**A/N: Hurray, chapter four is done. Hm. For some reason, I'm not sure I liked how this came out. But I'm not gonna go complaining. I mean, I finished this in a single day, so maybe that's why, but still. I think it's okay. I hope everyone agrees. But seriously, let me know if this one wasn't on par with previous ones. Why am I worrying about this so much? It's an old habit. And a writer thing. Meh.**

**Not much for me to say. I just went with it and hoped for the best. Sorry for the cliché ending, though. I couldn't resist.**

**Bella finally gets to meet the remaining family members (excluding Edward, whose absence will be explained) in the next chapter. Fun stuff. **

**Reviews are welcome and appreciated. Thank you to those of you who have been giving me in depth reviews. I love those ones. Not to sound to overly greedy, but I'm hoping to nab one hundred reviews by chapter five. That'd make me extremely happy. Hee. Peace.**


	6. Siblings

**Disclaimer: I own Amara. Everything else belongs to Stephanie Meyer. This you know.**

**Siblings**

Ah. The shower felt _sooooo_ good. I mean, damn. I haven't had an actual shower for months. It beats being forced to jump into ice cold lakes all the time. That shit was torture. I mean, I'm surprised I didn't get hypothermia or pneumonia or some disease like that from having to wash myself and my clothes in lakes all the time. It was such a pain.

I'm not sure how long I just stood there letting the warm water pour onto my body before I actually started washing myself. I took my sweet time with the washing, forgetting the fact that I was in someone else's house. I didn't care at the moment; I just washed away the dirt, grime and tears. I honestly lost track of how long I was in there for. Thirty minutes, I think? Maybe more? It wasn't until I actually realized where I was that I finished up quickly and got out.

I dried myself off at an even pace before slipping into the clothes that Alice—or rather, Esme—had lent me. They weren't anything too fancy, a maroon, short sleeved silk shirt and a pair of black sweatpants, but they were incredibly comfortable. And the smell. Wow. Just wow. The mouthwatering aroma of vanilla and freesia clang to the fabric of the clothes, hovering about my nostrils, just tempting me to breathe it in. Which I did, several times I might add. I never got why vampires smelled so damn good.

Maybe Alice would know? Speaking of Alice…

"Hi Bella," Alice chirped, grinning at me as I opened the bathroom door, letting out the pent up steam. "I see you had a nice shower."

"Yeah," I answered. "It was great. I haven't had a shower in forever it feels like."

"I'm glad you enjoyed it." She walked over and picked up my dirty clothes. "Can I…er, hold on to these?" she asked hesitantly. I swear if she could blush, she'd be as red as a tomato. I was speechless for a moment.

"Um…" I blinked several times while trying to form a response. "Why would you want to keep them? I mean, they're all dirty and stinky and crap."

"I told you before; they don't stink to me, Bella. They smell wonderful. And to answer your question, I, er, well the thing is…" She paused for a moment. "To be brutally honest, Bella, some of my siblings are slightly newer to our lifestyle then the rest of us. It's hard for them to be around humans. And I figured that, with you being here and all, if they got more used to your scent, they could be around you easier and you wouldn't be afraid of them as much."

"Oh." I had totally forgotten that I hadn't actually met the rest of her family yet.

"So is it okay?" she asked, giving me an innocent smile. How could I say no to that?

"Yeah, sure you can," I replied.

"I know it's strange, and I apologize for that. I just, you know, wanted to get it out of the way," she told me, staring at the floor. I never thought I'd see someone as cheerful as Alice look so embarrassed. Then again, I never thought I'd see someone as cheerful as Alice look like she wanted to rip someone's head off.

"You look a lot better," I mentioned before I could stop. She looked up at me and smiled a bit.

"Yeah, I ended up going to hunt and destroyed a few more trees," she admitted, shrugging her shoulders adorably as she did. Amazing how she could be so nonchalant about all of that. I guess it comes with practice or something.

We walked into her room where she gently set the clothes in the corner on top of a chair. I wasn't really sure what to do other then follow her, hoping she could give me some sort of instruction. I mean, I still felt a little awkward being inside a house that belonged to such a big family. I felt out of place. Alice seemed to notice my discomfort and danced over to me with her usual cheery smile on her face.

"So, Esme made you a big meal because she thinks you're way too skinny. Both Carlisle and I agree. And no, you don't get to decline. We insist you eat. After that I'll give you a tour of the house and then later you get to meet my siblings." She didn't give me a chance to reply since she grabbed my hand—sending a surge of electricity through me and momentarily paralyzing me—before dragging me downstairs.

"What if they don't like me?" I asked, remembering how some seemed disdainful about my presence here from the conversation I had heard. Plus there was one absent, which I hadn't asked about yet, but intended to.

"Don't be silly, Bella. How could they not like you?" Alice asked as she led me into the kitchen.

I gasped. On the table was the largest assemble of foods I had laid eyes on in months, no, years even. I think my jaw hit the floor at the sight, not to mention the delicious smell. I'm surprised I wasn't drooling like mad. I heard Alice giggle beside me as Esme walked into the kitchen, beaming rather proudly.

"I dare say this is the most I've cooked in my lifetime," she chuckled. "I didn't know what types of foods you liked, though, so I whipped up a little of everything. Take your time and enjoy it dear, you need some meat on your bones."

"Um, thanks," I said, still gaping at the feast in front of me.

"Oh, it was no trouble at all. Now, I'll leave you to your meal," Esme chirped before exiting.

Alice nudged me. "Go on, dig in. And don't worry about manners, Bella. I know you must be starving." She giggled at the last part and nudged me again.

I didn't speak again. I practically leapt into a chair and started grabbing things left and right, piling food onto my plate. When I was satisfied by the amount of food, I delved into it. I forgot my manners and the fact that I should have acted like a "lady" and pigged out on every delectable morsel, savoring the tastes and smells that seemed so foreign to me.

Of course, I could feel Alice watching me, so I at least used a napkin every now and again. I wasn't a wild animal, after all. I stopped myself before I could get sick, though I made sure to eat my fill. Once I was done, I leaned back into the chair and let out a long sigh. I burped too, which was utterly embarrassing and made my face bright red.

"Excuse me," I murmured to no one in particular.

I glanced over to see Alice watching me, clearly fascinated. She had done that when I had eaten the sandwich Esme had made me too. It wasn't uncomfortable or anything, despite how it should've been. It made me feel…flattered, to say the least, not to mention curious.

"It's fascinating to watch you eat and sleep," Alice said softly. "I know its weird sounding, so I'm sorry for that, but I think it's true, especially when you sleep. The way your eyelids flutter and how you snuggle into a pillow is utterly adorable, just so you know. And did you know you talk in your sleep?"

I blushed even deeper. "I d-do? What'd I say? Oh God, I hope I didn't say anything bad…"

She laughed that sweet music I had come to love. "Don't worry, Bella. You didn't say anything too embarrassing." She winked as she finished this and I swore I saw a glint in her eyes that told me otherwise. Damn it…

Esme appeared in the kitchen then, giving Alice a reproving look that I didn't miss, before turning to me. "How was it, dear? Did I cook everything the right way?"

"It was delicious, Esme," I told her truthfully. "I haven't eaten anything this good in ages. I just feel bad that I couldn't finish it." I looked at the table to see that I had barely eaten half of what she had made for me and felt bad about it.

Esme patted my shoulder. "Don't worry about it, honey. I'll save it for you for when you get hungry later. I'm glad you liked it, too." She began taking the plates of untouched food away from the table as I sat there, resting my stomach. Alice had yet to take her eyes off me.

"So, you ready for the tour?" she asked when I turned towards her.

"Yes, thank you."

"Good! Come on, I'll show you."

I stood up and followed her into a room filled with three shelves filled with books. I saw yet another large television on the left wall, with a second couch and two comfortable chairs in the center. There was a fancy looking computer on the other side, too. In the corner was a piano that took up a good bit of room. I stared at it curiously.

"Who plays?" I asked.

"Edward mostly. I taught myself how to play too, though I'm nowhere near as good," she admitted.

"Can I hear a song?"

She bit her lip in a cute way and shook her head. "I'll play you a song later, how about that? I'm working on something right now and it's almost finished. Is that okay?" I smiled and nodded.

"Anyways, this is sort of an extended living room, I guess. Carlisle and Esme usually come in here to read, Edward and I come here to play the piano and whoever feels like it watches the television or uses the computer. It's usually Jasper, Amara and I, since Emmett has a tendency to hog the television to himself."

"He plays the games, I take it."

"Oh, yes, he loves the video games," Alice chuckled. "I do too, though. Whenever I'm home alone I always beat his high scores. I delete them afterwards, and then beat them again when he's around just to rub it in his face."

"I didn't think of you as the gamer type, Alice." I said, smirking.

She ran a hand through her hair embarrassedly. "Well, yeah, I kind of am. Guilty pleasures and all, I suppose. Hell, so is Rosalie. Amara practically loves them too. I've even seen Esme playing them from time to time." I laughed at the image of Esme playing a violent video game. Alice giggled. "You'd be surprised at the kinds of games she plays. And she's pretty damn good, if I do say so myself." I swore I could hear Esme chuckling upstairs, though it was pretty quiet.

"I'm a gamer girl myself," I admitted.

"Excellent! You'll fit in with the rest of us perfectly. The boys can be pretty competitive at times, which only makes it more fun when we girls kick their asses."

Something dawned on me then, a question I had yet to ask about. Edward. I remembered hearing that he was gone and whenever Alice mentioned his name, her face darkened slightly.

"Hey Alice?" She looked at me curiously. "If you don't mind me asking, where's Edward? I heard you mention that he wasn't around before."

She bit her lip again before answering. "Do you remember how I said he could read minds?" I nodded. She sighed. "Well, up until a few weeks ago, I had been keeping my visions a secret from everybody. It's not that I didn't trust them; I just didn't know what to make of them at the time. I'm sure Jasper could sense something was off with me, but he never mentioned anything and always gave me space. Then I had another vision of you, and, well…" She paused for a moment and took in an unnecessary breath.

"I sort of let loose all the other visions I had had and the feelings I had felt and Edward, well, saw them all. He wasn't too pleased with me, to say the least."

"Why not?"

"We have a very close knit family, Bella. And Edward is sort of the "eldest brother" if you will, since he's been in the family the longest. He was hurt that I hadn't told him or anyone else about my visions and concerned with my obsessing over you. Plus, the fact that you were a human concerned him. Needless to say, we got into an argument about it. Esme and Carlisle managed to calm it down a bit, but he decided to take some time and cool off, so he left for a while."

"So it's my fault, then…" I said, hanging my head slightly. Alice was in front of me in an instant, pulling my chin up and looking at me straight in the eyes.

"No, Bella, it is not your fault. Don't blame yourself for something trivial that doesn't even concern you. Edward and I had an argument, that's it. It's not like it was the first time and it sure as hell won't be the last. We're siblings. We're supposed to get into arguments. I've gotten into fights with all of my siblings before, and they only helped bring us closer together. And don't worry about Edward's opinion of you. He'll like you, just like the others, I promise."

"Okay, I believe you. You gonna show me the rest of the house, now?"

"Yup, follow me!" she sang, her voice full of cheer once again. I smiled at her sudden enthusiasm. Alice sure was a bubbly girl. Not that I minded or anything. Her cheer always seemed to wash off on me.

We moved past another door, which she pointed at. "That's the basement, where we bury the bodies of our past guests…"

"Alice!" Esme shouted from upstairs. I couldn't help but burst into laughter, Alice joining me seconds later.

"She knows I'm kidding Esme," Alice giggled, winking at me. I flushed slightly at the gesture, but quickly composed myself as we walked up the stairs. "Now then, you know my room, obviously." She gestured towards the familiar door and I nodded. "And you've been in Carlisle's office. This is Emmett and Rosalie's room, Esme's painting room, Jasper and Amara's room, the bathroom, Carlisle and Esme's room, our hobby room and a guest space." She motioned towards each door as we made our way down the long hallway. I made sure to memorize each so I didn't accidentally walk into someone else's room.

"I didn't realize how big this house is," I marveled as we started to turn around.

"Yes, it's quite spacey. We've been planning on making renovations, though, since Esme wants a bigger house. We plan to start it this summer. She's been working on the blueprints for a few days now, actually," Alice explained.

"Esme's a carpenter?" I asked.

"Yup. She's one of the best, if I do say so myself. She's also an interior designer and an amazing artist, better than I am for that matter." She smiled fondly at this. I could tell how proud she was of Esme.

"And Carlisle is a doctor, right? Does he do anything else?"

"Carlisle is incredibly intelligent and one of the most compassionate people in the world. He is without a doubt the greatest medical mind in all existence too, especially considering how many years he's been around."

"How old is he?" I was curious. I knew vampires were immortal, after all, but I barely knew anything about the vampires whose home I was staying in.

"He's three hundred sixty four. We just celebrated his birthday this past month."

I think my jaw hit the floor. He was THREE HUNDRED YEARS OLD? What?

"S-seriously?" I stammered.

Alice chuckled. "Indeed he is. Although physically he's twenty three years old."

It took me a moment to process this new information. I knew a man that was over three hundred years old. How fucking cool was that?

"Wow…" That summed up most of my feelings.

"I know you're going to start asking me questions, Bella, and I'd be happy to answer them, but maybe you should hold off on them for later. Besides, Carlisle would be better to talk to, especially since half of the questions you're planning on asking are related to him," Alice stated, smirking. Oh. Right, she could see what I was planning.

I nodded in understanding. "So, um, Alice…how old are you, exactly?" Her face fell at my question, causing me to immediately regret asking. Her eyes were brimming with sorrow, which made me feel worse.

"I…I don't know, honestly. Unlike the rest of my family, I can't remember my human life. I don't even know how old I was when I was turned. I know I've been around for about eight or so years, but I don't have an exact amount," she replied.

Stupid, stupid, stupid! "Oh Alice, I'm sorry...I didn't mean to upset you," I apologized, the guilt eating away at me. I tried to say more, but she cut me off.

"Bella, you don't have to apologize. You did nothing wrong. I'm not mad at you or anything like that, I promise," she said softly.

"Oh. I just, you know, felt bad because you looked so sad and all…" Alice smiled and enveloped me in a hug.

"You're a very thoughtful person, Bella. But you needn't apologize or feel bad. Don't worry about it either, okay?" I nodded and rested my head on her shoulder. Despite the fact that she was hard and cold, she was incredibly comfortable. Her heavenly scent furthered the relaxing feeling I always got when she hugged me too. It was…nice. As corny and lame as it sounded, it felt like all my problems were gone whenever I was with Alice.

Unfortunately, my mouth moved before I had a chance to stop it.

"I love being in your arms," I murmured into her shoulder. I froze right then and there, realizing what I had just said and that she had no doubt heard it. Shit. Just kill me now. I felt my face turn bright red as my heart sped up. What was she going to say? Would that freak her out?

Oh God, why do I have to be so stupid? Ugh!

Alice didn't respond, though. She didn't even move until I decided to break away. Her smile hadn't faded, though I noticed a glint in her eyes.

"Now then, where were we?" she asked, raising an eyebrow. She was asking me? Um, okay.

"Er, you were boasting about your parents…" I trailed off, trying to avoid sounding even more awkward then I felt. It didn't work out too well. Alice probably noticed, but again made no mention of it, for which I was grateful.

"Oh, right! So anyways, Carlisle and Esme are probably the best parents anyone could ever ask for. They love you no matter what and they're open and accepting of practically everything. I've never been more proud to be a part of this family, and I know the others feel the same way."

"If you say so," I muttered, staring at my shoes.

"I do and I did," she replied. "Any more questions?"

"Are there other vampires like you?" I inquired.

That question surprised her. "Do you mean other vampires as awesome as me?"

"Of course not," I chuckled. "I meant others who share your lifestyle."

"Oh. _Oh_. Okay then, that makes more sense. Well, yes there are others like us. You see, we call ourselves vegetarians. It's sort of a running gag amongst our kind, I guess. It's sort of like a human living off of soy milk and tofu. It keeps us strong enough to resist human blood, but it doesn't quite satisfy us. To answer your question, though, there are two other families or covens of vegetarian vampires that I know of. One of them is nomadic, the other lives in Alaska. We're quite close to the family in Alaska, Carlisle especially. The nomads aren't too bad either, though we don't see them as much for obvious reasons."

"I see. But there aren't that many of you altogether, are there?"

Alice shook her head sadly. "No, I'm afraid not. There may be others out there, but if there are, none of us know anything about them. Most vampires prefer our traditional food source. But you've been told time and time again that no one in this family drinks human blood. You're safe, I promise you."

"I know Alice, I do trust you." I told her.

She smiled at that. "Good. Now then, my siblings will be here in about five minutes and thirty two seconds. So let's get downstairs, shall we?"

"Lead the way," I replied. Which she gracefully did, of course. I still couldn't _believe _I had said that out loud. I was even more surprised that she hadn't commented on it. Had she seen that, I wonder? It was hard to tell with her, knowing what she could do and how her strange gift worked. Granted, I did mean what I said. How could I not? Alice was so…so…cuddly. It was like hugging an oversized teddy bear. A cold, hard, incredibly sexy teddy be-agh! Why do I keep thinking these things? Damn it!

God, I am **so** glad she isn't the mind reader. That would _really_ stink.

We made it downstairs in no time where Alice proceeded to stop several feet away from the door, grinning ear to ear.

"Oh, I'm excited!" she squealed. "I can't wait for you to meet them."

"Um, yeah," I muttered. I was nervous as hell. I didn't know much about them other then the few descriptions Alice had given me. She said they would like me, yet whenever I thought of it, my mind went back to earlier in the day when I had heard them talking. I didn't think she meant they would like me yet, as opposed to eventually liking me. And that worried me.

"It's going to be fine, Bella," Alice sighed. "You worry too much."

"But Alice…" She stepped towards me and put her hand on my shoulder.

"Bella, relax. They're here."

And indeed they were. No sooner were the words spoken did I hear a car pulling into the garage and two doors shutting. I wondered which two I would be meeting now. I gulped quietly as Alice squeezed me shoulder a bit, letting me know it was okay. Seconds later, the first set of her siblings arrived through the front door, a male and a female.

"Hey half-pint, I see your friend is finally awake," laughed the male.

"Shut up," Alice hissed. She then cleared her throat. "Bella, this is Emmett and Rosalie."

Emmett was massive in size compared to both Alice and I, standing at least six foot four, hence he was probably the tallest Cullen I'd seen yet. Not only that, but he was much brawnier then Carlisle, with decent sized muscles on his arms and upper body. He had cropped dark brown hair and a large goofy grin on his face, offsetting his fearsome looking size. Truth be told, at an angle he looked more like a hairless bear then a vampire.

"Well hello there, Bella," Emmett greeted, casually walking over to me. Damn was this guy big.

"It's nice to meet you, Emmett," I said politely, extending my hand to him. He grinned and instead picked me up and gave me a big—yet gentle—bear hug before spinning me once and setting me down.

"Emmett!" Alice hissed, giving him a wary glare.

"Aw, pipe down, Alice. I didn't spin her too fast or nothing. Sheesh," He smirked at me before moving over to lean on the side of the couch, allowing me to get a look at Rosalie. _Damn_.

Rosalie was, without a doubt, one the most beautiful woman I'd ever laid eyes on. She was tall, thin and well-defined in appearance, a few inches taller then I was, I could tell. She had long blonde hair and had the face and body of a supermodel. Okay, lame as it was, she looked like a super supermodel. I mean shit; I would love to have a body like that. However beautiful she was, though, was immediately tossed aside by the scowl that seemed permanently placed on her face.

I knew right away that she didn't like me. Still, I didn't want to be rude. Rather than stick my hand in front of her though, I merely bowed slightly in her direction.

"It's nice to meet you, Rosalie," I managed to say.

Rosalie didn't even look in my direction as she strode over and plopped on the couch. Her rejection hurt me, even though I had seen it coming. Was it because I was a human that she hated me so? Did I do something to upset her without knowing it? Alice noticed this too and hissed. Emmett nudged her shoulder.

"C'mon Rose, at least say hi," he urged. Rosalie turned her head in my direction, looked at me for a fraction of a second, nodded, and then turned her attention elsewhere.

"Rosalie Cullen!" Esme shouted. I turned to see her and Carlisle standing near the base of the stairs. They were both giving their daughter a reproving look. "You should know better than to be rude to our guests!"

"N-no, it's okay Esme," I said. "She doesn't have to be nice if she doesn't want to…"

"She most certainly does!" Esme stated, raising her voice slightly. "I raised you better than that, young lady. You have no reason to treat Bella that way, none whatsoever." Rosalie grimaced, but didn't budge an inch. That made Esme even more upset. Alice was just as upset, looking ready to pounce on Rosalie. The room fell silent when Carlisle cleared his throat, though.

"Perhaps we should all calm down a bit," he offered. "Rosalie, I would like to speak with you in private later on. For now, let's try and make peace, shall we?"

Rosalie groaned. "Alright, fine." She turned towards me, then. "I'm sorry. It's nice to meet you too, Bella." Her voice held both disdain and sincerity, but I smiled and nodded to her. I didn't want to start a fight, that's for damn sure.

"So…" It was Emmett who spoke, turning to smile at me. "What has my evil little sister said about me?"

I liked Emmett right away. I could tell by the genuine smile on his face that he liked me and that we would get along well. He seemed to be a jokester, which was fine by me. He was easy to talk to, as well, unlike Rosalie who I had to force myself to speak to. I hoped things would change between Rosalie and me. I couldn't stand the idea of one of the most beautiful people in existence disliking me for any reason.

"All she really said was that she beats all your high scores," I admitted.

Emmett scoffed. "Ha! I _let_ her beat me, just so you know,"

"He's lying," Alice said. "I've actually let him win before because he kept throwing temper tantrums like a little child."

"I do _not_ throw temper tantrums!" Emmett grumbled.

"My furniture says otherwise, young man," Esme chided playfully. Alice gave her a high five while Emmett muttered something under his breath.

"So Bella, did Alice tell you about her Barbie doll collection?" Emmett asked, smirking. Alice's face froze for a moment before glaring daggers at Emmett.

I muffled a snicker. "You have Barbie dolls, Alice?" I asked.

"What? Hell no! I most certainly do not!" she defended. "Damn you, Emmett, shut up!"

"Aw, don't be like that pixie. I bet all the girls your age play with Barbie dolls," Emmett chortled. This was getting good.

"They are _not_ Barbie dolls! They're action figures!" Alice growled. "And at least I don't play with a baton when no one is around."

If Emmett could blush, I'm sure he would be three shades of red. "Hey! That was one time! _One_ time, okay? I was curious is all."

Alice sneered. "Uh huh and yet you still keep it in your closet."

"At least I don't _live_ in the closet," he retorted. Alice growled at him.

"Pink shirts!" shouted Alice.

"Playboy magazines!" returned Emmett.

"Kitten screensaver!"

"Polka dot underpants!"

I couldn't take it anymore, I burst into laughter. Never in my life would I have expected vampires to act like little children. Funniest. Shit. Ever. I could not for the life of me stop laughing as I rolled on the floor, clutching my sides. Alice and Emmett just stared at me while Carlisle and Esme initially struggled to keep their composure. That didn't last long and soon they were laughing too. My eyes were tearing by the time I managed to calm myself down. Alice helped me up, but crossed her arms and huffed right afterwards.

"I'll have you know it's a _tiger_, not a kitten," Emmett grumbled. Alice stuck her tongue out at him and I nearly lost it again. I swear if their comedic relationship doesn't get me, Alice's insanely adorable actions will.

"Whatever, Emmett. Don't be hating on the action figures."

"Hey now, I happen to like action figures. Only mine are a hell of a lot better than yours. Wouldn't you agree Rose?" Rosalie rolled her eyes at him.

"That depends on the day, Em," she answered. "And your performance."

Whoa, whoa, whoa. Were they talking about…? I glanced at Alice, whose face was crinkled in disgust. Oh God. They were. EW!

Emmett noticed my facial reaction and chuckled.

"Alice didn't tell you, did she? There's _all_ kinds of action in this house," he said with a smirk. "All it takes are-"

"EMMETT!" Alice yelled. "Shut the hell up!"

"What? She has a right to know, doesn't she?" he asked, faking an innocent face.

Talk about awkward.

I stood there, staring rather dumbly between the two, uncertain of how to really respond. The awkward feeling I had suddenly vanished and instead was replaced by a wave of unnatural calmness that felt rather nice. I blinked, realizing that there was another person in the house now.

Jasper.

Jasper was casually leaning against the entrance to the extended living room. He stood about two inches shorter then Emmett and was slightly less muscular then him, but still well toned. He had a mane of curly blonde hair that made him appear almost leonine. While Emmett was without a doubt good looking, Jasper was a tad more handsome, especially considering that he was far less fearsome in appearance. That is, save for his face, which was relatively stiff in comparison to the faces of the others. I realized then that Alice had been referring to him when she spoke of having family members that were still unaccustomed to their way of life.

"Hello Bella, I'm Jasper. It's nice to meet you," he greeted. His voice was polite and soothing, and while he made no approach towards me, his smile was friendly. Despite the fact that I knew he didn't have the same level of control as Alice did, I couldn't feel anything but calm near him. Actually, I was grateful for that. I didn't want to make him feel bad.

"It's nice to meet you too, Jasper," I replied shyly.

"What kept you guys?" Emmett asked, looking in his brother's direction. "You get lost?"

Jasper rolled his eyes. "No. We went hunting again, actually. But Bella doesn't need to know about that. I don't want to make things more awkward for her."

"Polite as always, Jasper. At least _one _of my brothers is," Alice said, shaking her head.

"Hey, I can be polite too!" Emmett whined playfully. "I'm just, you know, _not _most of the time."

"Ha! You and polite go together as well as Rosalie and kindness," Alice snorted. Jasper snickered and I saw Esme and Carlisle yet again struggling to keep composed. Rosalie scowled at her sister, but made no reply.

"Where's Amara at, Jasper?" Carlisle asked, no doubt trying to change the subject.

Jasper shrugged. "She's still hunting. She'll be back soon, though."

"Hopefully not covered in blood like she usually is," Alice muttered, glancing at me for a moment.

"That's a bit ironic coming from you, no?" Jasper joked. Alice shot him a glare, which only made him smile wider.

Emmett grinned at me. "She likes to bathe in blood and everything. It's really weird. I think it's her fetish or something."

"Emmett! Stop scaring the poor girl!" Esme scolded. "And your sister does not bathe in blood nor is it anything close to being a sexual thing. I know this for a fact." Alice smiled thankfully at her mother, then proceeded to give Emmett the "I'm-gonna-rip-off-your-fucking-head" glare I had seen once before. Damn, she could be scary. Cute, but scary.

Emmett opened his mouth to reply, but Carlisle stopped him. "Now Emmett, Bella is our guest and is still new to this. Do you think you could tone the, er, jokes of that nature?" Emmett pouted.

"Fine, fine. I'm sorry, Bella. No, Alice doesn't really do any of that. But she _does_ get it all over her from time to time and dance around in it." He grinned at the last part, trying to reignite their humorous banter. Esme shot him another reproving look, while Carlisle merely sighed.

Alice gave him a smug smile. "Maybe so, but you like to dance in a mini-skirt. So there." She stuck her tongue out again.

"Hey! I happen to look quite good in a mini-skirt!" Emmett stated loudly.

"Not to mention incredibly gay!" I heard a female voice shout.

"Amara, you know I don't like that type of language in this house," Esme chided yet again. She seemed to be doing that a lot today. Of course, I noticed the smile tugging at her lips and realized that she found the comment amusing. That was when Amara came into view, stopping beside Jasper. My eyes bulged a bit at the sight of the Alice's other sister.

Unlike Rosalie, who had the beauty of a Class A supermodel, Amara's beauty was more exotic in ways I couldn't describe. For one thing, she was the tallest of the Cullen females, at least six one, towering over Alice, myself and even Rosalie, who I thought to be the tallest. Her hair was a vibrant scarlet red color and excessively messy, dropping down a few inches below her ears, not quite reaching her neck. Her face was thin, her lips full and her eyes were narrow. She was just as beautiful as Rosalie, but in a completely different manner. Like Jasper, though, her face was stiff and she wasn't breathing.

"So, you must be the human girl my sister has been obsessing over," she said, looking me over.

"That'd be me," I murmured.

She smiled a rather gentle smile. "Well, I'm Amara. Isabella, was it?"

"Er, Bella, please. And it's nice to meet you, Amara,"

"My, aren't you well mannered," Amara mused.

"She's only being polite because she's just now meeting you," Alice teased.

"Shut up!" I hissed. She giggled at me.

"Alice, would you please bring Bella a chair?" Esme asked, cutting off whatever Alice had been planning to say. Alice pouted and in a flash had a chair for me.

"Thank you," I said.

"No problem," she replied. "Well, you've met most of my family. And just like I said, they all like you. You should never doubt me, Bella. I'm never wrong." I took a wary glance in Rosalie's direction, which she noticed and rolled her eyes at. "Don't mind Rosalie, she's just…"

"A bitch," Amara finished. Rosalie shot her a glare, but she ignored it. "Seriously though, you're more afraid of what we think of you then the fact that you're in a house full of bloodthirsty vampires?"

"Alice told me like twenty times that you guys only feed on animals, so I figured I was safe from that problem," I said, shrugging innocently. I saw several exchanged glances between them, but none of them made any sort of reply. Until…

"Well, actually Bella, I kind of lied," Alice said, walking over to me. "You see, now that everyone's here, we're all going to divide you into portions for our dinner." For a split second, I actually believed her, but then I saw the mischief and gentleness in her eyes and I knew then that she was merely playing around. Plus, both Carlisle and Esme were giving her displeased looks.

I decided to play along. Why the fuck not?

"Aw man. Do I at least get some last rites or a funerary dinner or something?" I whined. Alice's eyes sparkled, pleased that I was joining her in her little joke.

"Hm. I suppose I could consider it. You won't try and escape or anything while I get that set up, will you?"

"Well, I was planning on running into town and getting an angry mob with torches and pitchforks, but since you can see the future and all, my plan would just get blown to hell." I sighed dramatically.

I cannot _believe_ I am playing along with this. Seriously. Two days ago I was scared shitless of vampires and thought I was going to die, now I was cracking jokes with them. I think I may be the stupidest human alive. Either that, or I just have incredibly strange luck.

Alice prepared to respond, but was stopped by Emmett's booming laughter. Both Amara and Jasper laughed as well. I couldn't help but smile myself.

"I like this girl, Ali!" Emmett boomed. "Before I was worried she'd be all paranoid and shit, but she's alright in my book." He grinned at me, and I smiled back.

"Welcome aboard the crazy train, Bella," Jasper chuckled.

"It's a pretty sad crazy train if you ask me," Amara jested.

"Oh shut up, Amara," Alice muttered, sticking her tongue out at her sister. She then turned to me and patted my shoulder. "You see what I have to live with?"

"Yes, poor, poor Alice," I replied with mock sympathy. She stuck her tongue out at me and I couldn't help but return the gesture. We both giggled at one another's facial expressions. This was surprisingly nice. Despite the fact that they were vampires, they acted more like humans then anything. Immature, insane humans, but humans no less. I found myself oddly relaxed here, even with Rosalie giving me the cold shoulder.

"Oh, Bella, that reminds me." Esme's voice cut through the laughter as she appraised me with her usual warm smile.

"Yes, Esme?" I asked.

"I forgot to ask about it earlier, dear, so I'm sorry for that. But I was just wondering…"

Carlisle finished for her. "We were wondering about your family. You haven't made any mention of them in the time you've been here and Esme and I were curious."

My face fell. That was one topic I had hoped to avoid, for like, ever. I didn't enjoy talking about my "family", especially since I really didn't have one. These people were more of a family then mine had ever been, though I wasn't sure if I was ready to tell them that yet. By now, all but one pair of gold eyes looked at me curiously.

Esme noticed my change in expression and looked at me sympathetically. "You don't have to talk about it if you don't want to, dear,"

"No, I think you should know," I said, biting my lip slightly.

I sighed inwardly. This I did not look forward to.

**A/N: Yay, chapter five is finished. Setting up more backstory for Bella for chapter six. Hope you girls/guys enjoyed reading this. I thought I did good.**

**I wanted to add a bit of (lame) comedy here and there while building on the relationships the siblings have with one another. They're quite dysfunctional, no? I intend to further build on their personalities and bonds as I progress, don't worry. I'm just taking my time, which everyone seems to like. Oh. Sorry about the poor jokes. I try. **

**Okay, slightly off topic, but slightly informational note. The heights of the characters, so people aren't confused. On the males side, Emmett is the tallest at 6'4, followed by Jasper at 6'2, Edward at 6'0 and Carlisle at 5'11. For the females, Amara is the tallest at 6'1, the Rosalie at 5'9, both Esme and Bella at 5'6 and Alice at 5'1 and a half. Not sure if that's important or not, but I wanted to get that out there for future references. Yeah, I changed some of the heights. Shame on me.**

**Slowly building up the Bella/Alice relationship for the win. Lots of hints, which you all know. Bella, however, is a tad oblivious. For now. **


	7. Family

**Disclaimer: Yeah, you know it already. Meyer owns Twilight, I take no credit for it. I own Amara and take full credit for her. **

**Family**

I bit my lip again, mulling over how to begin. I could feel six pairs of golden eyes looking at me, but they weren't making me uncomfortable. I felt Alice standing near me for a moment before she vanished and reappeared with another chair, which she placed next to me and sat in.

"You really don't have to say anything, Bella," Alice murmured soothingly.

I looked at her, absorbing the friendliness and warmth from her honey eyes.

"Thanks, but you guys have been so good to me. It's not that big of a deal or anything, I just don't like talking much about it," I admitted.

Alice placed her hand on my shoulder reassuringly. I smiled at the gesture, but it wasn't a big smile. I didn't want to talk about it, true, but they had been so good to me. I think they have a right to know. I mean, it wasn't some big secret or anything.

Still, when I thought about the sense of family that they had, I couldn't help but feel a bit jealous. Jealous that Alice and her siblings had a mother and father that loved and accepted them, despite their differences in personality and interests. I hated to think that way, but I couldn't help myself.

I felt another wave of calm envelop me and realized that Jasper was trying to help me out. I gave him an appreciate smile before sighing again. I sigh a lot when I'm nervous, what can I say?

"Alright, so…where to begin…" I mused.

"Where were you born?" Alice offered.

"Okay. I was born in Phoenix, Arizona, but we moved down here to Forks a few weeks later. I barely remember because I was so young at the time, but I know I lived here for a few years. When I was five, my mother got a divorce with my father. I don't recall the reasons, but apparently they disagreed on one too many things, me included."

I stopped for a moment and thought back to my memory of that day. It was a bit faded, since I was so young at the time, but most of it was pretty clear.

_Charlie and Renee had married young because they fell in love with each other, or so they initially thought. Truth be told, they were both partially drunk the night they met, which they found out later on. Things started out okay between them, but as their relationship progressed; their inner demons became more prominent, causing hellacious problems between the two._

_Charlie was a mild mannered man who liked to drink, watch sports on TV and party, but he wasn't an angry drunk or an abusive drunk. He had grown up in a poor family and had been forced to figure out life on his own at a young age when his parents had kicked him out. This had hardened him up a bit and caused him to take on some of his parents morals. He had dated three people in the past, but none of the relationships had lasted too long. They all ended for the same reason: his moralistic views and behavior._

_Renee, on the other hand, was pompous and greedy. She acted like she cared, but it was all fake. She wanted a husband that would take care of her and didn't want to get a job, instead wanting to spend time going shopping for herself and spending time with people who practically worshipped the ground she walked on. She had always been popular and well liked despite her self-centeredness. Like Charlie, she enjoyed drinking and going out. Unlike Charlie, though, she was not a mellow drunk. She was abusive._

_They married each other because they were convinced the feelings they had were real, when in reality they only married because of their "private life". That was it. There was no love. There wasn't even friendship. They could only tolerate one another for so long before they went off and did other things. That is, until I was born. Looking back, I knew my birth was an accident. Renee never wanted any children. She hadn't planned on having a child. But she did. _

_Renee was alright with it at first. She did the typical motherly things by feeding me, putting me to bed, etc. But when I started getting older, she started losing patience and interest. She became more distant from me. The argument I remembered was six months after my fifth birthday._

_Charlie wasn't doing too well in his job and our family was losing money. Renee was getting annoyed with this and truthfully blamed both Charlie and I for the fact. Charlie tried to defend himself and me, but because of his ways, he had no feeling in it. His defense was shallow. And Renee exploited that and his temper. _

_It was raining outside our house that day. I was sitting on the couch, resting. I had just gotten back home from playing at a friend's house, though I don't remember my friend's name or much else regarding it, other than that we had fun drawing inside that day._

_I heard a slamming noise that jostled me from my peaceful reverie. I scowled, not knowing what was going on, but sighed and settled back in. That's when I heard my parents talking. Their voices were loud and they spoke as if I wasn't even in the house._

"_I can't take much more of this," groaned Renee, my mother._

"_What do you want me to do about it, Renee?" my father Charlie asked, growing irritated. _

"_Charlie, we need to face facts. Your job isn't going to cut it. We need to figure out some way to ease our economic issues."_

"_Well, __**you**__ could always get a job, you know," Charlie pointed out._

"_Ha! If I did, who would take care of her? You? I'd hardly consider you fit for parenting considering how much you drink on a daily basis," she scoffed._

"_Excuse me? I may drink, but I'm still functioning. I'm not like those bastard fathers on TV, Renee. I don't abuse or yell at my own child, for God's sake. You, on the other hand, do!"_

"_She won't learn if she isn't taught correctly, Charlie. Besides, it's not my fault she's a trouble making snot nosed brat," she spat._

"_Maybe if you spent more time with her instead of on the phone or on the damn computer," Charlie spat back._

"_I do spend time with her, something you would know if you weren't out partying all the damn time, Charlie."_

"_I don't "party", Renee. I'm out looking for work to support this family, something you could be doing. You could always have a stay-at-home job so you would be able to watch over our child and still make money, you know."_

"_Oh, please. I deal with enough crap from our child. I don't have the time for a job," Renee whined._

"_Don't give me that crap! You're just afraid to work because you're lazy!" Charlie shouted, raising his voice significantly higher. I heard a slapping noise next._

"_How dare you, you bastard! I am not lazy nor am I afraid to work! It's not my fault our daughter takes up most of my life!" she yelled back._

"_Bullshit, Renee! You don't even care about her!" he exclaimed._

"_I do care, Charlie. It's not my fault I didn't ask for her, but I __**do**__ care," she growled._

"_You've got a funny way of showing it, Renee,"_

"_So do you. All you ever do is greet her and pat her on the head. That's it. That's all she sees of you. You're either drinking, sleeping or watching your stupid football games on television!" she shouted. _

_Their voices were so loud, I was afraid glass was going to start breaking. I was scared, confused and hurt. I didn't fully understand what their words meant, but I ingrained them into my mind one way or the other._

"_Shut up, Renee, you're no better than I am! Admit it; you would have rather not had her, would you?" he roared, slamming his fists on the table._

"_No! Are you happy now? No! But we're stuck with her now, Charlie. We might as well make do, at least for the time being."_

"_What the hell does that mean? What are you thinking?" Charlie asked._

"_Does it matter? I'm the mother, she came out of me. Therefore, anything to do with our daughter is my decision, understand?" Renee snapped._

"_Renee, I'm her father, I get a say in these things too, you know." Charlie protested._

"_Like hell you do, you drunken oaf!" she yelled defensively._

"_Stop calling me that you ungrateful wench!" he yelled back. He was losing the battle and he knew it. Charlie always lost. Renee wouldn't allow it._

"_That's it! I can't take this abuse anymore! I'm leaving, Charlie. I hate this town. I hate this life. And you're a poor husband. I'm filing for a divorce."_

"_Oh yeah? And what about our daughter?" he seethed. _

"_She can stay with you. I don't have the time or the money for her," Renee scoffed._

"_She can't stay with me, Renee, and you know it. Besides, I thought you were her "mother", shouldn't she be with you? Or are you admitting to being an incompetent parent?" That was another thing about Renee: she hated feeling or looking weak. She refused to ever show a sign of weakness to anyone, least of all Charlie._

"_The hell I am, Charles! Fine, I'll take her. And you will never see her again!" Renee roared. She stormed out of the kitchen, snagged her raincoat and slammed the door as she left the house, leaving then and there to go and file the divorce papers. She wanted the divorce as soon as possible. She hadn't even looked at me._

_I sat there, crying softly, confused. I didn't understand what was going on. Charlie appeared and sat down on a chair, flipping the TV on as he always did. I cried and cried and he never said a word to me._

"_Daddy…what's wrong with mommy?" I sobbed out. Charlie looked at me then, and for the first time in all my life, I saw pure, unabridged sorrow in his eyes. He looked at me with sheer sympathy and regret, but he wasn't going to do anything about it. He wouldn't. That was who he was. _

"_I'm sorry, sweetheart," he said. "You and mommy aren't going to be living here anymore. And I won't be your daddy either. I'm sorry. You're too young to understand, but there's not much I can do about it." He went back to his game then as I stared at him blankly._

_He was a coward. A gutless, whipped coward. He could've stopped this. He chose not to. And at that moment, though it was small at the time, I started to hate him. That hate grew as I aged until I completely forgot about his existence. He was never there for me, after all. So why in the hell should I care about him? _

"Bella?" Alice's bell-like voice broke me from my reverie. I blinked and looked up to see her looking at me concernedly. I realized that I had been staring at the floor for a minute or so, lost in my memories.

"Sorry," I told her. "I was just…reminiscing."

"Care to share with the rest of the class?" Amara asked curiously. Alice shot her a look. "Okay, only if you feel like it."

"We can't help if we're curious, little sis," Emmett stated. "Besides, Bella already said she'd share, so what's the big deal?"

"She's concerned for Bella's mental health, Emmett," Jasper explained. I was surprised that Alice cared so much and gave her a meaningful look that she returned.

"Bella's been through a lot these past few months," Carlisle added sadly. "I'm sure all of this is taking a toll on her, but she's trying to hide it. We don't want her to be too stressed out. It's bad for her health." Damn that man was perceptive. Then again, he's three hundred and some odd years old, so I guess he would be.

"You don't have to continue, Bella. We can always discuss this another time. Are you tired? Hungry?" Esme asked. I almost started crying at her concern. She sounded so loving, so much like a real mother. She was nothing like that bitch Renee.

I swallowed for a moment before shaking my head.

"No, thank you, Esme. I'm fine. I just have to get myself together. It's been a pretty long day so far. If not for Jasper, I'd probably be having a panic attack or something like that," I stated sheepishly. Jasper sent me another wave of calm, alongside a wave of comfort. Apparently he was aiming to make this as easy for me as he could.

"If you're sure," Alice murmured. I nodded.

"So why did your parents get a divorce?" Esme asked curiously.

"Well, my "mother" Renee is a total bitch. All she cares about is getting money and spending money. They only got married in the first place because they were young, naïve and drunk. Truthfully, they didn't love each other. They didn't even like each other. I'll never fully understand why they did what they did, but I don't care to," I grunted. Esme and Carlisle both gave me sympathetic looks. Alice looked upset, Emmett and Jasper were frowning and Amara seemed mildly off. Rosalie…well, Rosalie looked like she was only paying half-attention.

"Anyways, they had an argument one night about money and whatnot. The same thing they usually argued about, I guess. There was more to it, though, because I remember most of that night pretty clearly. In reality, I was the main thing they were discussing." I took a deep breath and braced myself. "Renee never wanted me. She never planned to have a kid. Neither did my father, for that matter, but he was a bit more supportive when they found out she was pregnant. Honestly, I don't think she ever really cared much for me, even after I was born."

Esme looked even sadder and almost got up to hug me. Carlisle wrapped his arm around her shoulder to help comfort her, since I was nowhere near done yet. I smiled sadly at them. I appreciated the sincere sympathy they had for me, I truly did. I felt Alice scoot nearer to me and wrap an arm around my waist. She did so slowly, just in case I declined. I didn't, though, because of how oddly comfortable I was whenever Alice was near me. Call me crazy, but she helped me out more so then even Jasper did—and he was already helping me quite a bit.

I decided to continue on.

"So then they got a divorce and Renee moved out, with me in tote. She hadn't intended to take me originally, but my father kind of guilt tripped her into it. We moved to back to Phoenix and we stayed together for another three years or so. It wasn't fun, let me tell you."

I paused for a moment to catch my breath. Vampires were lucky that they didn't need to breathe, though the ones around me did anyways. Right now they all looked like beautifully carved statues whose eyes were on me. Once again, I was thankful for Jasper's presence. Were it not for him, I'd probably be a bit overwhelmed by the sight. Thankfully, they all seemed to notice my discomfort and shifted around a bit. Alice moved her hand to my shoulder and squeezed it softly.

"Did you try to fix the relationship you had with your mother?" Carlisle asked curiously. I could see from his eyes that he seemed to resent the way I had been treated.

"I did countless times. But she was…well, abusive. Not physically, but verbally. Nothing I ever did was good enough for her. Nothing. She constantly berated me on every little thing and told me I'd never do anything with my life. It got worse when she was drunk, which she was most of the time due. She barely paid attention to me, and when she did, she was ridiculing me."

I paused for a moment to fight back tears, but failed miserably. "But I never stopped trying. I never gave up trying to please her, doing everything I could to be the daughter I thought she wanted. It's too bad I didn't figure out that she didn't want me until it was too late."

"Then she found Phil a year after we moved. He's a minor league baseball player aiming to go professional. She was attracted to him for his looks and his money, of course. They "fell in love" with each other and started spending a lot of time together. I was left alone most of the time because of it, more alone then before. I didn't have any friends. I didn't even go to school. Renee said it was a waste of time and money because I had no potential."

"Phil was a decent guy. He was actually nice to me and got me into school, which angered Renee greatly. But with the paycheck he got, she didn't fuss too much over it. School was okay, I guess, but I never really fit in with anybody. I just kept to myself and doodled during class. It was a shitty neighborhood, so the teachers weren't all that great. I usually ended up getting in trouble, which only got Renee madder at me. Phil, well, he tried to help, but she always chewed him out afterwards. He stopped after a while and just let whatever happened happen."

"After two years of school and having Phil live in our house, Renee decided she had had enough of Arizona. She hated being in one place for too long and was sick of the neighborhood. That's what she said. In reality, she hated having to pay the school I was going to. And she was sick of driving me to school all the time. So she decided we were going to move. The "we", however, was just her and Phil. She decided she was getting rid of me once and for all."

I sniffled a bit and felt Alice move closer to me. Esme and Carlisle looked sorrowful, as did Emmett, Jasper and Amara. Even Rosalie's face was soft as she silently stared down at the table in front of her. I didn't dare look into Alice's eyes, knowing if I did I'd burst into tears that wouldn't stop. And then I wouldn't be able to finish. I didn't want to finish, but I had to. I stirred up what little confidence I could and pushed my mouth open to keep going.

"One day after I was picked up by Phil at school, I came home to see everything boxed up, even all of my old stuff, what little there was. Renee told me that they were leaving, plain and simple. She didn't say where and she didn't say why. What she did say, however, was that I would not be going with them. I was confused and hurt, of course and asked her what she meant and what I had done. Phil, who had been oblivious, was upset as well and tried to argue with her. She would have none of it and told Phil off. He kept trying to argue, but Renee could not be reasoned with. She threatened him and he backed off."

I felt a tear trickle down my cheek and choked back a sob.

"She didn't give me an explanation. She just said to wash up and get what I could. They were leaving. I was staying. She said she would call child care services, at least, so someone would be by to pick me up. I didn't understand a thing of it. I didn't know what was going on. I started bawling, but no one came to me. The next thing I knew, I had fallen asleep. I woke up the next day to an empty house with a note from Phil apologizing to me and telling me everything would be okay. I didn't believe him, though. I felt broken, honestly. I didn't know what else to feel."

More tears. Memories, clear as day, flooded through my mind. I remembered everything perfectly the day they left me.

"I kept thinking how it was my fault and just cried. Then child care services came and they did what they could to comfort me, telling me they'd find me a good family. Then I-"

I was stopped when Alice pulled me into her arms. I hadn't realized that I had been crying so strongly until I was sobbing into her shoulder. I hated remembering how my own mother abandoned me. I hated how my father had never been there for me. I hated them both.

There was nothing I could do about it, though, and I hated that even more. All I did was cry like a baby. I felt so weak and pathetic. No wonder they didn't want me. Who would?

"Bella, please stop feeling that way," Jasper's voice interrupted my thoughts as a wave of comfort enveloped me. How could he expect me not to feel this way? Its how I've felt all my life, after all, what else can I feel?

"Jasper…" Alice's voice was soft as she rubbed my back soothingly. It felt good, but it didn't change how I felt.

For a moment I thought I heard them speaking, but their voices were far too quiet and fast for me to understand. I just sat there, sobbing and feeling sorry for myself.

I really was pathetic.

"Let's give them some time alone," I heard Carlisle say, loud enough for me to hear. I heard a bit of movement afterwards and, without looking up, realized that everyone save for Alice and I had left the room. I removed my head from her shoulder and wiped up my tears.

Alice kept her arms on my shoulders, looking at me sorrowfully yet warmly.

"Bella," she said softly. "Jasper told me the emotions you're feeling. I don't understand."

I sniffled a bit. "What's not to understand, Alice? I'm pathetic. Can't you see that? Here I am crying because I feel sorry for myself and whining about my past. All that does is reinforce what my own mother felt about me!"

Alice bit her lip and shook her head furiously. "No, no, no! That is not true!" she shouted.

Again with this crap! She barely knows me and yet here she is defending me! I do not for the life of me understand. Okay, so she "saw" me before we met, but she said her visions were vague and shit. So it's not like she has a lot to go off of. She doesn't know the terrible things I've done, all the pain I've caused.

If she did, maybe she'd be singing a different tune. Then again, she _is_ a vampire. Maybe she's done some terrible things too-no! Alice is way too sweet and kind for that.

Gah! Now I'm blaming her! Damn it.

"Bella, stop!" Alice stated firmly. I snapped out of my thoughts at the sound of her voice. "Listen to me, Bella." She placed one hand under my chin and forced me to meet her eyes, her smoldering golden orbs filled with sincerity and warmth.

"Alice-"

"Shut up," she growled. "And listen to me."

I shut my mouth, surprised by the change in her tone. She looked into my eyes for a moment, assessing something in her head, before speaking.

"Bella, I can't imagine what you've experienced in your life. I can't imagine the pain you've felt, nor can I even begin to say I know what it feels like. I haven't. What I can say, however, is that despite the fact that we don't know each other fully well, in the short time I've known you, I've seen a lot. You are _not_ pathetic. You are _not_ worthless. You are _not_ stupid."

She paused for a moment to let the strength of her words soak in, her eyes gleaming with confidence and sincerity that left me utterly speechless.

"Your mother was a foolish woman for not embracing the fact that you were her daughter. She was a fool, a coward and damn it, she was a vile, disgusting person! And now she's paying the price by not having you in her life! I realize that you don't believe that, and it's all your mother's fault. She didn't treat you with love and respect like she should have. She beat you down and made you feel like dirt, so that's exactly how you see yourself. You don't see the real you, the way that I see you, the way that Carlisle and Esme see you. I wish you would, Bella, but you're stuck with your way of thinking because you haven't been treated the right way."

New tears formed in my eyes as I took in Alice's expression. She meant every word she said.

"Bella, you are a beautiful, gentle person. I know there's a lot more to you then what you believe, and I want to help you discover it. I want to help you, Bella. We all do. So I want you to know that we're more than happy to allow you to stay here. I think you've missed out on a lot of what should have happened in your life. And my family and I want to help fix that. It may take some time, but I refuse to give up. I'll do whatever I can to be there for you as a friend, Bella. I'll help show you how beautiful you are; help show you how important you are. And I won't take no for an answer. Neither will Esme or Carlisle or any of the others for that matter."

The tears kept falling as I gaped at her, utterly stunned.

"W-what do you m-mean?" I asked, wiping furiously at my cheeks.

She sighed. "What I mean is you're going to be staying here. We will protect you from the hunters, but we also want to help show you the life you've been missing." She reached out a cold hand and brushed away a stray tear. The action was simple, but filled with so much compassion it eased me. I took a deep breath, calming myself further.

"Where did all of this come from?" I asked after a moment. Her eyes, initially filled with warmth and strength, looked down at the floor rather than at me. I saw hesitation grace her face as she bit her lip, struggling to give me an answer.

"I…I, um, well…I had a vision of it," she answered. There was more to this, I just knew it.

"Alice…"

She bit her lip again, looking more sheepish then before. "Look, Bella, I…I care about you, okay? I don't like the fact that you've been through so much pain in your life. I want to help, really I do. Esme's grown attached to you too and she would love if you stayed. We could have fun together. You could even go to school with us."

I cocked my head to the side, now completely puzzled. What did she mean? How could I go to school with them, exactly? I wasn't family, for one thing. Plus, the idea of school kind of scared me. My past experiences had always been far less than pleasant.

"School? How would that work, Alice?" I asked. "I'm a little lost."

"Um, well…" Alice nervously fidgeted her fingers.

"What is it?" I pressed, looking at her intently. "Come on, Alice. First you give me this meaningful speech and now you're all nervous. Just spit it out already."

"Well, I talked with Carlisle and Esme about it and they both agreed…" She took in an unnecessary breath, and then looked me in the eyes. "Bella, we want to adopt you into our family."

"You-"

They want…

To adopt me?

Adopt…

_ME? _

Did I hear that right? Does she know what she's saying? What the hell? What?

Where did this come from? I don't…

"I don't understand…" I said.

"Bella, we want to adopt you. You obviously don't have any family of your own and-"

"That might not necessarily be true, Alice." We both turned to see Carlisle walking towards us.

"What do you mean?" I asked, ten times more confused than before.

"I don't think that's a good idea, Carlisle," Alice stated lowly. "I doubt she'll agree to it."

"Have you seen her decision?" he asked, raising an eyebrow.

She faltered. "Well, no, but…"

"Alice, I understand your feelings. And while I would happily accept Bella into the family, I don't think all of today's activities have settled in yet. I assume she won't be able to take much more soon and she'll probably pass out from exhaustion. I think it best that she know she has an alternative, though, and she can make of it what she wishes to."

"Fine," Alice grumbled.

"Now then, Bella," Carlisle said, smiling at me. "What Alice has told you is true. Every last word. Both Esme and I would happily accept you into the family if you allowed it. However, I am aware that you have been taking in a lot today and the fact that we have offered you something this grand has yet to fully sink in. However, I do wish for you to know that you have another option. Your father is Charlie Swan, yes?"

"Y-yeah, that's him," I replied.

"Well, Charlie Swan still lives here in Forks. He happens to be a good friend of mine, actually."

I blinked with astonishment, which quickly turned into annoyance. "So? He wasn't really much of a father to me, Carlisle. He was never there. I doubt he'd care any bit for me."

"You see Carlisle? I was right," Alice huffed. Carlisle shot her a gentle, but reproving look. She huffed again and pouted. He turned his eyes back to me.

"Bella, may I tell you something?" I nodded. "I met Charlie several years ago when he was brought into emergency. He nearly lost his life that day. Do you want to know why? He had turned to alcoholism after your mother left with you. He felt guilty for not being a good father and began drinking to ease the pain. He ended up in emergency when he got into a car accident caused when his liver shut down from all the alcohol. I managed to save him and his organs, but not before I gave him some advice."

"I told him that there could always be a chance that you returned, that he might get a second chance to right his previous wrongs. I told him that and helped push him to go to an alcoholic's awareness meeting, which he did. Eventually he was able to fix his problem and get his life on the right track, so to speak. He's not perfect, Bella, but he did miss you and he did regret what he did to you. If anything, I'm sure he'd be happy to see you again."

I thought about that for a moment.

"I don't know, Carlisle. I really don't. I'll think about it, I guess."

"That's all I ask for," he said with a smile. "Until you make an exact decision, you are still welcome to stay here. Alice has offered her room to you, of course. And you always have the choice to leave if you wish."

"Carlisle!" Alice hissed. "She can't leave! Not with the hunters coming!"

"Yes, yes, I know that, Alice. But we cannot force her to do something she does not want. We would still protect her, regardless of her choice. It would be wrong of us, though, to force her to be here if she did not want to," he explained.

All of this information was spinning through my head. Carlisle had been right. I hadn't quite realized what the hell had just happened. Now I was beginning to.

I had told a family of vampires I hardly knew about my own "traumatic" past. How my mother was a bitch, how my father was a coward and how I ended up with a foster family. Well, I didn't really go into detail there. Not like I needed to, I guess, but I could always tell them later.

That reminds me. Why exactly did I agree to tell them all of that to begin with?

Oh, right. Because they told me a tiny bit about their family and I naturally felt inclined to spill my guts out to them. Maybe Jasper did it. I'm sure he could, given the special power he had to manipulate other people's emotions. That must've been it. No, wait.

I did it because I wanted to. Because I felt inclined to. I guess, more than anything, I did it because I've never told anyone before. They all seemed sincere in finding out, and because I'm growing to trust them more, I told them. Well, I trust Alice, Esme and Carlisle. The others I'm not too sure about. Rosalie seems to hate me for reasons I don't know, and I just met the others. I still haven't met her brother Edward yet, though from what I've been told I won't have to wait too long. I don't know. This is all so new to me.

I've never really had an actual family before. I've never been hugged or told "I love you" or congratulated or anything like that. I never got that chance. But Alice and Carlisle and Esme treated me differently. They were kind. They hugged me. They took care of me.

And then there are the strange feelings I feel; the warmth, the tenderness and the wholeness.

Is that what it feels like to have a family? Is that what I've been missing out on my whole life?

These people, these vampires, make me feel accepted. They don't treat me like garbage, or like they're superior to me or like I'm their next meal. They treat me like they treat each other. Like a member of their family. I guess…I guess I could get used to that. It'd be a little overwhelming living in a family of vampires, especially since I'd be the only human. I'm the only one who eats, sleeps and does other human things. It'd be a bit awkward. But with the amount of love that I've been shown, I think I could make do. Maybe.

I don't know. It's a lot to think about and a lot to take in.

And then there's Charlie. Carlisle wouldn't lie to me, I can see that from the compassion in his eyes, but that doesn't mean I fully believe that Charlie's changed. I'd have to see that for myself. Even then, would I consider living under his roof again after what happened last time? I doubt it sincerely. I guess, maybe, I could at least talk to him and see for myself whether or not what Carlisle told me is true.

Would Charlie even accept me? Would I even accept him?

God, this is so much to think about. My brain fucking _hurts _from all this thinking. I am _so _not cut out for this shit. Damn.

"Bella?"

Alice's concerned voice brought me out of my thoughts.

"Huh? What?"

"You looked like you were thinking really hard on your decision. I still can't see what you're going to decide. I'm a bit worried, to be honest, but I won't push you."

"Oh. Um, thanks Alice," I said. I could tell by the look in her eyes that she was both worried and frustrated, probably because she didn't know what I was going to do._ I_ didn't know what I was going to do for that matter. I mean, shit, I need a week to decide, if anything.

"Have you at least decided if you'll stay here for now?" she asked. She looked so hopeful and so utterly adorable. How could I say no to that?

I glanced at Carlisle, who was waiting patiently for my answer. "Carlisle, is it okay if I stay here?" Alice's face lit up.

Carlisle smiled at me. "Of course it is, Bella. You're more than welcome to. What about sleeping arrangements? You could always sleep in our guest room…"

"No!" Alice and I both shouted at the same time. We both cupped our mouths and glanced at one another in surprise. I felt my face turn bright red as I blushed. Carlisle let out a brief, but amused chuckle before trying to straighten his face up.

"Alice's room will work, then?" he asked, a twinkle in his eyes.

"Y-yeah, I l-like her room," I stammered, blushing even more. "I m-mean, I'm already familiar w-with it, so, you know…"

"Is it alright with you, Alice?" Carlisle asked. Something about the way he asked made me think that the question wasn't necessary. What was he playing at?

"Yes!" Alice answered abruptly. She caught herself and bit her lip, looking embarrassed. Carlisle let out another amused chuckle, which Alice glared at him for. He gave her an apologetic look before returning his eternal eyes to me.

"Well, Bella, I appreciate you taking the time to tell us a little about yourself. I promise that I will answer any and all of your questions when you decide you want to ask them. The others will most likely be happy to tell you their tales as well. It's late now, though, and I can tell by your eyes that you're tired. Have a good night." He smiled warmly at me before departing.

Just when I was about to question him, I let out a brisk yawn. Huh. He was right. Alice laughed beside me.

"I completely forgot about the time," she chuckled.

"What time is it?" I asked.

"It's about eight thirty," she replied.

"Holy shit, really?" I was surprised. Where did the day go?

She laughed again. "Yup, really. Silly Bella, you're worse at keeping track of time than I am." I rolled my eyes. Like _she_ had any right to chastise me. Fucking vampire…

I yawned again, the day's events slowly taking their toll on me. "Is every day in your house always this full of excitement?" I asked.

"If by that you mean someone spilling their guts in a heart wrenching display, followed by an hour of comfort, then no."

"Fuck off," I growled playfully. She giggled and stood up from her chair, offering me her hand. I hesitated for a moment, just to be dramatic, and then I gradually accepted it. That same electrical feeling pulsated through me when our hands touched, causing me to momentarily stop. Alice paused too before pulling me up. A little too fast, though.

In a split second our faces were inches apart. Neither of us spoke or moved. I felt my heart start pounding in my chest as my face heated up. We both looked at one another with surprise. I couldn't help but gaze into her beautiful golden eyes, finding myself lost in them like I always did. They were so entrancing, just like she was.

Slowly I began to move forwards, Alice mimicking the movement. Alas, my body had other plans as a third yawn erupted from my mouth. I tried to hold it back, but failed miserably. When I opened my eyes again, Alice was now a few inches away from me, looking at the floor. My face turned bright red when it hit me what had just happened. What had _almost_ just happened.

Dear God, what is wrong with me?

"Come now, Bella. It's late. You need your rest," Alice said quietly. I felt so ashamed and guilty. God I am such an idiot. Should I apologize? Should I just forget it? Ugh! "Come on, Bella, don't just stand there." Alice teased, her voice becoming playful again.

I sighed and started trying to move, but my legs buckled under me and I fell forwards. A pair of cold, hard arms caught me, though, preventing me from slamming into the floor. I looked up to see Alice holding me, giving me an amused smirk.

"Would you like me to carry you up the stairs, miss?" she asked in a masterful British accent.

I wasn't sure whether to blush, laugh or speak. So I did all three at once.

"Yes, please." I said through my giggle-snort. Alice laughed that tinkling, musical laugh once again, easing me as she slowly strode up the stairs, carrying me like I weighed nothing at all. We were in her room in mere seconds where she gently set me down on her bed, smiling tenderly at me as she did. She then proceeded to pull the covers up and tucked me in. I felt like a little kid being taken care of by her mother, but it was oddly comforting. I didn't mind in the least.

"There," she said, pleased with herself.

"Thank you, Alice," I murmured, nuzzling my head into her sweet smelling pillow. "Thank you for everything."

Her face softened as a loving smile graced her lips. "You're welcome, Bella."

I smiled at that and closed my eyes, allowing sleep to take its hold. As I did, I felt cool lips pressing ever so softly against my cheek. I knew it was Alice and my face lit up as it always did. I'm not sure if I was hearing things or not, but as the darkness engulfed me, I swore I heard Alice's voice whisper to me.

"Sleep well, my beautiful angel."

**A/N: Longest chapter yet. Hope everyone enjoys it. **

**Okay. So, if anyone thought that the backstory I made for Bella was too...what's the word? Cliché? Emo? I dunno. Usually people tend to like what I do, and I thought I did a decent job myself, I've just seen instances where people have complained about something being too "woe-is-me" or something like that. Understand? That's not what I was aiming for. I wanted to show that Bella isn't used to having a loving family. I also wanted to show why Bella has such poor self esteem.**

**And then the reaction that Alice has, the little speech, that's meant to sort of push the relationship forward and show how much Bella means to her. Bella is still oblivious, but she's slowly beginning to take note of things (Carlisle's innocent chuckling, how she feels when she looks into Alice's eyes, etc.). For those of you who are waiting for their first kiss or the "I love you's" to begin, you've got a ways to go. At least a few more chapters. **

**What else...um, yeah, I hope I was able to pull off the emotions well. I kind of jumped into her spilling her story pretty quickly, but I tried to recover with that mental bit. I'm hoping that worked out well, but I'll leave it to the readers to decide on that. **

**Thank you to all that have been reviewing so far. I would love for people to keep reviewing, especially the people who haven't reviewed yet. Better yet, feel free to review a past chapter and work your way up. That makes me happy. I really like the long, in depth reviews that I get from people like Jezikial and ScOut4it. Big thanks to them for being awesome and to everyone else who reviews. Don't be shy now. I'm sorry if I'm coming off as demanding. I really am. But the number of people reading each chapter has fallen as the story has proceeded, as has the number of people reviewing. Gotta fix that.**


	8. Fangs

**Disclaimer: I take no credit for any of Meyer's Twilight characters. I only take credit for the characters that I made. **

**Fangs**

My dream was different this time around. There were no painful reminders of my past. No glowing red eyes or cold laughter. This time, the dream I had was actually a peaceful one. Perhaps it was because I was in a comfortable bed, surrounded by an incredible scent that did nothing but ease me. For some reason, I felt that I was subconsciously in someone's arms. They were cool, but gentle and soft. It was a nice feeling, only making the dream all that much nicer.

No sooner did my dream start did it begin fading away as I slowly awakened. As I slowly came to, I felt a pair of arms around my waist. I was confused at first, but before I could really react the arms were gone. I opened my eyes and blinked a few times before yawning and sitting up.

"Good morning, Bella," came an excited, chirping voice to my right.

"Morning, Alice," I muttered, rubbing my eyes. I glanced at her to see that she was looking sheepishly at her feet. What the…oh, wait. "Alice, were you hugging me in my sleep?"

If possible she became even more sheepish looking as she bit her lip, looking adorable as always.

"I…" She hesitated. "Yes, I was. I'm sorry. I just…you were whimpering in your sleep and I…"

I cocked my head to the side. "I was whimpering? What do you mean?"

She sighed. "Well, I guess whimpering is the wrong word. You were kinda talking in your sleep and you said my name…" My face turned bright red in embarrassment. "I'm sorry, Bella, I didn't mean to make you uncomfortable, I just…" She started to look sad and I internally kicked myself for not responding sooner.

"No, no! It's okay Alice, really. I didn't mind it, actually. I was just surprised is all," I told her. She let out a quiet sigh of relief that I didn't miss before looking up at me and smiling that dazzling smile of hers.

"Good. Now then, what do you want to do today?" she asked, bouncing excitedly. God she looked adorable.

"Huh? You're the psychic, shouldn't you already know?" I asked back, raising an eyebrow. She crinkled her nose as stuck her tongue out at me in response. Okay, have I mentioned how adorable she is? Can she possibly _get_ any cuter?

"Well _excuse_ me for trying to be polite by asking you," she replied playfully.

I couldn't help but giggle at how cute she was. It wasn't long before she joined me. For a while, we just staid where we were, enjoying each other's laughter and in hindsight enjoying one another's presence. It was a comfortable feeling, one that I could get used to.

A family…

That's what I could very well have if I chose it. Last night I was given the offer of being adopted. Adopted by vampires, for crying out loud. Somewhere in the world, I think that would be a horror fan's biggest dream come true. Me? Well, considering the fact that these vampires had not only taken me in when I was on the run, but they promised to protect me from those that are after me. Could I see myself as a part of this family? Yeah, I guess I could.

But I was still just a human. I already feel inferior to these magnificently beautiful, super humanly powerful beings. Even though Alice tells me I'm beautiful—I have yet to really see that for myself—and even though I've been treated fairly equally, I'm the weakest, slowest and overall the most useless being living in this house.

If I did join their family, what happens if they get attacked? They'd spend their time protecting me instead of themselves. If any of them, Alice especially, got hurt because of me; I'd never be able to forgive myself. What then?

Unless…

What if I could somehow become a vampire? Is that possible? Well, it should be, considering the fact that they sure as hell don't just magically appear. I think. Then again, I really don't know much about vampires. I don't even know that much about Alice, let alone any of her family.

Maybe I should start asking questions. She did say I could, right?

"I think I know what I wanna do today," I said, smirking at Alice.

Alice didn't answer at first; she was merely standing still, her eyes glazed over. After a moment she snapped out of her vision and let out her lovely tinkling laughter.

"Ah, so today is question day, I see." I nodded. "Well then, I'll make you a deal."

My smirk dropped. "What kind of deal?"

"I will answer your questions, if in return you agree to go shopping with me today." I heard several loud groans downstairs that worried me.

Ah, shopping.

The stereotypical favorite thing for most girls to do in their spare time. I remembered back in my shitty foster home that my "sister-who-wasn't-really-my-sister" Amanda had a thing for shopping. Of course, I never went with her. Not because I disliked shopping, but because she was a bitch and a half. Alice, though, I liked, though I had a bad feeling about the idea of shopping, especially considering the dangerous gleam in her eyes when she mentioned the word.

Then again, I _did _need new clothes.

"I'm not gonna, you know, die today am I?"

Alice frowned for a moment before rolling her eyes. "No, Bella, you won't "die" today. Since this would be your first Alice Cullen shopping trip, I'll go easy on you. I promise."

"Is the Alice Cullen experience that bad?" I asked, more curious then afraid.

"Of course not!" she huffed. "Look, I love to shop and I take my shopping very seriously. The only other person who likes it aside from me is Rosalie, though. Everyone else always groans and complains. Well, Carlisle and Esme don't, mainly because I don't bother them about it. The others I have to drag, _especially_ Amara. She hates it the most."

"You promise you'll go easy on me, then?"

"Yes, Bella, I promise. And in return, I'll answer all your questions." She paused for a moment, concentrating on something, before smiling softly at me. "Now get up and get some breakfast! We've got a long day ahead of us."

I frowned, remembering something from before. "Hold on a second,"

"What?" she asked, slightly annoyed.

"I seem to recall another promise you have yet to keep, Alice," I reminded her. "You said you'd explain to me the deal with the sun, remember?"

"Ugh!" she groaned. "Fine, I'll show you today, if you promise to go shopping with me."

If it means that much to her…

Fuck it.

"Deal," I said, extending my hand. She grinned as she extended hers and we shook on it, eliciting the usual tingles surging through me. Once we let go, she bounced excitedly around her room, grinning like a fool. I was definitely beginning to have second thoughts about the whole shopping thing and I hadn't even moved from where I was sitting.

But how could I refuse Alice?

"Um, Alice? I, er, need a human moment first," I said embarrassedly, cursing my bladder for being…well, full.

Alice stopped moving around and smiled at me. "Alright, you know where the bathroom is."

"And I'll need to take a shower after breakfast," I pointed out. Now I was just stalling for time. It wasn't that I hated shopping, I was just afraid of what shopping with Alice was going to turn out like. So far, I was getting nothing but bad feelings about it.

"Fine," Alice groaned. "Now hurry up already!"

"Yes, ma'am," I deadpanned. She gave me a playful glare that I snickered at as I exited her room and walked towards the bathroom. Right as I opened it, I stopped and stared. Everything looked…different. Like, really different. Even the door looked different. I looked at Alice confusedly.

"Oh, Esme installed soundproof padding in the walls and the put in a sturdy door. That way you could do your business with fear of any of us hearing it," Alice explained.

"But…but…how? When?" I stammered, completely taken aback by the random act of kindness.

"Last night when you were sleeping, silly," Alice giggled. "As far as how, we're vampires. We can do practically anything a human can, only faster, quieter and far more efficiently."

"Oh," I blinked several times to get rid of the shock. "Thank you Esme!"

Alice chuckled. "She says you're welcome and for you to hurry up so you can eat."

I rolled my eyes and went in to the slightly altered bathroom. It was oddly more comforting knowing I wouldn't have to worry about being heard. I shuddered at the thought before going about my business. Once done, I made my way downstairs to the smell of freshly made pancakes. Dear God I love that woman.

"Good morning, Bella," Esme sang happily. "I hope you like pancakes, dear."

"They smell delicious," I replied, licking my lips. I was _not_ drooling. Much.

Esme beamed. "Thank you. I must say, it's a thrill to be cooking for someone for once. I rather enjoy using the kitchen." She plopped a plate of the amazing looking flapjacks on the table. I sped over to the seat, struggling to keep the waterfall of drool from pouring out.

"Thank you, Esme," I said before smearing on a bit of butter before pouring the syrup and digging in. Esme chuckled delightedly as I began feasting on the pancakes. As per usual, Alice sat near me, watching me intently; her eyes alit with fascination and curiosity.

While eating I decided to glance around, wondering what the others were up to. Emmett and Jasper were playing a really cool looking shooter game, their hands a blur as they mashed at the buttons. Rosalie had a magazine in front of her face, trying hard not to look like she was watching the boys play—and failing miserably at it, I might add. Amara, though, was absent and I didn't know where Carlisle was.

"Carlisle is in his studies and Amara went to hunt," Alice said from beside me. I swallowed the remaining piece of my second pancake—those fuckers were huge!—and looked at her quizzically. She smirked and tapped her forehead. Oh. Right, she can see the future.

I gracefully—meaning not—finished the rest of my meal. Esme had, thankfully, taken into count that humans didn't eat giant portions of food and only gave me two pancakes, plus some milk. I downed the milk and attempted to stand up to take the plate to the sink, but Alice was there before I could even move.

"Thanks. I could have done it, though," I pointed out.

"I know that, but we're supposed to be polite to our guests. Besides, you take too long," she teased, sticking her tongue out at me again. Rather than just simply marvel at the cuteness, I decided to be bold and mimic the motion by sticking my tongue out. Alice giggled and in a short amount of time we were making faces at one another. How someone so beautiful and eternal could act like such a cute child baffled me, but I was enjoying myself too much to care.

It's strange. I don't think I've ever been happier in my life. I like it.

"No, no, no!" boomed Emmett. Alice and I turned to see Emmett glaring at the televisions screen. "Stupid cheap ass gun!" Rosalie was struggling to keep a straight face while Jasper snickered triumphantly, holding out his hand to Emmett. Emmett grumbled before handing him a stack of bills.

"Emmett and Jasper are always making bets with each other," Alice giggled. "Sometimes Amara and Rosalie join in. Things get pretty competitive, let me tell you. They all try and butter me up to get me to help them win, too, which I _never _do."

"Pfft. Please, Alice. You're easy to buy off," Amara chuckled as she walked into the room and sat next to Jasper. Amara winked at me. "You just gotta know what she _likes_."

Did she just…? No, she didn't. Did she? I looked at Alice, who looked equally embarrassed and annoyed.

"I'm going upstairs to change," mumbled Alice as she strode past me up the stairs.

Amara and Jasper both laughed as Emmett threw his controller down and stormed out of the house, Rosalie following suit. I watched the display amusedly. Vampire or not, these guys sure knew how to act like little kids half the time.

"Are you worried?" Jasper asked. I blinked and looked at him confusedly. He was smirking. "I meant about the shopping trip." Amara groaned and looked at my sympathetically.

"You poor, dense little human. You have no idea the tortures in store for you."

"What do you mean?" I asked. "It's just shopping." Amara looked at me like I had just said the dumbest thing in the world before shaking her head and sighing.

"Not with Alice it isn't. Trust me, you'll find out the hard way."

"Alice did mention you hated shopping," I said, running a hand through my hair.

Amara grimaced. "Hate is putting it mildly. I _loathe_ shopping, especially with Alice. I happen to like my attires just fine, anyways."

I frowned and looked over her attire curiously.

Wow.

Amara's choice of outfit was far different from the rest of the other Cullens, I realized. And a lot sexier too. For one thing, most of the Cullens wore casual clothes. Carlisle, Esme and Jasper had a sort of formal casual—if that even makes sense, which to me, it does—clothing style. Emmett had more casual than anything, reflected with the simplistic shirts and jeans that he wore. Rosalie and Alice were different. They wore clothes that looked like they were made by a top designer. Classy, sexy and stunning in the same. Then again, these people could wear garbage bags and still look ten times more amazing than any human being.

Amara, on the other hand, wore much more along the lines of something a punk rock person would wear. She wore thin black jeans and a studded belt, coupled together with black open-fingered gloves and a short sleeveless button up shirt with the bottom buttons undone, revealing her incredibly toned midriff. Holy shit she had an amazing stomach.

Yeah, I have a thing for stomachs. Fuck off.

That wasn't what caught my attention most about her, though. Aside from having one of the hottest belly buttons I've ever seen, I noticed that Amara had a crescent shaped scar. Just like the ones on my arm. It surrounded her belly button and was even whiter than she was, making it easy for me to notice. I could not for the life of me stop staring at it, though I suppose I had a variety of different reasons for that. Amara seemed to notice my gaze and smirked at me.

"I see you've caught sight of my belly button tattoo," she joked.

I flushed immediately at being caught staring. Both Amara and Jasper's nostrils flared at the increase in my heartbeat, stiffening slightly. I blushed harder and took a step back as a wave of calm crashed into me. I welcomed it, of course, since I didn't want to make things hard for them.

"Sorry," I murmured.

After a moment of silence, Amara sighed. "You don't have to be sorry. It's just harder for us to be around you. We're trying, though. And as far as the marking goes, don't worry about hat either. I happen to think it's sexy. Jasper and Alice do too." She winked at Jasper as she finished.

"How'd you get it?" I asked, trying not to stare at it again.

"The same way you got yours," she said evenly. I blinked.

"Oh. Alice told you guys?"

"Carlisle explained to us, actually," Jasper answered. He smiled softly at me. "We will protect you, though. I know Alice tried explaining to you our reasons. There's much more to it than what she said, granted, but you get the gist of it."

"Hell yeah, we'll kick their asses for you," Amara said, grinning. "Emmett and I are both looking forward to some payback for you and some action. More fun, that's for sure."

I smiled appreciatively at them. "Thanks guys. I'm sorry I can't get to close to you, though." My voice trailed off as I thought about it. I was causing them pain by being near them, when all I really wanted to do was get to know them better. I wanted to get to know them all better, even Rosalie. Damn this blood flowing through my veins.

"Please don't feel bad, Bella. It's not your fault. It's ours." Jasper said, another wave of calm enveloping me. I sighed and gave into the calmness. Something hit me then.

"You know, I let Alice borrow my old clothes so you guys could get used to my scent," I told them, frowning. "Has that not worked?"

They looked at me quizzically, then at one another, then back at me.

"I'm not sure I follow," Jasper said, cocking his head to the side. "Alice never mentioned this."

"She hasn't?" I asked, even more confused. They both nodded. I realized then that Alice had yet to come back downstairs, so I decided to run upstairs to check on her. It's not like she'd be doing anything embarrassing, right? She's a vampire for crying out loud. She could hear me and smell me no matter where I was in the house.

I ran up the stairs and swung the door of her room open and stopped where I stood. Alice was burying her face into my old clothes, rubbing them furiously against herself. I almost started laughing at the sight, were I not confused.

"Er, Alice?"

She whipped her head up and stared at me for a moment before looking down at my clothes. If she were a human, her face would probably be one hundred shades of red. I stifled a giggle at the humorous look on her face as she tossed my clothes aside and looked at me sheepishly. I noticed that her eyes were pitch black. That can't be good.

"S-sorry a-about that," she stammered. Whoa. Alice never stutters. What the fuck?

"Are you alright Alice?" I asked, becoming more concerned and wary.

Alice bit her lip and closed her eyes, breathing slowly. She stayed that way for several minutes. I made no inclination to move towards her, despite the overwhelming urge I had to. I couldn't help it, I was worried about her.

When she reopened her eyes they were much lighter in color, her face less tense. She stood up and slowly made her way towards me, taking cautious steps and keeping her eyes focused on mine, showing me she wasn't going to attack. She stopped a few inches away, looking rather ashamed of herself.

"I'm sorry about that," she said, hanging her head. "I, well…I lost control for a moment. I'm sorry."

"It's okay. What were you doing?"

She sighed and ran a hand through her silky, spiked locks. "I, er, was smelling your clothes," she coughed weakly.

"Oh," I replied. I didn't know how to respond to that, nor how to feel about it. Actually, I felt more flattered than anything. She looked at me with innocent puppy dog eyes that made me melt on the spot.

"I'm real sorry, Bella. I just…you smell so good and I saw your clothes and I couldn't resist sniffing them. But one sniff wasn't enough, I needed more. God you have no idea how good you smell, but-"

"Alice!" I interrupted, placing my hands lightly on her shoulders. "Calm down! It's okay. No harm done."

"Alright, if you're sure," she sighed.

"You may want to give those to your siblings, though. Isn't that why you wanted them in the first place? I asked, raising an eyebrow. Again she looked like she was going to blush as she mumbled something under her breath and grabbed the clothes, keeping them as far away from her nose as possible.

"Go take a shower so we can go," she commanded in a gentle tone.

"Yeah, yeah, whatever slave driver," I teased. That earned me a small smile as she moved past me. "Hey, wait! I need new clothes."

"I'll bring you some, don't worry," she said as she hustled down the stairs.

I shrugged and made my way to the bathroom again. Hello shower time. I don't think I've _ever _been excited to take a shower before until now. Now I couldn't wait.

God I am so weird.

The shower I took was better the second time around then the first, even though I wasn't dirty at all. I washed with this really amazing shampoo that I found near the opening with my name on it. Apparently it was a gift from Alice. _Loved_ it. Once I finished I found a pair of clean clothes waiting for me on the stool. Whoa. Had Alice come back in here?

Obviously.

I wonder if…she saw me naked. I blushed at the idea of her seeing me naked. It kind of excited me…

Agh! No! Don't think that way! She's probably not even gay! Damn it!

I groaned to myself as I slipped into the clothes, once again Esme's, and breathed in the lovely scent emanating from them. I swear these people could market their scents off—they'd make millions, that's for sure.

I quietly made my way downstairs where Alice was happily waiting for me, jumping about. I noticed both Esme and Carlisle were downstairs, Carlisle reading a newspaper while Esme was humming to herself as she dusted the floor. Emmett and Rosalie had returned, this time Rosalie taking Emmett's place as he cheered her on.

"There you are!" she exclaimed. "It took you long enough!"

"Sorry, but not _everyone_ here moves at superhuman speed," I pointed out. She rolled her eyes.

"She's got a point, Alice. You should be more patient," Esme softly chided her.

"Alright, fine," Alice groaned. I couldn't help but snicker at the defeated look on her face, though I stopped when she glared at me. "I'll get you for this later."

"Now, now, Alice, play nice." Carlisle stated, setting his newspaper down. He smiled at me, which I graciously returned. "Good morning, Bella."

"Good morning, Carlisle."

"Get him!" Emmett shouted. I glanced over to see Rosalie furiously mashing on the controller in her hands. From the looks of things, she was beating Jasper in whatever it was they were playing. I kind of wished I could play. Well, there's always another time.

"Oh! Thank you for talking to them, Carlisle," I said, remembering that he had spared me from having to tell them my tale.

"You're welcome, Bella," he replied, smiling warmly at me.

"Don't worry, Bella, we'll beat their asses into the ground," Emmett crooned from his spot on the couch. He flashed me a grin and pumped his arms humorously, which I laughed at.

"Thanks Emmett."

Alice nudged my shoulder. "Hey, come on now," she urged. "We made a deal, remember?"

"Oh, right. Sorry, Alice," I said, hanging my head. I felt her cool hand softly pat my head.

"It's okay, Bella. I'm sorry for getting impatient. Are you ready?"

"Yeah, let's go,"

She smiled at that and wrapped an arm around my shoulders before leading me through the side door into the garage. _Damn_ their garage was big. Just as I was taking in the size of their garage, my eyes practically bulged out of their sockets. I think my jaw literally touched the ground at that moment.

W-O-W.

Their cars…

"Holy shit," I breathed, taking in the sight of not one, but eight amazing automobiles, all neatly lined up in the garage.

Alice laughed next to me. "Pretty impressive, no?"

I gawked at her for a moment before taking in the eight different vehicles surrounding me. I had never seen such beautiful cars in all my life. A BMV, a Porsche, a Volvo, two Mercedes, a very fancy jeep, a Ford Thunderbird and an Aston Martin. All expensive beyond belief.

"How the fuck did you get all of these?" I asked, astounded.

She tapped her forehead. "It pays to know when the stock market rises and what the winning lottery numbers are, don't you agree?"

"I don't…I don't know what to say." I couldn't take my eyes off the display. "I'm guessing each belongs to one of you?"

"That'd be correct," she said, grinning. "Can you guess which one is mine?"

I narrowed my eyes and scanned each vehicle over. There was no way her car was the jeep. That practically screamed Emmett at me. Maybe the Volvo? I frowned and mulled it over in my head. One thing I knew a lot about was cars. Learning about them became a hobby of mine while I lived with my foster family. I could always get a good sense of someone based on the kind of vehicle they drove. With the Cullens, though, that was difficult to do.

Finally, I decided on my answer.

"Your car is the yellow Porsche 911 Turbo," I said. I took the look of surprise on her face as a giveaway and beamed proudly that I had been correct.

"Damn, Bella. I didn't know you were a car person," she said, clearly impressed.

"Well, I sort of got into cars when I was living with my foster family. There wasn't much else to do, really. I learned a lot about cars, how they work, how to fix them, but mostly about the different types. I could tell right away what kind of car each one of these were and their type. All of that due to some simple memorization."

"Impressive. But what gave it away?" she asked.

"Well, for one thing, it's the only car that's yellow. You said your favorite color was yellow, after all. Big hint there. But even if you hadn't told me it was your favorite color, yellow still would have given it away. It's cheerful and energetic, just like you are. Plus, it's incredibly fast and a tad rare these days."

She seemed amused. "You think I'm rare?"

I flushed slightly. "Well, no, I mean, yes…"

"Which is it?" she asked, raising an eyebrow as she smirked at me.

"Er, well, I mean that finding someone like you is rare. Yeah, that's it." I tried to sound convincing, but Alice saw right through that, smiling wider as my face heated up.

"If you say so," she teased. "Can you guess the others, though?"

My embarrassment became arrogance. "I bet I could."

She narrowed her eyes at me, both amused and intrigued. "Go on."

I took another brief look at the cars before beginning.

"Well, first of all, the Jeep Wrangler is Emmett's. It's big, loud and strong-looking like he is." The booming laughter from inside the house that followed confirmed my initial suspicions, making me grin wider. Alice rolled her eyes.

"That one was obvious," she snorted. Now _I_ rolled my eyes.

"Whatever. Anyways, I can tell that the red BMV M3 Convertible is Rosalie's. Ostentatious as it may be, I can just see it fitting with her, especially considering how gorgeous it is. I think the black Mercedes is Carlisle. It's very refined and it isn't loud or brash, much like Carlisle. With that said, I'm guessing the green Mercedes is Esme's. Lame as it may sound, it looks sort of like a mother car while the black Mercedes is a father car, you know?"

"All correct," Alice said. "Even Rosalie is impressed, though you won't hear her say to your face. Yet, anyways."

I smirked. "It's obvious that the Ford Thunderbird is Amara's. I could tell just by the color alone," I chuckled. "That just leaves the Volvo and the Aston Martin. I think the Aston Martin is Jasper's and I guess that leaves the Volvo as Edward's?"

Alice was looking at me endearingly. "Once again, you are correct. I'm impressed, Bella."

"Thanks, but I'm no psychic vampire," I said, staring at my shoes. I wasn't used to being complimented so much, which Alice seemed to do constantly. Not that I didn't like it.

Alice placed a hand on my shoulder.

"No, you're better than that," she said, looking into my eyes. I couldn't help staring back. "Now then, let's go. We've got a long drive ahead of us."

"Oh. Right," I replied. I had almost forgotten why I was out here in the first place.

She gracefully danced over to her car and opened the passenger door for me. I thanked her and sat in as she closed the door. Right as I was about to buckle up, Alice was already there, smoothly gliding her hands over mine to buckle me up herself. I blushed as she slowly retracted her hands, smiling. The garage doors opened as she revved the engine up before we were off.

I didn't know where we were going, but the fact that I was alone with Alice was, well, nice. I had wanted to spend more time with her, whether or not I wanted to admit it. I enjoyed her company. A lot. Maybe more then I should. A part of me actually wished she felt the same way. Then again, a part of me did think she felt the same way.

Did she?

The way she looked at me, the way she acted around me sometimes, the small things I've heard…

Could it be that she has feelings for me?

I wonder.

My thoughts were interrupted when I realized how fast we were going. I glanced at the speedometer. Holy mother-

"Are you aware of how fast you're going?" I asked, my eyes widening significantly.

Alice looked at me queerly. "Yes, why?"

"You do realize you're probably way above the legal speed limit? Not to mention the fact that we could crash, you know." I wasn't sure what amazed me more. The fact that I was able to remain so calm despite the fact that she was driving at over one hundred miles per hour or the fact that I was actually comfortable with it. I was a little worried, to be honest.

She shook her head. "Bella, do you honestly believe that I would do anything to put you in danger? Please, trust me. We won't get into a car accident or a ticket, I promise."

"It's not that I don't trust you, Alice. It's just, you know, most normal humans aren't used to driving this fast. Plus, it makes enjoying the drive with you a little hard and I can't ask questions either…" I trailed off, hoping she would understand my point.

Her face softened and after a moment of hesitation she groaned and slowed down. I watched gratefully as the speedometer went from over one hundred to around seventy. I let out a breath of relief.

"I won't go any lower then seventy," she grumbled.

"That's all I ask. Thank you." I smiled appreciatively at her.

"I still hate driving slow," Alice complained.

"This is _slow_ to you?" I asked, flabbergasted.

"Yes! We all like to drive fast, Bella. We're more comfortable driving fast. Only Carlisle and Esme can stand to drive slower than this without growing impatient. I hate it, honestly. I mean, it's not like we're reckless drivers. With my ability to see the future, Edward's mind reading, Amara's amazing sense of smell and Rosalie's skill, we don't really have to worry much."

"So driving fast is a vampire thing, huh?"

"I guess you could say that. We have a different sense of speed compared to humans. What you deem fast is slow to us. I'm not sure why, really, but it's just a part of what we are."

I frowned. I didn't fully understand what she meant. Ah well. More questions, then.

"So I take it you don't turn into bats?" I asked.

Alice burst into her tinkling laughter.

"That, my dear Bella, is a myth and a ridiculous one at that. We most certainly do _not _turn into bats. I swear I don't know where humans come up with this stuff," she laughed, shaking her head.

I started mulling over other vampire related questions. In reality, there was one that was nagging me to death to have asked. How do become a vampire? But I don't want to just throw that out there. I should lead into it.

"How come you don't have fangs?" I asked. I _was_ curious about that, actually.

Alice rolled her eyes. "Yet another ridiculous myth. If we had fangs, we wouldn't be able to pass ourselves off as human, now would we?"

"Then how do you, you know, feed without fangs?"

Alice's face darkened slightly. I noticed her hands tense on the steering wheel. She turned and looked me in the eye.

"Are you sure you want to be asking me about that?"

I hesitated, but only for a split second. "Yes. I want to know everything, Alice. I can take it."

She bit her lip, obviously wondering or not whether she should answer my question. I gave her a determined look. I wanted to know. She sighed, clearly giving in. Good.

"Why don't you ask me what you really want to ask me, Bella? I know you're holding back your real question."

"I want to know how someone becomes a vampire," I stated firmly.

"If you're sure you want to know…" She was being wary. I couldn't blame her, but I wanted to know. I nodded briskly. "Well, first off, you should know that we vampires have another weapon aside from the increased strength, speed and endurance."

Alice turned towards me and showed me her pearly white teeth, which gleamed from what I assumed to be saliva.

"No, Bella. It's not saliva. It's venom," she said, clearly knowing what I was going to ask.

"So how does…"

"I'm getting there. Firstly, though, to understand how it works you have to understand how our feeding process works. Blood is a necessity for us, be it human or animal. We need blood to survive, hence why we crave it. The craving is intense. It's a burning sensation we feel in our throats that increases the longer we go without blood. When we get hungry enough, we can no longer stand the burn and we lose control over ourselves."

"When we hunt, we give in to our animal instincts. It's…indescribable, really, what we feel when we hunt. When we hear a beating heart, we can hear the blood flowing. I guess the best way to describe it is that the blood sings to us. It calls us. When we smell it, it's incredibly difficult not to lose control. Blood smells divine to us. It's impossible not to resist it. And when we taste human blood, it becomes like frenzy. We can't simply stop drinking it, though it is possible for a vampire with a very strong will."

I noticed that she had slowed the car down considerably.

"Should we stop drinking blood; the venom will enter the bloodstream and begin moving through the body. Do you remember the burning sensation you felt after you were bitten? That's the venom slowly moving through your body. It's a long, painful process as the venom moves through the body and slowly kills you. That's when the changing process begins. It usually takes around three days for the venom to fill your entire body. From what I've been told your heart beats incredibly fast first, then it slows and then it stops. Then the change is complete and you awaken as a vampire."

Did her eyes get darker? Maybe I was seeing things. By now, she had slowed to almost a complete stop, pulling over to the side of the road. Whoa. Road? This wasn't a road. We were in a forest area now, surrounded by trees. She had pulled into it considerably, hiding her super expensive car under a shady patch of trees.

"The problem is the stopping. When a vampire has tasted human blood before, the idea of not drinking it is…well, unfathomable. Some vampires have control, but it's rare. In our family, only Carlisle has the ability to withstand the smell of human blood. For the rest of us, it's hard. I mean, we won't all become animals when we smell blood, but it makes us uncomfortable."

"Even for you and Esme?" I asked, stunned.

She smiled sadly at me. "Yes, Bella. Even for Esme and I, it's hard to withstand the smell of blood or even some humans for that matter. You see, all humans smell good to us. Even if you stink to each other, you smell good to us. And some humans smell better than others. Like you, for example." She stopped and looked down at the steering wheel ashamedly.

"_That's_ why whenever I blush Jasper and Amara stiffen up," I realized.

"Yes. Jasper and Amara are newer to our lifestyle, the life of drinking animal blood. The temptation is still there and to them, humans still smell strongly. When you blush, your blood is pumping and that increases the temptation. That's why they stiffen up. They stop breathing to avoid taking in your scent. They're doing their best, though. They're trying. But it's still harder for them to be around you."

"Is it hard for you right now?" I asked.

"Bella, please don't be afraid of me, I-"

I cut her off. "No, no! I'm not afraid, Alice. I'm just concerned for you is all," I explained.

Which I was. The idea of Alice suffering for my sake hurt me. It hurt me more then it probably should've. She was my friend though. I cared about her. I wanted to make it easy for her, for her family. It was the least I could do considering the way they'd taken care of me.

Alice sighed. "Truthfully, Bella, yes, it is hard for me sometimes. You have no idea how good you smell, especially to me." She hung her head, shame and sorrow etched into my face. It broke my heart to see her sad.

"What if I rolled the window down?" I offered. "Would that help?"

"No!" Alice shouted. I was taken aback by her shouting and felt a little hurt. She gently placed a hand on my shoulder. "I mean, no. Bella, that's sweet of you, but the wind would just blow your scent into my face. That would be even worse than it already is…"

"Is it that bad?" I asked, growing a little more worried.

"Well, my car smells purely like you now. God, you have no idea how good you smell." She inhaled, and then exhaled, looking back at me. Her eyes were even darker now, almost black.

"How…?"

"Good do you smell?" she finished. She unbuckled her seat belt and slowly leaned towards me. "You smell utterly divine. Sort of sweet, but very, very mouthwateringly delicious."

My breath hitched as she leaned further into me, pressing her nose to my hair. My heart froze. Part of me was terrified out of my mind. I still cared for Alice. I still trusted her. Then I remembered her black eyes from earlier. Had she hunted yet? No. I don't think so. Shit.

"Alice…" My voice was weak and hoarse as she inhaled and exhaled several times.

"You smell so good, Bella," she moaned. "So fucking good…"

Whoa. Did Alice just cuss? Like, really? Is it bad that I was a little excited at that? Yeah, considering the fact that she's smelling me _and _hungry, I'd say that's bad. Very, very bad.

"Alice…please, don't lose control…" I muttered, feeling both weak and desperate.

She leaned back and I stupidly allowed the breath I had been holding out. Then I saw the look on her face. Her eyes were swirling vortexes of black. Gone was the sweet, cheery Alice that I had grown to care so much about. This was the predator within. And she wanted my blood.

Fuck.

_I knew this would happen! I knew she would kill me!_

_It's not her fault! She can't help it!_

_She's a vampire!_

_She's my friend!_

_She'll kill me! She's evil!_

_I love her!_

Wait. What? Did I just…?

Alice smiled ominously at me, baring her venom coated teeth. She licked her lips as I quivered helplessly in my seat. Then she opened her mouth and lunged at me.

I just _had_ to bring up vampire fangs.

**A/N: What? Bad way to end the chapter? Sorry. Well, not really. Okay, a little. **

**I don't have a whole lot to say regarding this chapter. I worked in the cars (I know nothing about cars, by the way, I just went onto Meyer's website and took the names she listed under what cars the Cullens had. Of course, on her website Jasper and Esme didn't have their own vehicles, so I gave them two other cars she listed. Amara's was one I looked up. Sorry if I said something wrong. I don't know cars. My dad did) for the sake of it. **

******The end part, where Bella mentally thought those three little words...I'm sure someone saw it coming eventually. Right now, though, she doesn't have the time to think it over. Don't worry, she'll ponder it over later on. Slow steps. That's what I'm aiming for.**

******Hope you all liked it. Hope it was good, I should say. But please, peeps, give me some more feedback. I'm getting less and less each chapter. That makes me sad.**


	9. Monster

**Disclaimer: Stephanie Meyer is the creator of Twilight and I-have-no-depth Bella Swan. Me? I'm the creator of Amara. **

**Monster**

Shit!

Shit, shit, shit! Son of a bitch!

_Why me? Why does this have to happen to me? Damn it!_

_I knew this would end up happening. Never trust a damn vampire!_

_But…_

_It's Alice I'm talking about. She's my friend. She's not doing this purposefully. It's not her fault._

Alice's teeth stopped inches away from my throat. Her coal black eyes gazed at me hungrily, no signs of the Alice I knew behind them. I couldn't move. My heart felt like it was frozen in place as my breath stayed caught in my throat. I could see venom dripping from her exposed teeth as she slowly licked her lips. She was going to kill me.

I was going to die.

I was astounded by the turn of events that had befallen me. First I meet a family of friendly vampires. Then I become attached to them, one in particular. Then they offer to adopt me. And now, my first friend in ages, Alice, is about to kill me. Sad? I'd say so.

I wasn't angry at her though. I don't know why. I should be. I should be terrified. I should be screaming bloody murder. That's what a normal person who's been in my situation would do.

When I saw Alice in that position, it reminded me of something. No, it reminded me of someone.

Victoria.

_I was trapped. I had tried to run as far and fast as I could, but it was of no avail. They had found me. I knew they would. They had done it before. It would always be this way. Always._

_It was my third month. Four bite marks adorned my right arm, bruises and scrapes covered my legs and upper body. I was sore, tired and scared out of my mind. _

_It was day eight of the hunt. But I knew they had already found me. I had seen them._

_Now I was just running for the sake of running. No doubt this was just amusement for them, watching their plaything squirm about helplessly. I hated it. I hated them. I hated myself._

_I don't know why I kept at it. There was no point. Stupid fucking dreams. Always calling me, giving me hope, and then stealing it from me in a blink of an eye when I awakened back into the real world. I was cursed. What other explanation was there?_

_It was mid-afternoon right now. I don't know where exactly I was. Somewhere up north. The town I was in was cold and rather small. There weren't many people. Not that that even mattered, since anyone that got near me ended up dead anyways._

_I was in a parking lot. I was running as fast as I could, not knowing where I was going. They had found me, I knew they had. I could practically feel them behind me, even though they weren't. I was panting, aching, and ready to collapse. _

_My body gave in and I plummeted to the ground. I couldn't take anymore. I was too tired. _

_I heard their laughter. I knew I would. It was bone chilling, scraping against my ears with amusement and mockery. I cringed as I struggled to get to my feet, but the instant I was on my knees, a foot kicked me back down. _

_I was lying on my back, staring into the red eyes of my pursuers. Victoria and James both smirked at me. _

"_We win again," chortled James. "You did well this time, though. Better then the last few. Do keep up the good work. You may just pull it off yet."_

"_I feel bad for you, Isabella. You always try so hard and yet you always fail. Though I must admit, I enjoy watching your petty struggle," Victoria chuckled. _

_They suddenly stopped and put their noses to the air, a devilish grin forming on James' lips._

"_It appears we have some unwanted guests. Victoria, I'll leave her to you. I'm quite famished," he said, snickering to himself. He was gone in a flash, leaving me with the feral demoness herself. That was normal, of course._

_Victoria grabbed me by the shirt and lifted me up with ease. In seconds we were in a different, darker place. My guess was this was the bottommost level of the parking lot. It was dark and secluded, just the way Victoria liked it. She pressed my back against a column and brushed her nose against my neck, breathing in._

"_Mm," she moaned. "I love when you sweat. You smell so much better that way."_

_I shuddered as her sweet, cool breath hit my voice. I loved the smell, but there was no way I was going to allow myself to be enticed by her ever again. _

_Especially after the last time._

_I shuddered again, remembering it. The best and worst night of my life since meeting them. I knew Victoria would never let me live it down either. _

_I gulped. "Just…just do what you want to do," I muttered._

"_Aw, you poor little thing," cooed Victoria. "Do you think so badly of me that I would hurt you again? After that magical night we had together? You're hurting my feelings, Isabella."_

_I didn't respond. I merely waited for whatever torture she had in store for me this time. She smiled kindly at me before taking a few steps back._

"_You know, I might just let you off the hook this time. You've been through so much lately," she soothed mockingly. _

_She slowly turned and began walking away from me. I was confused. Was she just leaving me?_

_No. She wasn't._

_Before I could really think, Victoria spun around and lunged at my throat, letting out a violent snarl as she did. I screamed at the top of my lungs as she did and shut my eyes tight, expecting the end. It never came, though. _

_I opened my eyes to see her teeth near my throat, a sinister grin on her face. She stepped back and broke out into laughter. _

"_That was fun!" she crooned. "Your screams are delightful!"_

"_You b-bitch!" I croaked. She laughed even harder. _

"_Indeed I am. Now then…" She paused to lick her lips. "Do me a favor, Isabella. Scream for me."_

Seeing Alice like that brought back that painful memory. I saw an image of Victoria in the same position as she was in.

There was a difference, though.

Whereas Victoria was in full control and doing it to frighten me, Alice wasn't. Alice's black eyes were hungry, but she was stopping herself. She was fighting the animal within. I could see it on her face, the inner war being waged.

For me.

She was losing, though, since she was slowly inching closer to me. I was going to die. There was no other way around it. Alice was trying, but failing.

Even though I was seconds away from dying, I didn't hate her. I didn't blame her for what was happening. I was oddly at peace with dying, especially if it was at Alice's hands. She would make it fast, at least. I guess I was thankful for knowing that much. Even more amazing was that I was more _worried_ with her reaction then anything. I didn't want her to blame herself or anything like that.

I don't know why I cared so much.

I was content. Why? What the fuck is wrong with me? Why can I feel nothing but being content?

I guess…

I guess it's because I have nothing to lose. Nothing to live for. No purpose in life. Maybe more than that, I'm thankful that I'm going to die.

All the pain and suffering I'd endured most of my life would be over. I wouldn't have to be afraid of James and Victoria anymore. I'd be in a better place.

Did I believe in heaven? Yeah, I guess I did. It sounded nice. Nicer then this hell called earth, at the very least. I had thought about it before, whether heaven existed. I had thought about it a lot, even when I was younger.

Hell, I had thought about ending my own life too. Pathetic as it may sound, I had attempted to during the four months I had been on the run. But I couldn't. I couldn't bring myself to do anything that would take my own life. It just felt…wrong.

I felt like something was pulling me, preventing me from jumping off a cliff or hanging myself or something like that. Whenever I started to, I always got this strange sensation that prevented me from it. The dreams I had had of my name being called came back to me and I couldn't go through with it. I felt an overwhelming urge to keep going.

I felt stupid, yes, but I also felt relieved. I never understood it.

So I was fine with dying. I really, truly was.

But I did feel bad. I felt bad for Esme and Carlisle and Alice. Especially Alice. I would never be able to properly thank them for everything they'd done for me.

Would I have to though? Would Alice really kill me? Could she stop?

Did I think she could? Yeah, I did. Would she now, though? I wasn't sure. I was battling with it. If she couldn't, then I needed to thank her here and now.

"Alice…" I croaked, trying to find the strength to thank her for everything in the few seconds I thought I had. She hadn't moved from her position, but I noticed a change in her eyes. They weren't pulsing with hunger and bloodlust anymore. There was something different in them.

She blinked. Once. Twice. Her nostrils flared, her face stiffened and her jaw shut. Her head cocked to the side as the animal within slowly dissipated, revealing something else.

Confusion.

She studied me for a moment, watching as a bead of sweat dropped from my forehead. Then her eyes widened and a look of horror and agony appeared on her face. She leaned away from me, looking like she was about to burst into tears.

"Bella…" she breathed. "Oh God, Bella. I'm so sorry…"

"Ali-"

I didn't get a chance to finish saying her name. She glanced at me with eyes smoldering with sorrow before bolting out the door of her car, disappearing into the forest. I stared after her silently, letting out my breath. My heart finally started beating again too.

I knew Alice was going to hunt. She wouldn't leave me alone here for long. Would she?

"Oh, Alice," I murmured. I felt so bad for her. This, in essence, was stupid of me. I mean, come on now. She had just tried to kill me and here I was feeling sorry for _her_. What the fuck is wrong with me? Ugh!

Still…

Alice was important to me. She was my first friend. My first real friend. We knew so little about each other, yet I felt comfortable beyond belief when we were together. Honestly, I often felt like I had known her all along, like we were the best of friends. And maybe something more. I don't know. It's stupid of me to think, but I can't help it. I think I may see her as something more than just a friend.

Is that wrong? Should I feel this way?

I closed my eyes and leaned back into the seat. I didn't want to think about any of that right now.

I was more concerned with Alice.

What should I do?

Well, for one thing, she was hunting right now. I figured I would at least wait until she came back. But what if she didn't?

No, she would. I know she wouldn't leave me out here.

I hope she's okay…

What can I do, though? I'm so useless. I'm the one who caused all of this. Me. Damn it.

Fuck this! I hate being worthless! I hate being weak! I have to try and do something.

I undid my seatbelt and swung the car door opened before getting out. Once I shut the door I started running into the forest. I had no idea where I was going, but that didn't matter.

I sprinted, looking in every direction I could, hoping to see some sign of Alice. Nothing. One minute. Two minutes. Five minutes. Still no sign of Alice.

No! She couldn't have left me, could she? No.

"Alice!" I shouted, desperate. She was my friend. It wasn't her fault. I kept repeating those words to myself over and over again as I continued to shout her name, moving past trees, stumps and rocks. I nearly tripped several times, but I managed to avoid that.

Of course, I was more focused on what was around me then what was in front of me. That's never a good idea.

As I've said before, the luck of Isabella Swan can never be good for very long. I hadn't been paying attention to where I was going, thus I completely missed how part of the forest broke off into a cliff. Too bad I didn't realize it until it was too late.

"SHIIIIIIIIIT!" I screeched as I toppled downwards.

I closed my eyes, expecting a painful impactl. It never came. Instead I felt a familiar pair of cold arms wrapping around me, pinning me to her body protectively. I was trembling in her arms; my heart pounding like it was on marathon. That was way too fucking close…

"Shh, Bella, it's okay. I've got you," Alice whispered in my ear. I didn't speak; I just buried myself into her, blubbering like a little girl.

I mean _**shit**_; I was terrified out of my mind! But more than that, she had saved me.

I felt her moving briefly before she sat down beneath a tree, cradling me in her arms.

"Oh God, Alice! Thank you!" I exclaimed, relieved beyond all belief.

She didn't speak, she nearly held me in place until I had finished sobbing. She then gently sat me down and started to walk away from me.

Wait. Hold on!

"Alice, wait!" I shouted, trying to stand. Too fast. I nearly tripped, but again she caught me, sighing as she set me back down. I looked up at her face and nearly started crying again. Her eternal face was etched with anguish and pain. She looked like she would be crying. I even noticed her eyes looked a bit different, hazy almost.

"Bella…" Her voice sounded weak as she looked down at me. "I'm so sorry. I can't believe I almost did that. God, I am such a fucking moron! Please, _please_ forgive me. I'm sorry..." She kept repeating the last two words over and over again.

"Alice, please, I said I'm not upset. It's okay, really," I said, trying to ease her. Funny, she had tried to kill me and I was the one trying to ease her. What a world.

I think I might have gotten brain damage at some point in my life. Then again, how could I not try and ease the angel in front of me. I hated the idea of her being sad. She was so beautiful, so sweet. True, she was bloodthirsty.

She was like a bloodthirsty angel, but in a good way. God I am so cliché.

The things I think and feel when I'm around her, I swear…

She looked at me, dumbstruck. That was the best way to describe the look she gave me.

"Okay? _Okay_? Bella, I almost killed you! My teeth were inches away from your throat for God's sakes! How the hell is that _okay_?" she roared.

"I know that, Alice! I know I should be scared or angry, but shit, all I can feel is concern for you!" She stopped and stared at me, wide eyed with shock. I was a little surprised too. "Alice, please, I'm fine. I know it was an accident. Yes, you almost did, but you didn't. You stopped yourself. Don't blame yourself, Alice. I'm fine. I was just worried about you."

She continued to stare at me oddly, not speaking. Her eyes—now back to the beautiful, soul-warming gold that I loved—looked deeply into mine, searching for any sign of anger or any form of deceit. Judging by her reaction, I knew she found none. That baffled her. But it also seemed to anger her. I sighed and looked back at her pleadingly.

"You…God, I don't understand you, Bella. I nearly kill you and here you are worrying about me. Are you suicidal, Bella? Do you have any idea how much I hate myself right now for what I almost did to you? Do you know how I would have felt if I had done that to you? I can't even think about it!" she threw her arms into the air, a myriad of different emotions on her face.

I didn't answer her. I didn't know how.

How do I make her see that I wasn't upset? That she shouldn't feel bad?

"Alice, I…" I struggled to find the right words to use.

She held up a hand to stop me. "Don't, Bella," she stated. "Don't try and tell me that everything is alright. It isn't. I almost killed you. I was seconds away from it, too." She started pacing around back and forth in front of me, lost in thought. "Rosalie was right. I shouldn't be around you. It's too dangerous. I'm too dangerous."

I gawked at her. "Whoa, whoa, whoa! What the fuck are you going on about?"

"Bella, I'm a monster. I'm-" Now it was my turn to cut her off.

"Like hell you are!" I shouted, getting to my feet abruptly. Luckily I didn't fall or trip this time. Alice stared at me surprisedly. "You are not a monster, Alice." Strangely, the dream I had had several days ago popped into my head. Only in this case, the roles were reversed. Uncanny.

"How can you say that, Bella?" Alice asked coldly. "You don't know about the things I've done in the past."

"Like what, kill animals? I don't care about that Alice! That doesn't make you a mon-"

"I've killed humans before, Bella!" Alice shouted.

"You…what?" I knew I had heard her correctly. Still…

She took a step back, looking at the ground beneath her feet. "I've killed humans before," she repeated, her tone drenched in sadness.

Ah. Well then. That's always nice to know. Right?

My brain was screaming _**danger-danger-danger**_ in the back of my head, telling me to run the hell away _now_. Of course, my brain had done the same thing when she had almost bit me, but I didn't listen to it then. My heart, on the other hand, told my brain to shut the fuck up. Lucky for me, I always did prefer to listen to my heart over my brain.

That being said, it explains my penchant for getting caught in really crappy situations. I digress.

"Alice…" I squeaked, uncertain how to reply. She had killed humans before. What was I supposed to…?

Wait.

_I_ had killed humans before.

"I'm sorry Bella," Alice said, not taking her eyes off the ground. "You needed to know the truth. As much as I hate myself for admitting it, it's best that you know."

Hold on. She's a vampire. Of _course_ she's killed humans before. That doesn't surprise me. I'm sure everyone in her family has in the past. But they don't anymore. Why should that matter?

"Alice, that doesn't bother me. You probably did it years ago to survive. But you're different now," I said, feeling rather confident.

She didn't look up, nor did her facial expression change.

"Alice, look, yeah, I was scared. But I'm not mad. I don't hate you. Honestly, I would have rather you killed me then either of those other two-"

"Don't EVER say that!" Alice shouted, grabbing my shoulders. "Never! Do you hear me?" I clamped my mouth shut, stunned into silence by the look in her eyes.

"Bella it is _not _okay for you ever think that it would be alright to die. It isn't! You have _no_ idea how important you are to me!" she shouted, her eyes never leaving mine. The power behind her words took me by surprise. We barely knew each other aside from a few days.

Did I really mean that much to her?

"Alice, I'm trying to make you feel better," I explained.

"Nothing will make me feel better, Bella. I tried to attack you. I can't forgive myself for it. That just proves what a monster I am." Her face fell again as she turned her head to the side. She kept her hands on my shoulders, but loosened her grip.

"Damn it, Alice! You're not a monster!" I snapped. "Look at me!" I placed my hand on her chin and forced her to look me in the eye again.

"You don't know what you're saying, Bella," Alice stated coldly. "You have no idea."

"Then _enlighten_ me," I retorted. I didn't move my hand nor did my gaze falter.

She narrowed her eyes and clenched her jaw tight, pondering something. After deliberating for a moment, she removed her hands from my shoulders. I took my hand away, but I didn't move back from her. We stayed where we stood, staring each other down silently. Alice closed her eyes and sighed. Apparently she was going to tell me. Good.

"It's true, I have fed on humans. When I was a newborn, I didn't have the same control that I do now, or at least the control I thought I had." I scoffed at her statement, making her pause to glare at me, before her face softened and she continued. "When we first awaken as a newborn, our bloodlust is incredibly strong. We can hardly control ourselves. I killed countless humans, reveling in the taste of their blood. I hunted humans for several years. That stopped when I started having my visions. It was hard at first, but I eventually managed to deter from feeding on humans. I suppose all vampires are like that at some point in their lives, save for one."

My irritation became curiosity as she sat down. I seated myself near her, but she moved away slightly. I felt hurt by the gesture. She looked at me apologetically before continuing.

"Everyone in my family, Bella, except for Carlisle, has killed a human before. We've all tasted human blood at one point or another in our lives. Even Esme has. But that's average for a vampire. When I tell you that I've killed a human, I mean recently." Her face had darkened significantly as she revealed this to me. I couldn't help the gasp that escaped my mouth.

"How recent?" I asked.

She shook her head and bit her lip. "I tell you I've killed a human recently and all you ask me how long ago. I don't understand you, Isabella Swan. Aren't you afraid of me?"

"No," I answered abruptly, perhaps too fast. "Should I be?"

Did I really just ask that out loud? What the fuck?

Alice gave me a look that asked the exact same question.

"Yes!" she growled. "You damn well best be afraid of me!"

Despite the obvious anger in her tone, there was pain there as well. She hated herself. I could tell by the look in her eyes. She loathed herself. I knew because I had had that look in my eyes before. Whenever I used to look at my reflection in a lake or a mirror, that's all I saw. Self-loathing. I hated myself because of how pathetic I was. That's how I used to think.

Used to.

Things had changed. Ever since I stepped foot inside that house, ever since I met Alice, my world had slowly changed. She told me things no one had ever told me before. And I started to believe them.

Right now, though, the catalyst for my slow change, the first friend I'd made in years, hated herself. I couldn't accept that. I wouldn't accept that.

How could such a beautiful, graceful, lovely person hate herself? No! I can't let her do that.

"I'm not," I stated firmly.

Alice ran a hand through her hair, bewildered, confused and annoyed all at once. She shook her head, apparently unable to accept my answer. I prepared to open my mouth, but she held a hand up to cut me off without even looking at me. Stupid psychic.

"You don't get it, Bella. We vampires are the ultimate predators. Everything about us is meant to draw you in. My looks, my voice, my eyes, my smell. Everything. We are the ultimate killing machines and you and your kind are our natural food source. You _should_ fear me. You _should _stay away from me. It doesn't matter what I want…"

"Bella, I thought that I could be better than this. I thought that I could mask the pain I felt around you because of how intoxicating your smell is to me. I was wrong. I almost killed you. I care for you so much and I almost killed you. That just proves that we shouldn't be around one another-"

"Will you shut the fuck up?" I screamed.

Her jaw dropped slightly as her eyes widened. "I…wha-"

"Shut up! Shut up, shut up, shut up!" I shouted, throwing my hands in the air. "I am sick and fucking tired of listening to you bad talk yourself! My God! This isn't you talking, Alice! The Alice I know if happy, bubbly and fun loving! And yet here you are acting all moody and self-loathing and shit! It's pissing me off!"

"Bella…" she attempted to speak, but I wouldn't have it.

"No! Don't you _Bella_ me, damn it. You _listen_ to me first!" I took the surprise in her eyes as a confirmation to continue. I softened my voice up, of course. I only shouted to grab her attention. If I shouted too much, I'd feel bad for it.

I sighed.

"Alice, when I first met you, I thought you were the most beautiful person I'd ever seen before in my entire life. Yeah, maybe it had something to do with your vampiric charm or whatever, but I just felt a natural pull towards you. I was in awe of how amazingly beautiful you were. Of how beautiful you are. I was scared and untrusting at first, but you pushed through that. You broke through my barrier and reached me, pulling me out of the loneliness I thought I'd be forever trapped in. You are my first true friend, vampire or not."

I let that sink in first, watching as her face softened.

"You told me when we met that you wanted to know me, so I told you a bit. I opened up to you about my parents and what had happened to me four months ago. Even when I started crying like a baby and feeling pathetic, you were there, holding me. You eased me. You told me I was beautiful, that I meant something to you. It's funny, because now I'm doing the same thing for you. But Alice, I shouldn't have to. You should know how great you are. Still, I guess me telling you wouldn't hurt, would it?"

She bit her lip as her eyes became hazy. If she could, I think she would be crying now. I had to do everything in my will to prevent myself from crying. That would ruin the moment for sure.

"Alice, you're charming, funny, sweet and fun to be around. That's the real you, the one I like most. But what stinks is that I've barely seen the real you since we met. I can understand how hard it's been for you and I'm sorry for that. I wish you would have told me because I would have done something about it. I…I really care about you, Alice. A lot. I don't like to see you hurting. And I sure as hell won't accept you hating yourself over an accident."

"But it wasn't just an accident, Bella," Alice protested. "I almost-"

"Yes, you almost did, but you didn't. You stopped yourself. You showed that you could regain control, Alice. That should mean something."

"It means that I didn't kill you today," Alice mumbled. "But what about tomorrow? Or the next day?"

"God, shut up with the negativity bullshit already!" I snapped. "If anyone here is going to be negative, it's me, alright? I've got more of a reason to be then you do."

"What's that supposed to mean?" she asked, narrowing her eyes.

"Just look at yourself!" I exclaimed, waving my hand at her. "Do you have any idea how amazing you are? You can see the future, you have a loving family, an awesome car and you're a super hot, super fast vampire! You've got things people would die for and then some. So you drink animal blood, big deal."

Alice laughed bitterly at my statement. "I'm still a monster, Bella."

I placed my hands on her cold cheeks, making sure she was looking me in the eyes. I narrowed mine and concentrated.

"You. Are. Not. A. Monster." I stated, pushing the strength of my words onto her.

"But Bella-" Again, I interrupted her.

"No. You are not a monster. A monster is someone who murders without conscience. A monster is someone who rapes a child. A monster commits crimes for fun. The two vampires tracking me are monsters, Alice. You, your family…none of you are monsters. You choose to drink animal blood, not human. You don't go around kidnapping humans just to torture them. You try to live amongst them, try to be like them. That's not what a monster is. A monster is an evil. You are not evil, Alice."

She stared at me for a long while, obviously taking in the words I had said to her. After the silence, she bit her lip and sighed.

"It was about four years ago when it happened," she started. I cocked my head to the side confusedly. "You wanted to know about my last…_accident_."

Oh. Right. I nodded for her to continue, leaning my back against the tree.

"I met a girl while I was out shopping. Her scent was incredibly strong and it drew me to her. She was beautiful, though nowhere near as beautiful as you, rambunctious and overly sweet. Her name was Amanda. She lived alone, but spent most of her time out and about. She liked to go on adventures and she loved shopping. She was like a human version of me, except for having blonde hair instead of black. We became friends instantly. She was drawn to me too."

The pain in her voice was obvious. I wanted so bad to comfort her, but I didn't know how.

"We started spending time together, usually just hanging out. I didn't tell any of the others. They didn't ask either. Besides, it was nice to have a friend without them asking twenty questions all the time. They always meant well, though. In fact, I think it would have been better if I had told them. But I was stupid and overconfident. I thought I could handle her amazing smell, the way her blood called to me. I was wrong."

She paused for a moment and took in an unnecessary breath, glancing at me to see if I wanted her to continue. I nodded, reaching my hand out to her. She flinched away from it, though. I hung my head slightly and retracted my hand. I felt so bad…

"One day we were alone with each other at her house, just spending time together. I think she was attracted to me. I liked her, but I didn't see her in that way. But she was so kind and sweet and so…" She stopped again and it sounded like she was choking back a sob. "She kissed me. Not a forceful kiss, but a friendly kiss. She wanted to know what it was like and even though she knew we were just friends, she asked me if I would kiss her. I did. I don't know why, but I did. That was the beginning of the end. She tasted amazing. I couldn't stop kissing her."

She bit her lip again, her face becoming strained with agony.

"We kissed more and more, her heart beating in the back of my ears like a drum. Her blood was like an orchestra that kept calling and calling. Eventually she wanted to stop. I didn't. I kept kissing her. The kissing became harder as my animal instincts took over. She pulled away from me, but I wouldn't have it. I was hungry. I wanted more. I wanted her blood. So I sprang on her and sank my teeth into her neck. She writhed around at first, screaming and crying. All I could think about was her delicious blood. The moment I tasted her blood, it was over. I was gone. I gave in to my inner monster and drank and drank until there was nothing left."

If she could cry, she would have a waterfall of pained tears streaking down her face. She looked like a broken angel. It broke my heart to see her this way. I started crying, unable to hold back my tears.

"When I realized what I had done, I was destroyed. I didn't know what to do. I called Carlisle and begged him to come over. He was there shortly after and helped dispose of the body. I burned her house and considered jumping into the flames as punishment. But I couldn't. I…I had something pulling me away from the fire. So I hung my head and went home with Carlisle. I expected him to be furious with me. To be disappointed in me. He wasn't. He was sad for Amanda and sad for me. He comforted me. Esme comforted me. They all comforted me, even Rosalie. I felt their love and support for me and it broke my dead heart all over again."

She turned to look at me, her eyes watery with the tears that couldn't fall. I was bawling now, wanting nothing more than to make the pain go away for the both of us.

"Oh Alice…" I sobbed. I wrapped my arms around her. I didn't care if she tried to move away, I wanted to comfort her. I pulled her into me and sobbed quietly into her hair. She didn't protest this time or flinch away from my touch. She sobbed. They were dry, tearless sobs, but she was sobbing no less. Despite the sadness of her story and the obvious sadness emanating from her, I felt a bit good.

I was happy to be able to help her for once. She had comforted me when I had been crying like a baby. Now I was repaying the favor. At least now, I didn't feel as useless to her. But it wasn't enough. She blamed herself for killing someone, hated herself for it. She had gone through the exact same thing I had.

She gently lifted her head from my shoulder and looked into my eyes.

"Bella, that's why I don't trust myself around you, can't you see that? I couldn't live if that happened to you. It almost did today, and yes I managed to stop myself, but what if I can't the next time? I couldn't live if I hurt you. It would destroy me. I just…"

I cupped her cheeks with my hands.

"Alice, listen. I know you think you're a monster. You aren't. You had no control over yourself then, but you've gotten better. You do have the control. I know it. You won't lose yourself again. Besides, if anything…" I took a deep breath. I had to tell her to make her see. "I'm the monster."

Alice looked at me like I was clinically insane.

"You must be joking," she laughed. "You? A monster? Honestly, Bella. I appreciate you trying to make me feel better, but that's ridiculous. How could you-"

"I've killed people too, Alice," I informed her.

"What?" she asked. I smiled darkly at her.

"Yes. I've killed others. But I didn't kill them to survive. I did it because I'm a monster and a coward. There's no justification for the lives I've taken. None."

She surprised me by grabbing my shoulders and shaking me slightly.

"Don't! Stop saying that this instant!" she shouted.

"It's true!" I shouted back. "I've killed people before, Alice!" The tears that had stopped falling came back again as I buried my face into my hands. Alice stopped shaking me, but her hands didn't leave.

"Bella…" Her voice was gentle now. "Talk to me. Please."

I sniffled. Now was the time to tell her.

I recounted the events that had befallen the family that I had met and how I had used a shotgun to kill three of the family members. They had all died because of me, one way or another. I told her about the various people who I had met that ended up dead shortly after, either because they had spoken to me or because they tried helping me.

"Bella, none of those are your fault," Alice stated, interrupting me. "You had no control over what happened. You could do nothing. They did this. They're the monsters, not you."

Hearing her say this reminded me of the dream I had had before. The dream with the voice of the angel. Her voice. Calling to me, telling me I wasn't the cause. Comforting me. Just like Alice was doing now.

It made me think of how I felt about Alice. She was my friend, I was certain of that. But I think I may see her as something more than just that. I could never see her as a monster.

"It hurts, Alice," I whispered. "All those people died because of me. It's my fault."

She wrapped me into her arms again. But there was more to it this time. There was warmth, compassion and love flowing from her as she held me. I nuzzled into her form. I always felt good being in her arms. It was indescribable, the way I felt.

I felt like I was meant to be here in her arms. We fit together perfectly.

"Shh, honey, it isn't your fault. Now stop thinking that way," she cooed. "What's done is done. You can't blame yourself for the past."

I couldn't help the small chuckle that escaped my mouth.

"Those are words you should remember too," I pointed out.

"I…"

I looked into her eyes and smiled softly at her.

"Alice, we've both made mistakes. But you're right. The past is the past. I don't know if I can ever forgive myself. I want you to, though. You're no monster."

"Bella…" She attempted to protest, but I put my hand over her mouth.

"We're both monsters, then. How about that?"

"No." She shook her head. "You are a beautiful, loving person."

"So are you," I interjected.

She frowned, but didn't comment. She must've realized that I wasn't going to give up. Apparently she wouldn't either. Neither of us moved from our positions, we merely stayed next to each other, gazing into one another's eyes.

It was peaceful. Despite what had happened today, we were both at peace. I felt good, the way I always felt when I was near her.

I was finally starting to get it. It took me long enough, yes, but it was clear to me now.

I was in love with Alice Cullen.

**A/N: Alright then.**

**I was initially worried about posting this due to the reactions. However, thanks to the words of not one but two reviewers, I kicked myself out of the this-chapter-is-gonna-suck department and into the just-post-the-damn-thing department. Some will like it, some won't. I hope more like it, though. **

**No shirking from your reviews, though, guys. I got twenty four reviews last chapter (thanks to everyone!), so I'm aiming for at least twenty this time.**

**Until next time.**


	10. Sunlight

**Disclaimer: Stephanie Meyer wrote Twilight, therefore she owns all the characters. I'm just writing a fan fiction based off of her story, adding my own characters and twists.**

**Sunlight**

No way.

I was NOT in love with her. That's just insane.

I hardly know her, for one thing. I just met her a few days ago. So what if she's known about me for a year or so?_ I_ haven't known _her_ for that long.

Oh, and one of the bigger points. She's a fucking vampire!

Okay, she has been nice to me. Like, really nice. Most of her family has been, vampires or not.

Well, other than the fact that she tried to _kill_ me not too long ago.

And yet here I am, sitting in her arms, trying to comfort her for what _she_ did while she comforts me for what _I've_ done.

Why?

Why am I so open to her? Why do I trust her so much despite the odds being against me? I've tried not to say anything, tried to fight the urge not to open up to her. Each time I do, I feel this weird pain inside me. It's like my heart is telling me to be open with her. What the fuck.

And now all of a sudden I feel like I'm in love with her. In love. With a vampire.

I don't…I just don't get it. What is wrong with me? Why do I feel this constant push to be there for her, to comfort her? It's like I have no control over myself anymore. It's weird. I mean, I don't like it, but at the same time, I do like it. I feel as though I don't have to hold anything back with her, but I can't stop myself when I want to.

No.

I'm not in love with her. I don't care. I can't be in love with her. There's no way in hell I can.

I mean, okay, she's beautiful. And I do like being around her. I like the sound of her laugh. I like seeing her smile. Every time we touch, I get those weird tingly feelings. But…

No! I'm reading too much into this. I don't love her. I can't. I can't be in love with a vampire.

Can I?

It doesn't make sense! It just…it doesn't! Gah! I hate this! I hate trying to make sense of all this shit when I can barely walk across a flat surface without falling. I don't know.

I'm so confused, so lost.

I feel like I'm drifting in a sea of emptiness. I'm just there, struggling to find my way, to understand what's going on in the world around me. I can't make sense of it all. There's so much going on, so much that's happened, yet I'm barely able to keep up with it. It sucks. I hate this feeling, yet there's nothing I can do about it.

I don't know what to think, what to feel, what to say.

Alice.

No matter what just happened, I feel like I'm being pulled toward her constantly. I feel like I need to be able to help her, to be there for her. I can't explain it. I'm not sure if I want to. I mean, she did almost kill me. But she was fighting herself the whole way. She was fighting to not kill me. And then she stopped, she regained control over herself. I wasn't going to die.

My brain hurts now. This is way too much thinking for me. Shit.

Thankfully, all of that thinking was halted when Alice stirred. I had forgotten that I was still in her arms. They are super comfortable…

Alice removed her arms from me and slowly scooted over. Her eyes didn't meet mine. She kept her gaze in front of her, though she was looking at nothing in particular. For a moment her eyes were glazed over, then they returned to normal. I'm guessing she had had a vision.

"Bella…" Alice's voice was soft and sad sounding.

"Yes?"

"I know you're thinking hard about something. I keep getting different visions because you keep changing your mind. If you want to leave, I understand. I'll lend you the keys so you can drive yourself back home."

"Er, Alice, I don't have a license," I admitted.

She bit her lip. "Oh. Well, then, I guess…I guess I can take you back. Unless you'd like me to take you to Charlie…"

"I don't understand," I told her. What was she getting at?

Alice hung her head slightly. "Bella, I know you're hurt. I know you're confused. And I know you're afraid of me. I'm so sorry. I shouldn't have taken you out here. It was my fault. I understand if you don't want to speak to me for a while. Really, I do."

Ugh! Again with the negative bullshit! I hate this!

"Alice, stop it! It's pissing me off! Look, I'll admit I'm a little confused, but it's about a shitload of other things too. Hurt? Maybe. I'm just…I don't know what I am, but I don't want you to keep feeling bad. So stop beating yourself up over it."

Alice shook her head.

"No, Bella. I need to feel this way. Otherwise something like this could happen again."

"It won't," I stated firmly. She looked at me in the eyes now.

"You don't know that, Bella. You don't. Please stop. I appreciate it, I truly do, but I just can't trust myself around you right now. I don't want you to end up like Amanda."

Oh.

I had almost forgotten what she had told me about her friend. Amanda. They had met years ago, become friends. But then Alice lost control and ended up killing Amanda. I could see the pain and regret in Alice's eyes. She still felt guilty about what happened, and what had almost happened with me brought back those memories, only worse.

I could see how hard this was on her.

It hurt me to see her like this. I felt as though her pain was mine.

But what can I do? How can I make her see that she doesn't have to feel so guilty? How can I make her see that she isn't a monster?

Then I thought of something.

"Alice?"

Her face fell slightly. I felt another twinge of pain in my chest. "Yes?"

"Can I tell you something?" I asked.

"Sure," she murmured. Her eyes left mine and went back to staring at her feet.

"I'm not sure, really, how to say this. I mean, it might sound weird or crazy. I don't know." I paused for a moment. How do I say this?

"Go on," she urged quietly. I could tell that she was listening intently, wanting to know what I was going to say.

"I, um, the thing is…" I gulped. "For the past few months, I've been having the same dream. Well, it's not the same dream. Sometimes I have nightmares about…well, what's happened to me. But the nightmares always turned into the same thing. It was a voice. It was a beautiful, angelic voice that called my name and told me things. I felt pulled towards this voice. I didn't know why, but even when I tried to kill myself-"

"You _what_?" Alice exclaimed.

I smiled sadly at her. "You aren't the only one who's wanted to end it all, Alice. I've wanted to countless times, but I never could. Just like you said before, I felt like something was pulling me back, preventing me from doing anything that would end my life. Even when I was about to give up and let them kill me, I felt like I was being tugged to keep going. That's why I kept at it, throughout the pain, the screams and the tortures. That pulling feeling…it was that voice from my dreams, calling my name, telling me to keep going."

Alice's face, which before had been upset and concerned, softened. Her eyes held a hint of curiosity, though they were still plagued by the earlier moroseness.

"Alice, I think…" I faltered, uncertain. Was I really going to tell her this? How would she react?

"Bella, you can say it," Alice said softly.

"Whenever I think about it my dreams, I always come to the same conclusion. The voice I always heard, the angel that kept calling to me and pulling me. I'm pretty sure it's you."

There. I admitted it.

I admitted that the angel from my dreams was Alice. Was I insane? Yeah. I sure as shit was. But there was no other explanation. I knew it was Alice's voice. I knew that. And the way I felt when I was near her was the same pull I felt before.

Only it was different now. It was…stronger. I didn't understand it.

Shit. There are a lot of things I don't understand. I hate that. What can I do, though?

Alice was silent. She just looked at me, unreadable. That made me worried. Shit. She probably thinks I'm a freak of fucking nature. That's what I would think if I were her. Damn it!

"Bella, I…I don't know what to say," she said.

My face fell slightly. Of course not. She didn't want to hurt my feelings, probably. I felt a cool hand on my shoulder that made me look back at her.

"It's not that I'm trying to hurt your feelings. I'm just not used to someone saying that to me. I'm honestly not sure how to reply."

"Yeah, I guess I'd be the same way," I chuckled. It wasn't a joking matter, but it sure as hell eased the tension.

Alice was looking at me meaningfully, but seemed to be thinking at the same time.

"So you really don't hate me?" she asked all of a sudden.

I was about to shout at her to shut up and stop being so damn negative when I noticed something in her eyes. It was faint, but I could still see it. Hope. I saw hope in them. And that was what made me cut my reply off before I even began it. If I saw hope, which meant that she might be able to push away this depressed state of mind she was in. I hated seeing her sad. It made me sad.

"No," I answered, firmly and seriously. I made sure I was looking her in the eye as I spoke, so she would see this as well. "I don't hate you. What happened was an accident. My trust for you hasn't been diminished either, Alice. I'm fine. I truly am fine. I just want you to stop hurting over it. It won't happen again. You'll be prepared next time, anyways. Besides, you can see the future Alice. You'll know. I know you will."

Alice frowned for a moment, a crease forming in her granite forehead. I couldn't help but notice how much she looked like a statue right now. A beautiful, spiky haired, golden eyed statue.

"Alright. I believe that you mean what you say. I've been searching the future, trying to see how this would impact our relationship. Before I couldn't see anything because you had made no decisions. Now, though, I see us returning home safe and sound, still talking." She smiled, but it didn't reach her eyes like it usually did. This was progress, at least. "I'm thankful that you don't hate me, Bella. It would hurt. Not because of the hate, but because I would've been the one that caused it. I'm just…thank you. And again, I'm sorry for what happened."

"It's okay, Alice. Really, it is." I said, smiling at her reassuringly. She seemed a bit hesitant to believe me, but I saw the resignation in her eyes after a moment of deliberating. Good.

She sighed and leaned her back into the tree, staring up at the clouds. I followed her actions and took a moment to look into the clouds myself. A few stray rays of light could be seen flickering through the thick layers of puffy white clouds. Seeing the sunlight reminded me of an earlier promise she had made. I smiled.

"You know, you did promise to explain the whole sunlight deal to me," I pointed out, turning my head to look at her.

I watched as she closed her eyes and took several quiet, deep breaths before turning to look at me. For the first time in what felt like years, I saw a genuine smile on her face. The sight of her smile eased me and excited me in the same. I was overjoyed to see it again.

"You're right. I did. I guess its best that I keep at least one promise today, right?" she chuckled.

"Alice…"

"I'm fine, Bella," she insisted.

She proceeded to stand up and remove her navy blue jean jacket. I offered to hold it for her by extending my hands to grasp it. She was hesitant for only a second before smiling kindly at me and handing it to me. I couldn't help but inhale her amazing scent. I wonder if she knew how good she smelled. Probably not.

I sighed to myself before folding her jacket up and setting it to my side. When I turned, I almost gasped. Up until this point I had never actually taken a good look at Alice's body. I was used to staring into her eyes or watching as her spiky hair bobbed as she moved. Then there was her smile, her cute nose, those dimples…but I never really got a good look at the rest of her.

Under her jacket she wore a short-sleeved red tank top that fit rather snugly on her upper body, not to mention the dark blue designer jeans that did the same for her lower body. She looked like a fucking model, there was no other way around it. Then again, she would look like a model regardless of what she wore, even if it was a trash bag or a bunch of ugly rags. That allowed me to get a good look at the rest of her, that's for damn sure. For one thing, though her arms were thin, they were definitely well-toned. I wouldn't call them muscular. Not at all. But they sure as sure as hell didn't look like straws either.

And then there was her chest. My God. To call it perfect was an understatement. Her breasts…well, let me put it this way. She was well-endowed for someone her size. That's putting it mildly. I mean, she wasn't as buxom as the other women in her family, Rosalie especially, but I wasn't about to complain with what I saw. Uh-uh. No way in hell.

I am so not staring at her chest. Nope. Not staring. Okay, a little. But I'm not drooling. Damn it.

Then there was her waist, which was perfectly curved, and like the rest of her, thin but not painstakingly so. She didn't look anorexic or anything like that. I was certain that, like her arms, her upper body was chiseled like a beautifully sculpted work of art, well toned and all that, but without any significant muscle. Alice was the kind of person who probably wouldn't look good with muscle. She was perfect the way she was, plain and simple. I only wished I could see under the shirt. Being the freak I am, I could only imagine how amazing her belly button was, not to mention how toned her stomach would look.

"Er, Bella?" Alice's harmonic voice distracted me from my ogling. I blinked and looked up to see her smirking rather amusedly at me. "Enjoying the view?"

_You have no idea._ "Er, what? Oh, no, I was just, um, spacing out," I stammered, feeling my cheeks heat up. Alice didn't look convinced. She merely smiled wider. Oh Lord, she caught me staring at her. Well, at least I wasn't staring at her ass, which, by the way, was perfectly round and utterly adorable in every way possible. God I am such a pervert.

"If you say so," Alice said in a teasing tone. She stood still for a moment, waiting. After sneaking another glance at her figure I glanced up to see the clouds beginning to part. In a matter of seconds the sunlight poured down on the area we were in. Alice glanced once at me before stepping out into the spot of sunlight in front of us.

Now, when I thought of vampires and sunlight, I instantly thought that they would burst into flames. While Alice had told me that such was a myth and incredibly false, I couldn't control the small part of me that worried that something worse would happen.

I was wrong. Very, very wrong.

I felt my jaw drop as my eyes widened. I'm sure I looked like a fish with the way my mouth opened and closed as I took in the sight in front of me.

Alice was glowing. Like, she was literally fucking glowing. I'm not talking glowing like her skin was made out of diamonds, I'm talking glowing like the light of fucking heaven was beaming down on and radiating off her. She looked positively majestic.

Enchanting.

Gorgeous.

To put it simply, she looked like an angel.

An angel? No. A _Goddess_. That's what would best describe the way Alice looked.

I was speechless. Never in my life had I ever witnessed anything so stunningly beautiful in my entire life. As cliché and stupid as it sounded, for a moment I felt as though I was in heaven. Of course, I quickly pushed that thought out of the way. I still couldn't believe my eyes, though. I couldn't for the life of me stop staring at her either.

"Wow," I breathed.

Alice, who had been standing completely still, eyes closed as she gleamed in the sunlight, opened her eyes and stepped back into the shadows of the tree. She appraised me for a moment before smiling softly.

"I take it you're surprised?"

I didn't respond. I was still gawking at her like she was a famous, prize winning work of art, which, in my book, she clearly was, whether I wanted to admit it or not. She found my facial expression amusing and let out a rather brief giggle. Brief as it was, it was nice to hear the chiming music once again. That brought me a bit lower to Earth, though I was still pretty far up in the clouds, my mind trying to process the sight that I had just taken in.

Alice sat down in the same spot she had been in, though now she was looking at me, obviously studying me for any form of reaction. I blinked several times before turning to face her.

"Well?" she asked, clearly interested in what I had to say.

"That was…the most beautiful sight I've ever seen," I admitted, blushing slightly. "You have no idea how beautiful you are, Alice. Honestly the word "beautiful" doesn't hold a candle to you."

Alice was surprised by my answer and, if she could, I knew she would be blushing.

"T-thank you, Bella. That's very sweet of you to say," she murmured. I was shocked. Was she that not used to being complimented? And I thought_ I_ was bad. Well, okay, I am. But still.

"So, um, you glow in the sun," I said, still in awe.

"Yes. That's the reason why we can't be out in the sunlight. I don't know exactly why or how our skin glows the way it does, but Carlisle seems to believe that our skin reflects the light in some way. I'm not sure. I do know that moonlight has a similar effect, though it's nowhere near as strong or noticeable. I'm glad for that, honestly, because I happen to like going out at night."

"Why though? Do you know why you glow?" I asked.

Alice shrugged. "I'm the wrong person to ask that, Bella. Carlisle seems to believe that it's just another of our talents as natural predators."

"I don't follow."

"Well, think about it Bella. How did you react when you saw me glowing?" she asked.

"I was in awe," I admitted. I _still_ was, for that matter. I mean, this was Alice after all.

"Precisely. Carlisle believes that our ability to glow in the sun is a tool that we can use to lure in our prey," Alice explained. "Normally, if a human saw someone who was superbly beautiful in their eyes glowing the way we do, most would be dazzled and would be drawn into the sight. Carlisle believes that is the purpose for our glowing. I, on the other hand, am uncertain about it. I've never given it a lot of thought, but I do know that I'm not fond of it."

"Why not?" I inquired.

"Because I'm sick of not being able to go out into the sunlight!" she huffed, putting her hands on her hips and pouting. I smiled. I liked when Alice acted childish. She was insanely adorable. "Whenever the sun is out, we're forced to stay near or inside our house. It stinks!"

"Oh." I guess that made sense. "I'm guessing things can get pretty boring if you're forced to be indoors all day, huh?"

"You have _no_ idea. Some days it's alright, I guess. I do enjoy spending time with my siblings and all. But time passes by slower for us then it does for humans. We tend to get bored pretty quickly if we're not being entertained. That's one of the many downsides to this lifestyle, the lack of patience we have. It takes years for us to develop the patience we need to fit into the modern world. Truthfully, Carlisle and Esme are by far the most patient vampires I've ever known. The rest of us are decently patient. I admit, I've got the least patience in the family."

"Does the sun warm you at all?" I asked. I wondered if that was actually possible. They were always so cold, I was curious if they could actually get any warmer.

"It does, but it takes a longer period of time then it would for a human," she replied. Something in her voice was a little off. "That's where the problem lies, though. We can't be in the sun for too long. It's dangerous for our health."

I furrowed my brow in confusion.

She noticed this and continued. "Well, our bodies are dead. They don't generate any heat. For that reason, when our bodies come into contact with a source of heat, the reaction is a little…strange. It's not a bad thing, mind you. It's actually rather pleasant. But being exposed to an incredibly strong source of heat for a prolonged amount of time, we begin to feel pain. That's why fire is our biggest weakness, its intense heat and it burns through our hardened skin relatively easily. While sunlight won't cause us to burst into flames, being exposed for too long is hazardous for our health. Yet another reason for us to avoid the sun."

"That explains why vampires hate the sun so much," I mused.

Alice frowned. "What? We don't hate the sun."

"You don't?"

"Of course not! I happen to love the sun. My whole family does, actually. Just because we can't be out in public when the sun shines doesn't mean we don't enjoy it."

"But it can hurt you," I protested.

"True. It takes a lot of time for the sun to hurt us, though. Plus, you have to take temperature into account."

"Whoa there, slow down. You didn't mention temperature before," I interjected. I felt like this was a fucking lecture at school or something. The only difference being that a) the teacher was the most beautiful person in the world and b) I was actually interested in what I was learning.

Alice let out a quiet melodious laugh. "Sorry about that. I blame Carlisle for that. He tends to go off like that from time to time."

"The human's brain hurts. Can you keep it simple?"

She laughed again. "Okay, sure. So, you understand that extremely heat hurts us?" I nodded. "And you understand that being exposed to too much heat is bad for us?" I nodded again. "Alright, well, put two and two together and it's pretty simple. If we're out in the sun, but the temperature is cooler, we have less of a chance of being harmed. If it's incredibly hot out, though, and we're exposed to the sun for a long period of time, then we start to feel the pain."

"Okay. That makes more sense," I grunted.

Way too much thinking today. Not good for my brain. But it's so damn interesting. I don't think I've ever paid more attention to anything in my entire life. I never gave a shit about paying attention when I went to school. All that stuff was boring to me. This, on the other hand, was vastly interesting. I would definitely go to a vampire education class.

No idea why, though. Maybe I'm just insane.

"So can anything aside from fire and heat actually hurt you?"

"You're not planning on trying to run me over, are you?" she asked, quirking an eyebrow.

"What? No!" I shouted, appalled that she would even think that. "I told you I'm not mad at you, Alice! Stop thinking that way!"

Alice pursed her lips as she studied me for a moment before sighing. "I was only kidding, Bella."

"I-oh." I flushed slightly. "Well, I thought it was poorly timed joke."

Alice giggled. "It's fine." Her face saddened for a moment, but she quickly covered it up. "Now then, to answer your question, the only other things that can harm us aside from intense heat are other vampires." She gave me a wide smile, showing off her pearly white teeth. "Our teeth are our natural weapons of choice. They're strong enough to rip through steel, which is practically how tough our skin is. Venom hurts us too, of course, though it doesn't last."

"Aside from that, I know of nothing else that can harm us. Well, there is _one_ other thing…" She trailed off as her face darkened; gold eyes becoming hateful for a brief moment before returning to normal. "That, however, is nothing to worry about."

"What is it?"

"I'll explain to you another time, Bella. I promise." I was about to question her further, but I could tell by the look in her eyes that her decision was final. I scowled, but otherwise didn't push it. I didn't want her good mood to go away just yet. We were finally making some progress since what had happened earlier today in the car.

Truthfully, I had practically forgotten about it. I didn't, of course, but I pushed it away. It was an accident. Plain and simple. Neither of us got hurt from it, either. Well, Alice's pride and trust in herself did. I hoped that she would be able to push past it and not dwell on it too much.

I noticed Alice's expression had darkened a bit from earlier. Her smile had faded and the happiness was practically gone. I knew that she was thinking about earlier. She still seemed to think that she was a monster and that I hated her. She still thought that she needed to be more wary around me. Was there nothing I could do to change her mind? I admitted that I had dreams about her, I complimented her on her beauty and yet it still wasn't enough.

Then again…

I was the same way. I still considered myself a monster for what I had done. In truth, I hadn't told Alice everything. I had kept some parts out. I was too afraid to tell her about those. They were more painful than the ones I had told her. Neither of us, despite the other's protests, could see ourselves as something other than a monster. It was sad, really. Were we destined to feel this way forever?

I thought for a moment.

No. I don't think so. I think that if I keep pushing, she'll come to realize that she isn't some evil, soulless creature that needs to be executed or damned. She's far from any of that. I guess I could stop thinking the same way about myself. I'm not sure if I can, though. I've had the same mindset for so long, it's hard to think otherwise.

The Cullens, though, they've changed me. In the short amount of time that I've known them, they've changed me. Maybe I should stay with them. I'd have my own family. The thing I've wanted most my whole life. People who cared for me, who looked after me, who loved me. That was my ultimate desire in life. A family. I had that chance. I had it right in front of me. I just needed to make my mind up and reach for it.

I wasn't sure, though. It wasn't that I was scared. I was just uncertain.

"Do you have any other questions?" Alice's gentle voice cut me from my thoughts. She was looking at me concernedly, obviously fearful of what I was thinking of. She was uncertain too.

I bit my lip lightly and thought about it. I had learned so much today already. I didn't want the moment to end, though. I didn't want the comfortable peace that Alice and I had together now to go away. I was enjoying it too much. I never wanted it to leave. But I knew it would.

The sooner we were gone, the sooner she would revert to her depressed state. I hated that. I hated that feeling, knowing she was still upset with herself and worried. What could I do, though? Nothing I said seemed to be getting through to her. Nothing. Damn it. I hate this feeling. I hate feeling weak. I've always hated it.

"Alice, is there anything I can do to get you to understand that I don't hate you?" I asked, looking directly into her eyes as I spoke. "I know that you still feel bad. I can understand that. But you're being so broody and sad. I don't like seeing you that way. I miss the happy Alice. I haven't seen her for a while now."

Alice smiled, but it didn't reach her eyes. It was barely even a smile, for that matter.

"Bella, listen. This sort of thing is a serious deal for me. I understand that you're concerned, and I truly am thankful that you don't dislike me or that you're not angry. But that doesn't mean that I'm not mad at myself. I just…I need some time is all. I'll do my best to be cheerful. I just need some time, okay?" Her eyes were pleading with me to understand her plight. I did. I mean, not in the full extent, but I did understand.

"Okay," I murmured. "I'll drop it."

"Thank you. I appreciate that."

"What time is it?" I asked, changing the subject. She frowned a bit.

"Are you ready to go back home? I can take you if-"

"No, no! I'm just curious is all."

"Oh." She paused for a moment and closed her eyes for a few seconds. "It's four thirty."

Damn. We left around twelve-ish. I couldn't believe we'd been out here that long.

"What about shopping?" I asked, knowing how much she loved the idea of shopping.

"I don't think so," she replied sadly. "The sun is still out and it's a bit late. We would need more than a few hours for shopping anyways."

Jeez, was this girl gonna buy me a blimp load of clothes or something? Damn. Now I got why Amara hated shopping with her so much. And we hadn't even gone! Though, I wasn't opposed to shopping. I didn't love it, but I didn't hate it either. I was a bit uncomfortable with the idea of Alice buying me everything without me being able to pay her back.

Come to think of it, I hadn't paid her back for all the help she'd given me up until this point. She'd been so kind and generous with me, so open.

So…loving.

Thinking about that brought back the wave of thoughts I had had earlier, prior to the sunlight discussion: my feelings for Alice. What were they, exactly?

Did I feel the way I thought I did? Was I really in love with her? How the hell does that work, exactly? But I can't think of any other way to describe these…these _feelings_ I get whenever I'm with her. When she smiles, I smile. When she laughs, I feel happy. When she's sad, I feel sad. When we touch, I always get those weird, tingly sensations that surge through me, like goosebumps only different. And when we hug, I just feel so incredibly, I don't know, right. I feel like her arms are a second home, like I belong there. I feel comforted and safe.

Then there's the feeling I get when I'm simply with her. The peace. It feels so perfectly peaceful when we're together.

I care about her. I like her. A lot.

So maybe I do love her.

But what if she doesn't feel the same way? What if she only sees me as a friend? She only saw Amanda as a friend, and she said she saw me in the same way. On the other hand, I saw the way she looked at me, the way she acted around me. I was so confused. I didn't know what to think.

Ugh! This is just giving me a _bigger_ headache!

I sighed and turned to look at Alice. She was staring up at the sky. She still looked sad.

"How about we go shopping tomorrow?" I offered.

She seemed to consider it for a moment. "Maybe," she said, after deliberating it over for a minute or so. I frowned, but didn't press it. A "maybe" was better than a "no", at least.

"Alright," I responded, slowly standing up.

"Are you ready to go?" she asked, standing as well.

My stomach growling answered her question for me. I blushed slightly. I noticed a small smile appear on her face, at least.

"Yeah, I haven't eaten much today," I said. Actually, I hadn't eaten at all.

Alice's eyes widened. "Oh my God, I'm so sorry! I completely forgot! Damn it!"

"Hey! Its okay, Alice, really. I wasn't that hungry until now anyways. Besides, I've enjoyed just spending time with you." Which, save for the earlier car scenario and the falling, was true. Alice narrowed her eyes, looking at me like I was insane. She chose not to comment on it, though, which I was thankful for. I was done listening to her being hard on herself for one day.

She was silent for a moment and I recognized that again she was looking into the future. This time, though, I didn't know what she was looking for. I hoped it was something good, at least.

"It appears that Jasper and Amara are the only ones home. I can cook you something when we get back, if you'd like," she offered, not looking at me.

"Maybe a bit later," I replied. "How far is the car?"

She frowned. "It's quite a ways away, actually. I can…" She trailed off and bit her lip.

"What? You can say it, Alice," I urged, gently touching her shoulder.

She sighed. "I can carry you, if you want. We can get there much faster. If you, you know, feel like trusting me."

I thought about it for a moment. She was the first vampire to ask if I would like to be carried.

"Sure," I answered. "I'd like that."

She was both surprised and stunned by my response and willingness to be carried.

"Are you sure?"

"Positive. How are we doing this?"

"Um, well," she faltered and bit her lip in the adorable way that I had grown to love. "You could be on my back or I could carry you in my arms…" Again she trailed off, obviously leaving the decision to me. I saw a glimmer of something in her eyes as I thought about it.

I blushed when I realized what I wanted. "Er, would you, um, c-carry m-me…?" I prayed I didn't to finish the question. She could see my decision, right?

A sly smile lit up her face. "Certainly." She extended her arms to me and in seconds I was wrapped around her in an incredibly comfortable embrace. I couldn't help but nuzzle into her shoulder and breathe in her sweet smell again. That reminded me of something.

"Oh, your jacket," I said. "I almost forgot about it."

I heard a soft musical chuckle as I was released. In a matter of seconds her jacket was on me rather than her. I blushed again and looked at her confusedly.

"I had a vision of you being cold as we ran. It may be sunny, but it's cool out. I'm surprised you didn't mention anything sooner." She shook her head playfully before scooping me into her arms again. I repeated my actions like before, only now I wouldn't have to be interrupted. I inhaled and exhaled her bodily aroma several times; enjoying the comfort and ease it brought me.

I was surprised to feel her nose brush against my hair and mimic my motions. But I didn't move or protest. I simply listened as she inhaled and exhaled. Once. Twice. Three times.

"Be sure to close your eyes, Bella," she whispered softly. I mumbled an "okay" and before I knew it, we were moving. She whipped past the trees, the cold air blowing past me as I closed my eyes and buried my head into her shoulder.

Cold and hard as she was, she _was_ insanely comfortable.

Just as I was beginning to settle into her, she stopped.

"We're here," she announced softly, gently setting me down. I groaned inwardly and got into her parked car, which thankfully didn't look like it had been broken into or anything. We both got in quickly—well, I got in at normal speed, she was inside in split seconds—and she revved the engine up for a moment before pulling out of the forest area we had been in and turning around.

As she drove off, I noticed that the sun was perfectly angled to her body. In seconds Alice's body started radiating angelically as it had earlier. I couldn't help but stare at how magically—yeah, there's one word I don't use very much—beautiful she was. My eyes never left her form as she continued to drive, her eyes trained on the road ahead of her.

I made at least one final decision at that point. I did love her. I only hoped that she felt the same way that I did.

I needed to find out. But how?

**A/N: Well, chapter nine is done. I'm relatively pleased, I suppose. Not what I had initially wanted, but good enough, I'd say.**

**First of all, this was more of an informational chapter then anything. I realize that this may be boring to some, but this isn't meant to be pure action or anything like that. Besides, I like adding my own creative twist to things, ala the sunlight effect. I didn't really like the "sparkling like diamonds" thing that Meyer had in her story. I mean, I didn't mind it much, but it wasn't my cup of tea. So I changed it around. Slightly. They still glow, but in a different way. Plus, they can't be out in the sun for too long otherwise it begins causing them pain. I figured that was a fair trade-off, you know? Meh. I thought it was a decent change.**

**Now I know that you guys are wanting for Bella to confess her feelings or something like that. Not yet. She's still in doubt. She's still struggling with the idea that she's in love with Alice. And she doesn't know if Alice feels the same way (which she does, obviously, but she's a bit oblivious and a tad in denial). I threw in little things here and there to show how comfortable Bella is with her and I did the mental war thing to show Bella's battle with self-doubt. I figured it added more characterization to her rather then ZOMG I LUVZ U!**

**Ahem. So there you have it. Comments are appreciated and very, very helpful. Don't let it drop guys! Please! My lowest is 13 (4 for the Preface, but that doesn't count). So I'm hoping you peeps keep on reviewing. Let's break 25 guys! Don't be shy. And I'm sorry for being greedy or pushy. I'm not used to this. It's awesome, really, the feeling of people loving what I'm writing. Hence the review demand.**


	11. Feelings

**Disclaimer: I don't own Twilight (I kind of wish I did, really), Stephanie Meyer does. I do, however, own Amara. Here's hoping she becomes more popular.**

**Feelings**

The ride back to the Cullen's mansion—I mean, really, that place was freaking huge—was a quiet one. Alice spoke only once to offer to turn the radio on, which I declined. I was enjoying the silence. I had been enjoying watching Alice glow like the angel I saw her as until the clouds covered the sun up. I frowned at that and turned my attention to the road ahead, watching as she sped down dirt roads and crowded streets. I hadn't realized how far we had gone until now, even though it didn't feel that far at all. Maybe that just her insane driving.

I mean really. How did she even _get_ her license?

Insane driving aside, I noticed something about Alice. Her facial expressions kept changing. She never took her eyes off the road ahead, even when she spoke to me. I saw the turmoil in her eyes. I could tell that she was still battling with herself over what had happened today. I gave up on trying to convince her otherwise, since she was hell-bent on suffering. It made me sad and a little annoyed, but I didn't show it. I didn't want to add to her problems.

It wasn't long before we arrived back home. Huh. There's something I'm not used to thinking. It was weird, really, but this place was home. I couldn't think of anywhere else I'd rather be, either. I guess I really could get used to living here, with a family of vampires.

She slowed as we pulled into the driveway. I noticed Amara outside as she parked the car outside the garage. Amara was sitting under a tree with her legs crossed and eyes closed. I noticed she was sitting in front of my old shirt. Ah. She must be practicing being around my scent.

Alice was out of her car first, blurring over to my side and opening the door for me.

"Thank you, Alice," I said, smiling at her. She smiled back briefly before shutting the door for me after I got out.

"Would you like me to make you something?" she asked.

"You can cook?" I inquired, raising an eyebrow.

I saw a glimmer of something in her eyes as she smiled again. "Well, Esme has been teaching me a little here and there. I'm not that good, though."

"Thanks, but I'm really not that hungry," I said.

She frowned at that. "Bella, I heard your stomach growling earlier."

"I know, but I can wait a while. I'm fine, Alice. Thank you." I gave her a reassuring smile, but she didn't look too convinced. She didn't push it, though.

We walked back to the house together. I turned my head in Amara's direction to see her standing. She smiled at me before following us inside. Jasper was sitting on the couch, silently watching TV.

"Well that was a fast trip," Amara mused from behind me. I went and seated myself on the couch, Amara following suit by sitting near Jasper. Alice, on the other, stood a few inches away from me, not quite facing any of us.

"We didn't end up going shopping," Alice murmured. I frowned and looked at her, noticing that her face had darkened a bit.

"We may go tomorrow, though," I added, trying to keep the mood good. Alice didn't respond.

I glanced at Amara and Jasper. Amara was staring ahead at the television screen, though I wasn't sure if she was actually watching what was on it. Jasper, on the other hand, was looking at me. I knew he could sense my emotions and Alice's emotions. I looked at Alice, then back at Jasper and gave him a pleading look. He seemed to understand and gave me a small smile, nodding to me before standing up.

"Alice?"

Alice bit her lip and gave him a sorrowful look, glancing at me for only a half a second.

"I'm going to go out for a while," she said. I knew she was talking to me.

"Okay. Be careful," I replied. I wasn't sure what else to say.

She gave a slightly forced laugh. "I'm usually always careful. Coming Jasper?"

"Yes ma'am," he replied. Alice nodded and looked at me for a moment longer before departing the room. Jasper stood slowly.

"Don't worry about her, Bella. I'll speak with her," Jasper stated, smiling softly at me before following after Alice.

That left just Amara and I. I frowned and a little and turned only slightly, studying the red-haired woman to my left. I wasn't sure what to think of Amara. We hadn't spoken much save for a few words. One thing I noticed was that her golden eyes were slightly darker then they usually were. I remembered her sitting in front of what looked like my shirt outside. I saw this as a chance to speak with her, to try and bond with someone other than Alice and Esme.

"What were you doing outside?" I asked with slight hesitation in my voice. I wasn't certain how Amara would react to me asking. I didn't know if she liked me or not.

In an instant Amara flicked the TV off and turned around on the couch to face me. She leaned away from me, of course, but made no movements otherwise save for setting the remote down.

"I was training myself to be around you," she answered, smiling a little. "Both Jasper and I have been taking turns with it since Alice lent us your clothes. I wasn't too sure about it, at first, but I must say it was a good idea. Thanks for letting us use them."

"No problem. I wanted to make it easier for you guys," I said, smiling shyly at her. Amara's smile widened.

"Ha. It's funny how you're the one trying to make it easier for _us_ when _we_ should be trying to make it easier for you. I do hope you aren't afraid of me, though. I may not be used to your smell, but I promise you're in no danger of being attacked by me." I cringed slightly when a memory of earlier popped into my head, but I quickly pushed it away.

"How difficult is it?" I asked, slightly concerned.

Amara frowned. "It's not as bad as it first was when we met. Truth be told, it's actually a lot easier for me to be around a single human. I can adjust to that scent quicker than if there were multiple humans. That's what makes school such a pain. But I get by. With you, though, I'll admit it is a bit tough. You smell incredibly good by human standards, you see."

"So I've been told," I murmured. I removed my shoes and propped my knees onto the couch, turning so my body was facing Amara's as well. It was only fair that way. "Am I the only one, though? Who smells that good?" I couldn't help how sheepish I felt asking.

Amara's frown turned into a smile as she laughed. The sound of her laugh was flutelike. Well, it was deeper and edgier then a flute, but it had a similar musical quality to it. I eased up a bit at the sound. It wasn't as beautiful as Alice's laughter, but I did enjoy hearing it nonetheless.

"No, I'd say not. Some humans naturally smell better than others and you happen to be one of those humans. As I said before though, please don't worry about it," she said.

"I know. I trust you, Amara," I stated. She seemed surprised by that, but the surprise quickly turned into a wide grin. "I'm just glad you don't, you know, dislike me or anything."

Amara frowned again. "Why would I dislike you?" she asked.

"For causing you so much pain, for one thing. Plus, I'm an intruder and all. And I mean, Rosalie doesn't seem to like me so I assumed…"

"Oh please," Amara groaned, rolling her eyes dramatically. "Bella, I don't dislike you. I don 't know you is all. And in the order of what you stated, number one, you aren't causing me too much pain. When we are around a particular scent for a decent period of time, we can adjust to it pretty quickly. I may not be able to be around you for as long as Jasper could, being that he does indeed have better control then I, but I've been here for several minutes and I don't feel a thing. It's no big deal, really. Within the next week, I'd imagine I could be around you for twenty four hours without feeling the burn in my throat."

I was relieved to hear that and let out a quiet sigh. She rolled her eyes again and went on.

"Secondly, you're no intruder. Alice saw you coming quite a while back, so it wasn't big news when we found out you were here in our house. And lastly, don't concern yourself with Rosalie, she's always like that."

"She is?"

"Unfortunately, yes. Her attitude stinks twenty-four seven. She's rarely ever not moody. She's not too bad, though. She doesn't hate you, either. She's just not used to you being here is all, though she does sort of have a problem with you living here. She's jealous of you too."

I gaped at her. "Whoa, hold on. She's _jealous_? Of _me_?" What the fuck? Why the hell would someone as drop dead sexy as her be jealous of me? That made no fucking sense, whatsoever.

Amara sighed. "Yup, she's jealous of you. I don't need Jasper's gift to see it, either."

"Why though? Why the hell would she ever be jealous of someone like me?" I asked.

"Because you're human," she said simply. I furrowed my brow, still confused. "Rosalie has, for as long as I've known her, always struggled with being a vampire. She's never really been fond of it. And the fact that you're here and that you're human makes her jealous. I doubt she'll say anything about it, though. She doesn't like discussing personal matters much."

I was utterly shocked to find that out.

"And the reason she doesn't want me living here?" I asked, trying to wrap my head around the fact that a vampire as crazy beautiful as Rosalie was jealous of me for being human. A human with a pretty shitty life, that is.

"She thinks you're a threat to us and would rather you not be here at all. Of course, you know our secret, which doesn't sit well with her either. She's very protective of the family, make no mistake. Even though Rosalie is a bitch most of the time, she cares deeply for all of us and is vehement on keeping us safe. She's even more annoyed that there are two other vampires after you and believes that you're going to keep causing problems for us," Amara explained.

Ouch. Well, that explained Rosalie's problem.

"What do you think?"

"Me? I've got no problems with you. The only thing that irks me is how in denial you are about the whole Alice situation."

"I…wait, what Alice situation?"

Amara smirked at me for a moment, but the smirk faded into a look of curiosity.

"She tried to attack you, didn't she?" Amara asked in a gentle voice.

"W-what?" I stammered. Amara sighed and looked at me with caring eyes.

"Bella, tell me the truth. Did she try to attack you?"

My face fell. "Y-yes…"

"I see."

"It was an accident though!" I shouted frantically. "She didn't mean to! And she didn't hurt me either. I'm not mad at her, I swear. I'm just worried about her-"

Amara held both her hands up. "Whoa, there! Down girl, down! I know all that."

"You do?"

"Of course I do. I know she would never intentionally hurt you and I can plainly see that you don't hate her."

"Oh." I relaxed back into the couch. "How'd you know?"

She smiled sadly at me. "I could see it by the look in her eyes. In the time I've known her, I've only seen that look once before."

"Amanda," I breathed, remembering Alice's heartbreaking story about her friend.

"Yes. I remember the look of agony and guilt she had that day and how sad it made me to see her that way. It took months for her to recover and go back to being the cheerful, bubbly, annoying Alice that I knew and loved. I have a feeling things will be a bit harder for her this time."

"I'm sorry," I murmured, hanging my head. "This is my fault."

"I disagree," Amara grunted. "It's neither your fault nor Alice's fault in my eyes. It was an accident, plain and simple. No one got hurt, so there's really no reason for either of you to be acting this way."

"I can't help it, though. She won't stop. I've tried to convince her that I don't hate her, but she won't stop being sad. It hurts me to see her like that."

"I know it does, Bella. I don't like seeing her that way either. There's not much we can do, though. She'll feel guilty regardless of what we say. It'll just take time," Amara replied, running a hand through her crimson colored hair.

"I hate this. I hate not being able to do anything about it," I grumbled, resting my head on my knees. Amara didn't comment. I didn't mind. I just needed a moment to gather my thoughts.

That's when I recalled what she said earlier. "What did you mean by the "Alice situation"?"

"I meant that you're blatantly trying to deny your feelings for her," she replied, shrugging her shoulders nonchalantly. "Honestly, Bella, it's a little annoying. I mean, I've seen the way you look at her and its obvious how much you care about her. But I can also see that you're in denial about the way you feel, too."

"I, but-how did you?"

Amara chuckled. "How do I know? I've been in a relationship with someone who can sense emotions for decades now, Bella. I may not have his talent, but I dare say that I've learned quite a bit from him. Plus, it's pretty obvious too. You should see the way you look at her, Bella. It's highly amusing in my opinion."

I blushed furiously at that. Amara stiffened for a moment, clenching her jaw tightly. I grumbled to myself, trying to calm down. Amara relaxed shortly after, her smile returning.

"So did you know that Alice is a lesbian too?" Amara asked.

I stared at her with wide eyes, my blush coming back even stronger. This time, however, Amara didn't stiffen up. She breathed in and out, her eyes darkening a bit more, but she looked more or less at ease with herself. I would've been impressed were I not stunned.

"S-she is?" I squeaked.

"Honestly, Bella. Have you no eyes to see for yourself?" she asked incredulously. "The facts are right in front of you, silly girl. I for one would have thought that Emmett's teasing and the obvious way she looks at you would be proof enough. Did you really not know?" I bit my lip and looked down at my feet. "Dear God, you're worse off than I thought. Ugh."

"H-hey, it's not my fault! I'm not used to this sort of thing," I grumbled.

"Yes, yes, I can see that. Still, it's a pain in the ass watching you two pine for one another the way you do and not do anything about it," Amara complained.

"Why's it any of your business anyways?" I huffed. I grimaced the moment I asked, regretting my word choice. "I, er, I mean-"

Amara cut me off with a hand. "Relax. I'm not offended. If anything, you've got a mouth like me," she chuckled.

After a moment, though, her face became more serious.

"To answer your question, though, Alice is my sister. We may not be related by blood, but our bond is just as strong, if not stronger, then blood sisters. And as her older sister, it's my duty to look out for her and you, for that matter."

"You know, it was a little odd for me to get used to having a large family when I first joined the Cullens. When I was a human, I didn't have any siblings. Hell, I didn't really have much of a family at all. My mother died shortly after she gave birth to me from cancer. They tried to cure it, but it was too late. My father was deeply troubled by her death, but he did what he could for me. He was a good man, I suppose, but he wasn't much of a father. He tried, though. I suppose I was a least a little thankful for that much."

"I spent a lot of time wandering around. I did some things, met some people and made a few mistakes that I can never take back. I honestly thought that I would spend the rest of my immortal life wandering about needlessly. But then I found the Cullens. I had started feeding on animals two months prior. It was a struggle for me, I'll admit that. I still fed on humans from time to time because it was incredibly hard not to. I was out hunting the day I first met them, trying to find an animal large enough to satisfy my thirst."

"I ended up killing a few deer, since there was nothing else around. It wasn't the best meal, but it satiated me enough. That's when I smelled something I didn't recognize. It was vampire, I knew that, but it was different. There was an odd quality to the smell. And I, being the curious person I was, decided to go to it, if only to satisfy my natural curiosity. That's when I happened upon their house. And low and behold, standing several feet in front of the door was Alice, looking at me rather expectantly with a huge grin on her face. I noticed her eyes were gold and was intrigued immediately as to what would make a vampire's eyes that color."

"I remember just standing there, rather dumbly I might add, when she decided to speak. 'Hello there, Amara,' she greeted me. I was stunned, of course, that she knew who I was when we had never met before. She smiled even wider then and walked towards me, extending her hand. 'I'm Alice. It's a pleasure to meet you,' she said. I didn't understand it at the time, but I felt the need to be polite, so I naturally shook hands with her. 'It's nice to meet you too, Alice,' I replied. 'How did you know who I was?' I asked her."

She shifted her position, crossing her legs like she had done outside and smiling fondly as she recalled her memory. I watched and listened, amazed at the clarity in which she remembered and by the fact that she mimicked Alice's voice perfectly.

"She said, 'I can see the future. And I saw you coming.' I was stunned and even more intrigued. 'Why don't you come inside? My family would love to meet you.' I blinked, thought about it for a brief moment, and then shrugged at her. 'Sure, that sounds nice.' And that was that. She introduced me to everyone and slowly, but surely I became a part of the family. I owe Alice a lot, Bella. She helped me settle in. She was always there for me and we became great friends, not to mention incredibly close as sisters."

She turned her smile to me as she appraised me.

"Hell, Alice helped push Jasper and I together. He had developed feelings for me when we first met and I felt a small something for him. With her help, we ended up getting together and we fell in love. That's the kind of person Alice is. She's always there to help out her family, always cheery and smiling. She's the sun that keeps our family warm. It's as simple as that."

I felt something, something I couldn't describe, at Amara's words.

"I have to admit, it was mildly entertaining when she…what is it you humans refer to it as? Coming out of the closet? I think that's the one. Well, anyways. I remember it well because it was the first time I'd ever seen Alice look nervous before. It was kind of cute, really, seeing her bite her lip and pace back and forth, clearly trying to see how everyone would react. The problem was, she hadn't decided to tell us yet. Eventually she put the screws to waiting and called us all in, saying that she wanted to tell everyone something."

"I sat between Jasper and Rosalie as she stood in front of us all, staring down at the floor rather sheepishly. Jasper sent her a wave of calm to help her out. Finally she got the courage she needed and started speaking. 'Everyone, I called you here just to tell you something. It's not super important, but I feel that, being my family, you should know. I'm gay.' Everyone was silent at first. I was the first to speak, naturally. I was surprised, yes, but I kind of had a feeling. I myself am bisexual, mind you, so I suppose it comes naturally for me to figure it out. The others, save for Jasper, were surprised by the news."

"I broke the silence first. 'So does that mean I get to tease you with gay jokes now?' I asked her, jokingly of course. She seemed relieved that I was making a joke and gave me a thankful look. 'I suppose I can't stop you,' she replied. I shrugged innocently and she just stuck her tongue out. The others seemed to process the new information quickly. Carlisle and Esme didn't care one bit of course. They loved her regardless and would never judge her based on what sex she preferred. Jasper spoke next, giving her a reassuring smile, 'I kind of figured. At least you don't have to worry about holding it in anymore.'

She chuckled.

"Emmett spoke next and of course threw in his usual jokes. 'So you like chicks?' he asked. 'Yes, Emmett, I like "chicks". To be more appropriate, I like women,' she replied, rolling her eyes at Emmett's humorous expression. 'Dude, that's hot,' he chuckled, earning him a smack on the back of the head from Rosalie. Now Rosalie was a bit disgruntled. I could tell by the look in her eyes. But she loved Alice. 'I don't really care,' Rosalie sighed as she ran a hand through her oh-so-perfect hair. 'I kind of guessed it, though, with all those spare glances you shoot at me whenever we're naked.' Emmett grinned at that and was about to speak, but Rosalie cut him off with another smack on the back of the head. Poor Emmett."

I couldn't help the laugh that escaped my lips. I could definitely imagine Emmett getting all excited over the news, only to be smacked by Rosalie. He was so whipped. That was hilarious.

"Edward was the last to reply. Now, one thing you should know about Eddie is that he's pretty old fashioned. He was a bit surprised to find out that Alice was gay. But, like with Rosalie, he loved her. 'Well, Alice, I'm a bit surprised. But I don't care much either. Can you promise to keep the dirty thoughts to a minimum?' he asked. Alice laughed at that and gave him a devilish smile. 'Sorry, Edward, but you know I can't promise that,' she replied. Emmett, Jasper and I all chuckled, Carlisle and Esme smiled warmly at her, Edward groaned and Rosalie rolled her eyes."

"I noticed Alice looked a lot happier, then. She was pleased to have told us, since it had been bothering her for quite some time. I went over to her after we had dispersed and hugged her. 'You know we'd love you no matter what, right short stuff?' I asked. She smiled and kissed me on the cheek. 'Yeah, I do long legs. I can't help that I was nervous, though,' she replied. I rolled my eyes and tousled her messy hair. 'Alice Cullen never gets nervous,' I responded. She stuck her tongue out at me. 'Shut up!' she said, smacking my arm lightly. I smirked at her. 'You know, if you're ever in the mood, I could always teach you a few things,' I offered her."

I blushed a deep shade of red when I caught her meaning. Amara's smirk widened.

"She stared at me oddly for a moment before responding. 'Are you serious?' she asked. 'Why wouldn't I be? Didn't I mention I was bi?' I replied. Her jaw practically fell to the floor when I said that and I couldn't help but snicker at her facial expression. 'You're bisexual?' I nodded at her. 'Why the hell didn't you tell me? Do you have any idea how much easier this would've been?' she growled, annoyed with me. I shrugged my shoulders innocently at her. 'Aw, come on, sis. You needed to do this for yourself. Besides, I didn't know you were gay. I had my suspicions, but I didn't _know_ until you admitted it,' I pointed out. She huffed at me, of course."

"I was still waiting for an answer, though. So I put on a serious face as I asked my next question. 'So what do you say? Sex lessons from Amara, yes or no?' If she could, she would've blushed, I knew that for a fact. Before she could respond, though, she was interrupted. 'Will you two cut that out?' Edward called from his room. We glanced at one another before bursting into laughter. If anything, annoying Edward was always a bonus, along with annoying Rosalie of course."

She stopped then and exhaled slowly.

"That was really nice of you, Amara," I stated. "Alice is lucky to have you as a sister."

Amara laughed her flutelike laughter again.

"Well, I wouldn't go so far as to say that. We disagree on a shitload of things and we tend to get into arguments a lot. Mind you, they're playful arguments, of course." Amara paused and sighed.

"What's wrong?" I asked.

"Well, it's just that I miss the cheerful, bubbly Alice. Sure she was annoying most of the time, but she was always a ball of sunshine. Now, though, she's becoming almost as broody as Edward is. And _that_ is never a good sign."

"It's my fault," I mumbled.

Amara rolled her eyes again. "For the last time, Bella, it's not your fault. God, now _you're _starting to sound like Edward. Do you have any idea how annoying it is? Seriously, it's bad enough both Edward and Rosalie are always negative, I can't stand anyone else being that way."

"Sorry," I murmured.

"It's cool. Just try not to be so negative, okay?"

"Alright," I replied, sighing. "But does Alice really feel that strongly about me, though?"

"You'd have to ask her that, honestly. From what I've seen, I'd say she does. Maybe Jasper will tell you. He'd know just as well as Alice would, naturally."

"Would he tell me?"

Amara snickered. "I'm sure if he did, it'd piss Alice off. Hell, if she knew what I told you it'd piss her off. So of course he'd tell you. Jasper's not the kind of guy to beat around the bush. He tells you what you want to know, plain and simple."

I noticed that her eyes were almost black now. She frowned and glanced at the clock on the wall before standing. She smiled rather proudly at me.

"I lasted forty five minutes before I started to feel the burn in my throat. That's much better then before. See? We can adapt quickly."

"So you're leaving, then?"

She gave me a slightly sad smile. "Yeah, I kinda have to. I don't want to stick around too long."

"Oh. Alright then," I mumbled.

"You know, I think I'll go have a chat with Alice. I'll send Jasper back here to give you some company, if you'd like. You could ask him all of your questions, I'm sure he'd answer them. I'll try to keep Alice from looking into the future and finding out about it, too."

I smiled appreciatively at her. "Thank you, Amara."

She returned the smile. "No sweat. Well, I mean, we can't sweat, but you can…ah, you know what I mean."

"It's been nice talking with you, Amara," I chuckled.

"Likewise, Bella. Likewise."

She gracefully stood up and strode past me, smiling at me as she did, before stopping in the kitchen. I watched as she opened the fridge and pulled out an apple with her left hand, tossing it in the air several times.

"Here," she called. Before I could respond, she tossed the apple to me. I barely managed to catch it, fumbling it several times while I juggled it in mid-air, much to Amara's amusement.

"Thanks," I responded. She smiled one last time before disappearing out the door, leaving me alone.

I sighed and took a bite of the cold apple, munching slowly to enjoy the flavor. I took several more bites, chewing thoroughly, then swallowing, until the apple was nothing more than a core. I stood up and walked into the kitchen, tossing the core away, before making my way back to the couch. Since I had eaten, I now allowed my mind to wander freely.

Chatting with Amara had given me a lot of new information, a lot to think about.

Alice…

How strongly did she feel about me? No, she couldn't feel that way. Could she? Damn it, why does everything have to be so confusing? Why can't it be simple for me? I hate this.

I hate it, I hate it, I hate it.

I hate not knowing. I hate constantly fighting with myself over every little thing.

I can't stop, though. My mind is always telling me one thing while my heart tells me another.

Am I really in that much denial that I can't see what's in front of me? I do care about Alice. Hell, I do feel as though I love her. I'm drawn to her. It doesn't make sense, but that's just the way it is. Does she really feel the same way, though?

Why? Why would she love me? We hardly know one another.

Ugh.

A wave of calm was suddenly upon me, causing all the worrying and doubting to vanish into thin air. I looked over at the door to see Jasper standing there, a gentle look on his face.

"Pardon the intrusion," he said, slowly making his way over to where Amara had been seated before. "I could feel your doubt all the way outside. I also felt self-loathing, too. Care to share?"

"Yeah I-wait, is Alice okay?" I asked.

Jasper ran his hand through his curly hair and sighed. "Alice is wracked with guilt and pain. She's infuriated at herself for nearly biting you and it's plaguing her thoughts. She doubts herself too, for that matter. I was able to calm her down a bit and get her to talk to me, but I'm assuming her emotions haven't changed much since I left. Amara will talk to her, though, and I know she'll listen to her sister. They have a strong bond with one another."

I frowned and hugged my legs into my chest. Great. She's still hurting.

"Is there nothing I can do to help her?" I asked, feeling utterly helpless.

"You have to talk with her," Jasper answered.

"I've tried that, but it didn't work. She doesn't get that I'm not upset with her. She won't listen to me," I stated.

Jasper nodded in understanding.

"It's not your fault, Bella," Jasper said softly. "I can feel your guilt. You feel responsible for what's happened to Alice. That isn't true. The truth is, whether or not you want to hear it, it was Alice's fault. I realize that it was an accident. I hold nothing against her for that. But she does. It's because you're so special to her that the fact that she nearly hurt you is killing her inside. She hates herself right now, the way you hate yourself, though I don't know the reason why. Why do you hate yourself? You have no reason to."

"But I do, Jasper. I hate myself because I can't do anything about it. Not only that, but I don't understand half of what's going on. I don't understand why I feel the way I do. I don't understand why she feels the way she does. None of this makes any sense to me. I mean, I do care about her. She's the first friend I've had in years, vampire or not. These feelings, though. They were so sudden, so strange. I don't know what to do about it and I hate it. Why, Jasper? Why does she feel this way for me? Me? Why do I feel this way for her? It doesn't make any sense!" I was practically crying by the time I finished, struggling to understand, and pleading with Jasper to help clarify what the hell was happening to me.

Another, stronger, wave of calm enveloped me. I happily welcomed the calmness as I dried my tears. Jasper's golden eyes smoldered with sympathy and gentleness as he studied me for a moment, waiting until I was composed to give me an answer.

"Bella, how much has Alice told you about her visions of you?" he asked politely.

I shrugged. "She said she started having visions a year ago, why?"

Jasper frowned at that. He closed his eyes and rested his head on the back of the couch, thinking something over. After a moment of deliberating, he reopened his eyes and turned so his entire body was facing me. His honeycomb eyes studied me placidly. I waited rather anxiously for what he had to say, which he must've noticed.

His lips curled into a small smile.

"Truth be told, I'm not quite sure if I should be the one to say all of this. But I believe that, given the current situation between the two of you, you should know the full truth regarding Alice and her feelings for her. I'm a little saddened to hear that she said she had only been having visions of you for a year, though I can understand her reasoning behind it. She was concerned and afraid of how you would react if she had told you the truth."

"Wait, wait. You're telling me…?"

He nodded. "I'm afraid so, Bella. Alice has been lying to you."

"What? What do you means she's been lying to me?" I shouted, practically jumping off the couch.

Jasper sent me a strong wave of calm that caused my shoulders to slump as I plopped back down where I had been sitting. I blinked several times, dazed by the strong emotion flooding over me. Once I was adjusted, the calmness dissipated. I shot Jasper an annoyed look.

"Sorry," he replied. "But you didn't let me finish. I didn't mean that she's been lying to you in a bad way, Bella. She's merely been keeping a few facts hidden from you is all. As I said before, she wasn't doing it to be mean, she was doing it because she feared how you would react."

I furrowed my brow and crossed my arms, finding myself a tad bit annoyed at Alice. But then I thought of her sadness. That made me feel bad for being upset at her and I slumped back into the couch, ashamed of myself.

"You don't have to feel bad, Bella. You didn't know," Jasper soothed.

"Are you going to tell me, then?" I asked, raising an eyebrow.

He nodded his head. "I think it's only right that you know. I may not be the best to do it and I know that Alice won't be too pleased with me, but I feel that it will help the two of you in your relationship with one another. Given what is to come, the sooner the better."

"I don't follow," I said, scratching my forehead. "What do you mean by that?"

"You've wondered why you feel the way you do for her? And why she feels the way she does for you?" he asked.

I nodded briskly. "I've wanted to know about that for a while now. I was hoping you could help explain it to me. You know why, don't you Jasper?"

"Yes," he replied. "You and Alice are soulmates."

**A/N: Like OMG, I bet you didn't see that coming! Oh. Wait. Of course you did. Duh. Yeah, I know, I'm sorry for that. You guys knew, but Bella didn't hence why I kind of had Jasper tell her. Meh. It's moving things along, what can I say?**

**This chapter was mostly a buildup chapter. It's slowly working it's way up to what everyone is waiting for, but I'm hoping it isn't painstakingly so. Actually, I think the pace is fine. Everyone else seems to agree with me, which is always a bonus, right? Don't worry, in due time they will be together, but they have to get past several obstacles first. The obstacles, of course, being their own personal issues. **

**I also made this chapter slightly informational, at least on Amara. I wanted to give her more screen time and have her bond a bit with Bella. I figure the best way to raise an OC's popularity is to use them more often, so I did. Amara seems to have captured some people's interest, which I'm glad for. I hope the interest continues to grow as the story continues and you find out more about her. Oh, and regarding the Amara celebrity thing, I found my choice. No need to worry about that.**

**So what'd you think? I appreciate comments (who doesn't?) and would love for more reviews then the last chapter. I'm hoping more and more readers review as the story progresses. Don't be shy, say what's on your mind. I love getting reviews. They're always positive and they always help push me forwards in writing this story, which I think is going exceedingly well so far. Oh, and I'm proud to be on my tenth chapter now. Yay. Till next time.**


	12. Convincing

**Disclaimer: I own Amara. Stephanie Meyer (what is it people call her? Smeyer?) owns Twilight, sadly. Ah well.**

**Convincing**

Soulmates.

Did he just say that Alice and I were soulmates?

What.

The.

Fuck?

He's crazy. That can't be right.

Then again, he's a vampire that can sense my emotions _and_ change them at will. So maybe it is.

But I mean soulmates? How does that work, exactly?

"I can understand your confusion," Jasper stated. "But I assure you, the two of you are indeed soulmates."

"I don't…how do you know?"

"How old are you?" he asked.

That question threw me off a little. First he says Alice is my soulmate, now he's asking me how old I am. How is that answering my questions?

"What does that have to do with her being my soulmate?" I asked, confused and a little annoyed.

"I realize it's confusing, but I promise I'll explain," he replied. His voice was serious, but soft and curious. I frowned, still puzzled.

"I'm seventeen," I answered.

"And when were you born?"

"September 13, 1987."

He took on a knowing look and smiled kindly at me. "I thought so."

"Wait, what do you mean? Jasper, you're confusing me even more!" I whined. "First you tell me that Alice is my soulmate, yet you don't explain why or how, now you're asking me all of these other questions and none of them are making any sense to me."

"Sorry about that," he responded, giving me an apologetic look and sending a wave of sorrow my way, making me realize how sincere he was. "Allow me to explain."

"Please do. All this talk about soulmates has me more lost than ever," I grumbled.

"Again, I apologize. I needed to know those facts to further my explanation, you see," he explained. I guess that made sense. I huffed quietly and patiently waited for him to start. He smiled, probably at my thin level of patience, before his face grew serious.

"Alright, I'll begin, then. First of all, you say that Alice told you that she'd only been having visions about you for a year?"

"Yes," I replied.

"I see. Well that, Bella, was a lie. Or rather, she merely covered up the truth. Again, try not to be upset with her, she was doing it because she was fearful of your reaction should she tell you the truth. She knew you would be confused and wanted to wait until you eased into this life before informing of you. However, I see no reason to hide the truth from you. Knowing it will help you, I think. You'll still be confused, but I'll do what I can to help clarify."

"That's very nice of you, Jasper," I said. He beamed at that.

"Thank you, Bella. I do happen to pride myself on being a gentleman," he responded cheerily.

"So how long has Alice…?" I trailed off since he knew what I was going to ask. His face became serious again, but the smile remained.

"Since before you were born. I'd say about thirty years before," he replied.

Hold on.

What? Did he just say?

Really? Fucking really?

Thirty years before I was born.

Whoa.

Thirty years _before_ I was fucking born?

Is that right? Is that for real?

My God.

Holy shit, this girl's known about me for that long? Why didn't she say anything sooner?

_Damn_.

I was speechless. I didn't really know how to respond, truthfully.

Jasper, on the other hand, continued.

"I remember that day well. That was the day when things changed for her." He paused for a moment to clear his throat, though I guessed he was merely doing it for dramatic effect.

"It was Saturday when she first had her first vision of you. I'd say mid-afternoon. Carlisle was at work, Edward was out hunting and Emmett, Rosalie and Amara were all taking a drive together. Esme, Alice and I were the only ones at home. Alice was up in her room, rearranging her closet, Esme was outside hanging clothes and I was watching television. I can always feel when Alice is hit by a vision, because her emotions stop for a few seconds before they pick up again, which they did. Now, I'm no mind reader, so I never see Alice's visions, but I can always feel her reaction to what she sees. I remember clearly how abruptly her emotions began changing."

"At first I felt that she was both confused and curious. That got my interest, so I shut the television off and quietly waited. That is when I was hit by the strongest wave of joy I'd ever felt from Alice in my entire life. I couldn't help quietly gasping when it struck me. I was stunned, really, by the magnitude of her joy. Then her joy became mixed in with love, love so strong I would've started crying were I a human. The love and joy she felt lasted for several minutes until it became sadness, an aching sorrow, if you will. No sooner had that started did it dissipate, as I imagined her vision having finally ended. Her emotions after that were a mixture of everything she had felt, the strongest being the utter joy."

"Now, while I was very curious about what she had seen, I respected her privacy and didn't bring it up. I had my thoughts when Edward returned, more so out of habit then because I didn't want him to know. Days went by. Then a month passed. That's when I started noticing a change in Alice's behavior. She started looking into the future more often; replaying the same emotions she had felt that day. I remained silent throughout it, never mentioning a word about it to her or anyone else. What bothers me, though, is that she hasn't told anyone what she's seen. That in itself is unlike her, since she's always so open about her visions."

"More months went by. Alice started changing more drastically. She didn't dance around the room as much as she used to, she wasn't as excited. She didn't drag us shopping or plan events like baseball games or movies. She wasn't as happy. I could feel it. She was concerned, worried, confused and irritated. She was always looking into the future, sometimes spending most of her days locked in a particular vision. And again, whenever she was, I felt the same emotions each and every time. But there was a new one. Longing. She longed for whatever she saw in her vision, longed for it desperately."

"I wasn't the only one who noticed her change as the months went by. The others all noticed too. I could feel their concern radiating off of each and every one of them every time they saw Alice. It wasn't that she didn't communicate with us. She smiled, hugged us, laughed at Emmett's jokes and spoke with everyone. But we all knew something was wrong. We tried to talk to her about what was wrong. Well, the others did. I didn't. Not because I wasn't concerned, and not because I didn't care about her, but because she still hadn't told anyone about her visions. And I respected the privacy of her visions too much to reveal them unless I felt it was direly necessary. Unfortunately, while Alice was superb at shielding her thoughts from Edward, I slipped up sometimes. And I ended up slipping one day when I felt the overwhelming concern of Esme."

"Edward was present and I allowed my thoughts to wander. He snapped his head over to me and I realized I had slipped. I asked him not to go to Alice, which he didn't. He merely asked me to come with him to talk. I felt his concern, so I knew he wasn't upset. We went into the woods and talked with each other for a while. 'How long has she been having the same visions?' he asked. 'Several months now, since September,' I answered. He frowned and I could feel mild frustration from him. 'I wish she would've told one us,' he murmured. 'She must have a good reason for it,' I replied. He thought about it for a moment and nodded. 'True. I can understand in some senses. Hell, I don't hold anything against her. I just…I don't like seeing her this way,' he said. I nodded in agreement. 'Me neither, Edward,' I replied."

"Edward's emotions reflected the strained look on his face. He was hurt that his sister was acting differently and not telling any of us about it. Edward is considered to be the "oldest" in terms of being in the family longer than the rest of us. For that reason, Edward takes it upon himself to look after the rest of us. Of course, it's oftentimes us looking after him, since he is technically younger then we are, at least the age of his body. He's seventeen in form, but around one hundred in actual age. Anyways, I felt Edward's concern and worry. He and Alice had always been close, after all. 'Edward, I think you should avoid asking her about it for now,' I suggested. He frowned, and I knew he didn't like the idea. But he didn't argue. 'I know. She'll tell us when the time is right, I suppose.' I nodded in agreement. Then we went back to the house."

"Neither Edward nor I told anyone about Alice's secret visions. We kept to ourselves. Edward, in fact, was gone much of the time, being respectful to Alice so as to not intrude upon her thoughts. The months continued going by, eventually becoming years. One year. Two years. Alice was getting a bit worse and a bit better at the same time. I'm certain she sensed my concern and through me the concern of the others. That brought her back to life, so to speak, but only by a little. I was beginning to become impatient with her secrecy. I thought about confronting her about it, but I never got around to it. You see, Amara, being so close to me all the time, always gets the rebound of emotions I feel. She felt the concern. She felt the worry."

"One day when Amara and I were out hunting, she stopped suddenly. I stopped to, sensing her annoyance. 'What's wrong?' I asked her. 'You're keeping things from me,' she answered, sounding slightly hurt. 'Amara, listen…' 'No! Jasper, I know that there's something wrong with Alice and I know that you know what it is. Tell me, please,' she begged. I grimaced. I hated lying and I couldn't refuse her, so I gave in. I told her everything, including the emotions Alice had felt. Amara wasn't too pleased when I finished. 'I can't believe she's kept this from us for so long,' she growled. 'Damn it, she'd better have a good reason for it.' 'Amara, do you think you could avoid asking her? I want to give her some more time,' I said, trying to reason with her."

"Amara wasn't pleased with the idea, but she agreed with me. We left it alone for a while longer, allowing another month to pass. Things were getting more complicated, though. Amara knew. Edward knew. I knew. And no matter how well we masked our discomfort, I had a feeling one of the others would find out. I was right. And to make matters worse, it had to be Rosalie who figured it out. Rosalie decided to go to me, knowing that I had the best idea of what was going on since Alice couldn't hide her emotions. 'Okay, Jasper. What the hell is wrong with her?' she asked one day. Rosalie wanted answers. Rosalie always got what she wanted, because she refused to leave until I gave told her."

"I sighed and told her. I felt the anger pulsing off of her seconds later and had to send her a wave of calm to ease her. 'Stop that, Jasper! I have a right to be upset!' she shouted. 'Rosalie, please, calm down. Let me explain,' I said, strengthening the calming wave. Rosalie crossed her arms and huffed. 'I can't believe she's been keeping secrets. From us! Her family! What's so damn important that she can't tell us? It doesn't make any sense!' 'I know, Rose, I know. But I just feel that it'd be invading her privacy if we asked her about it, you know? I figured I'd give her some time-' Rosalie interrupted me. 'Time? Jasper, you've given her plenty of damn time! Plenty! I'm sick of seeing my sister act this way! I miss the cheerful, bubbly, annoying Alice. And I know you do too,' she growled. There was hurt, concern and anger in her voice, though she wasn't angry at me. She was angry that her sister was suffering and she didn't know why."

"I leaned my back against a tree. 'Rose, I know how you feel. I feel the same way. But you're right, this has been going on for too long. I think I'll speak to her. I'll do it suddenly so she doesn't expect it. Okay?' I offered. She frowned for a moment, but her emotions calmed and I felt hope emanating off her of. She looked at me gently, pleading with me. 'Please, Jazz. We all want the old Alice back,' she said. 'I know, Rose. Don't worry,' I told her. We hugged and she departed. I remained out in the forest, hunting. I knew Alice would be hunting soon, so I waited for her, keeping my mind preoccupied. Then I saw her. I waited until she had finished before I confronted her, hitting her with a wave of gentleness to make sure I didn't scare her off."

"Alice smiled at me. 'Hey Jazz,' she greeted. 'Alice,' I returned. 'Alice, we need to talk.' She frowned at this. 'Jasper, listen, I don't want to-' 'No, Alice,' I interrupted her, calmly, but firmly. 'For two years I have waited patiently for you to explain the vision you had that day. I felt the strength of your emotions, Alice. I knew something was up, but I didn't press because I respected your privacy. But Alice, you've become obsessed with those visions. That's all you ever do anymore. You're not like yourself. I'm worried, Rose is worried, we're _all_ worried. I can feel the concern radiating off of everybody. They want the old you back,' I told her, making sure that she understood how sincere I was being."

"Alice bit her lip and didn't respond. I continued. 'Alice, please talk to me. Tell me what's hurting you so much. Tell me why I feel you longing so badly every day. It's hurting me, Ali. It's hurting everyone. There's no point in hiding it anymore. They all know.' She was surprised at that. 'How did they…?' 'I let my thought slip accidentally one day. That's when Edward found out. Amara found out shortly after because of being near me so much. Rosalie noticed it pretty quickly after, and I know she told Emmett, Carlisle and Esme. Please, Alice, talk to me,' I pleaded. She struggled to keep her emotions at bay, trying to decide what to do. I made the decision myself, then. I was tired of waiting."

"I used my gift to persuade her into opening up to me, something I rarely ever did. She knew what I was doing too and glared at me. 'Jasper!' she shouted. 'I'm sorry, Alice, but I'm tired of this. Would you rather it be Rosalie asking?' She huffed, but saw my point. 'I saw my mate,' she said. I was stunned. All this time, and that was the secret she was keeping. I was flustered, not incredibly so, but enough to where she noticed it. 'I'm sorry, Jazz. I'm truly sorry. I just…I couldn't help myself. I was enthralled with her the moment I saw her. She was so beautiful, Jazz. I'd never seen anyone as beautiful as her in my entire life.' I could feel the love pulsating off of her as she spoke and the sympathy she felt for not telling me."

"I was still baffled, though. 'Wait, you saw your mate?' I asked. 'Yes,' she replied. 'I did. I know it's her. I could tell. I saw us together, Jasper. It was beautiful.' 'But Alice, that's great news!' I shouted. 'Why not tell us all immediately? You know how happy that would have made Carlisle and Esme! I don't understand!' I didn't mean to shout, but I was just so lost. I didn't understand why she had kept it a secret from us, this news. I thought it was fantastic news. Alice hung her head, growing depressed. 'She hasn't even been born yet, Jasper,' she said."

"I could hear the hurt in her voice when she told me that. 'What? You mean she's…?' She nodded somberly. 'Yes, Jasper. She's human,' she admitted. I understood now why Alice had kept it from us, but I still didn't understand. 'Alice, it doesn't matter if your mate is human. I'm sure that would end up changing anyways. You know that wouldn't have mattered anyways,' I pointed out. 'But Jasper, the others wouldn't feel that way. I foresaw us getting into a huge fight over it and I didn't want that,' she said. I frowned. 'I see.' We stood there for a while, neither one of us speaking. She didn't look at me, the shame and longing speaking for itself."

"I sent her a reassuring wave of calm. 'It doesn't bother me that she's human, Ali. But tell me, what do you know about her?' I asked. Alice's somber mood became one of love. 'I know that she has dark brown hair and I know the sound of her voice. I haven't seen her face, though. I don't even know her name,' she admitted. Before I could respond, Alice's eyes glazed over. I waited patiently for her vision to pass, wondering what she was seeing. She was overcome with excitement, so I knew it must've been good. 'Bella,' she breathed. 'What Alice?' I asked. 'Bella,' she repeated. 'My mate. Her name is Bella. Oh God, Jasper, I saw her! I saw her face! She was so beautiful, like an angel. I can't wait to meet her,' she said, growing more excited."

"I smiled, happy to see the old Alice again. 'When will she be born?' I asked. Her face fell. 'She won't be born until 1987. Then I have to wait even longer to meet her,' she mumbled, upset and hurt. I placed my hand on her shoulder. 'Don't worry, Ali. It'll all be worth it in the end, I'm sure. Just give it some time and try to take it easy, okay?' 'Okay. I'm just worried that the future will change and something will happen to her. That's the other reason I keep looking into the future. I'm worried about her, Jasper.' 'Relax, Ali. What's meant to be is meant to be. Remember what happened with me and Amara? Besides, you're never wrong!' I pointed out. She laughed at that and hugged me. 'Thanks Jasper. I owe you one,' she said."

I was bawling by the time he finished, overcome by emotion.

I felt a wave of calm gently envelop me as I rubbed my eyes. Jasper was smiling warmly at me.

"So you see, Bella, Alice has been madly in love with you since the day she first saw you. She's waited years to meet you. Now you're here."

"T-then w-w-why is s-she so s-sad?" I stammered as I pushed the tears back. Jasper smiled sadly at me.

"She's afraid that you won't want to be with her, Bella. The main reason, though, is that she nearly hurt you. You are her mate, and for that reason, the fact that she nearly hurt you pains her greatly. Nothing I say can change that. Only you can change that. You see, Bella, I know that you're in love with her. I can feel it, even if you don't allow yourself to acknowledge the fact."

"You deny your feelings because you don't trust them. You don't trust yourself. Normally I would find that a bit annoying, but with you, I can understand completely. You aren't used to the idea of feeling attached to anyone. You're not used to feeling the way you do at all, I believe. The way you feel is foreign and because you've never experienced it before, you try to push it away, obviously believing the feelings to be temporary or wrong. Neither of those are correct, however, because the truth is, you and Alice are meant for each other."

"I just…I dunno, Jasper. How can you be sure?" I asked.

Jasper surprised me by chuckling rather merrily. "Well, it's simple. She would not have had visions of you were it not the case. It was the same way for Amara and I."

"What do you mean?"

"Oh, yes, I didn't mention that to you before. Alice was actually the one that got us together. She had had a vision of Amara and I being together before Amara even joined the family. I remember her being excited for me and telling me everything she had seen, telling me how beautiful Amara was and how happy we were together. I sensed her sincerity and was blown away by the fact that she had seen my mate before I had. Then Amara came into the family and she was right. We clicked almost instantly and began getting close shortly after she joined. It took a while, though, because of Amara's lack of knowing how to progress."

"The fact is, Bella, she said Amara and I were destined for each other. And we were. The same thing can be said for you and her. I'm certain there will be plenty of obstacles in your relationship, but I know for a fact that you're meant for one another," Jasper stated firmly.

"But how can I get her to stop beating herself up over what happened?" I asked.

"First of all, you can stop denying your feelings for her, Bella. You love her. She loves you. You need to see that first before you do anything. Secondly, I think you should use what happened today as a stepping stone in your relationship. Use that to help gain an understanding of one another. If you can do both of those things and tell Alice how you feel, that ought to snap her out of her depression."

"What if it doesn't though, Jasper? What if she won't stop?" I was becoming more and more concerned with what could happen.

Jasper shook his head. "Bella, you need to stop worrying about what _could_ happen and start thinking about what _will _happen. It's true; you don't know what will happen. But that's where it doesn't matter. Whatever happens, it will be good. You're good for her, Bella, just like she's good for you. You are soulmates. You are meant to be together, no matter what."

"But…"

None of this made any sense to me. Well, it did, but at the same time I was still confused.

Jasper slowly stood up and sat closer to me, closer than he had ever gotten before. He placed his hand on my shoulder gently. I looked into his gold eyes, which smoldered with compassion and sincerity. I felt tears trickling down my cheeks.

"Bella, I understand that this is hard for you. I don't expect it to be easy. Alice doesn't expect it to be easy. You two have a long road ahead of you as you both get used to things that are new to you. I know it's confusing. I know that finding out that a vampire you just met is your soulmate. Trust me, though. It is true. It is meant to be. You were drawn here because of that reason, drawn to Alice because you felt pulled towards one another," he explained.

"I…I've had dreams about her before. Dreams of her voice, calling me, soothing me," I admitted.

Jasper smiled. "That is further proof. It's like her having visions of you. Call it fate, call it destiny, call it whatever you want. You and Alice are soulmates. There's no other explanation. This was not a random series of events, I can assure you that much."

"So she was really in love with me when she first saw me, huh?' I openly wondered.

Jasper chuckled. "Oh yes, she was quite smitten with you. It was love at first sight. I suppose that sounds like something out of a fairytale, but then again, so are vampires." He paused for a moment and chuckled again. "Well, I'd say vampires are more the stuff of scary stories then fairytales, but you get my meaning. Besides, weren't you smitten with her the moment you laid eyes on her?"

I blushed slightly. "Y-yeah, I was," I admitted.

"You see? That's good! You admitted something about your feelings and you were sincere about it. Now all you have to do is admit that you're in love with her and that she is in fact in love with you."

"It's hard," I murmured. "I don't know if I can do this."

Jasper's face softened. "I know, Bella. I know. I can feel how hard it is for you and I truly sympathize with you because of it. I know you've had a hard life. You're not used to being loved and cared for, yet here you are in a house of vampires that care about you despite not knowing you that well. And you can do it, Bella. You have to believe you can, though. You have to want to, as well. Only then can you truly figure it out."

He was right about that.

The Cullens had been great to me. Esme had been the mother I'd always wanted, Carlisle, despite the brief times we'd spoken, looked at me the way a father should. Amara and Jasper had both treated me like a sister. I saw them as the siblings I had always wanted.

"I feel the same way," Jasper said, smiling warmly at me. I smiled back.

"What about Emmett, Rosalie and Edward?" I asked, remembering the other family members, one who I hadn't spoken to at all and one who I hadn't even met.

"I wouldn't worry too much about Emmett. He likes you. He finds you amusing, to say the least, but he likes you nonetheless. As far as Rosalie goes, I wouldn't concern yourself with her. She's a bit hard to win over, but I'm sure that, in time, she'll come to accept you. You just have to be patient with her. And don't worry about Edward. He'll be fine with you, I know. It might be a bit odd for him, but I doubt he'll cause any problems."

"If you say so," I murmured. "What do I do now, though?"

"You need to convince yourself that what you feel is true. You need to stop denying your feelings and doubting yourself. Remember everything I've told you, Bella. Remember everything you've thought, felt and seen. You know the truth deep down in your heart, you just have to want to believe it as the truth. Then everything will become clear. Fight your doubt. Don't just push it back, throw it away. There's no need for it anymore. You don't have to fear your feelings, Bella. Embrace them. Learn to understand them. That's all you really can do. It's either that, or live in denial for the rest of your life. I know you don't want that. You know you don't want that."

"That's the reason Alice is so hesitant with you. She's afraid that she'll make a mistake and end up losing you. I remember feeling her emotions when you told us about your upbringing. She was crushed. Devastated. She hated to find out that the love of her life had been put through so much pain and suffering and she hated seeing you so negative. She wants to show you the life she knows you deserve to have, one with love and happiness. But she sees your negativity and she sees your pain and it hurts her. It hurts her that she couldn't do anything to take it away."

"She wants to help you, but she doesn't know how. You have to help her. Help her help you, Bella. That will bring you two closer together. There's not much else I can say aside from that, honestly. I've done all I can by telling you all of this. I think I've helped, but I can't do anything more. You have to do the rest."

I stared at him, astonished. Never in my life had I ever heard such a powerful speech before. Never had I felt such powerful emotions before. But he was right.

I needed to think. I needed to concentrate.

So what if she's a vampire? She makes me feel whole. I don't feel empty when I'm with her.

Think of Amara's words. Think of Jasper's words.

Yes. Jasper.

His words.

I felt the strength of them, the truthfulness. The strange thing was, I don't think he was using his gift on me. But I believed him. I believed everything he had told me and I somehow knew that what he was saying was right.

I love Alice. She loves me.

No.

Yes.

No.

I love Alice. She loves me.

Yes!

No.

Fuck you brain, yes!

I. Love. Alice.

It's true. It's all true.

I thought those three words, over and over again in the back of my head, telling myself they were true.

The way I felt when we were near one another, that pull I felt towards her.

That was love.

How drawn I was to her beautiful, sparkling eyes, that silky, spiked hair, her gorgeous face and body.

That wasn't lust. It was attraction. It was love.

I loved the sound of her laugh, seeing her smile, just being with her. It felt right. It felt like being with her was where I belonged.

Love.

My mind finally gave in. It acknowledged it. I finally accepted what I had known to be true all along. Alice and I were in love. We were meant for one another.

Jasper was right. I didn't fully understand what that meant.

But I wanted to find out. I wanted to see for myself, I wanted to feel, to understand.

I felt like a great weight had been lifted off of me. More than that, I felt like I finally saw things for what they were. Like there had been a veil over my eyes, blocking out my sights. Now it was gone. Now I saw. Now I understood.

Jasper gave me a knowing look and smiled at me.

"So you see, now," he said.

"Yes," I replied. "I do. Thank you."

"For what?" he asked.

I frowned. "Didn't you use your gift to help me?"

He smirked. "Nope. That was all you, Bella. I didn't do a thing."

"It was? Wow," I breathed.

"How do you feel?" he asked. As if he really needed to.

"Good," I answered. "Really, really good. I can't describe it, honestly. It's a little weird, though."

"I'd imagine so," he chortled.

"Is this how I'm supposed to feel?" I inquired.

He nodded. "Yes, I do believe so.

I frowned. "How long does it last?"

"It lasts as long as you will it to, Bella. You're in control of your thoughts. You choose what you think and what you feel. As long as you choose to feel this way, you'll feel this way. I'd advise against fighting it, though. It's inevitable."

"I'll keep that in mind."

"Good. I'm glad to hear it. And with that, I do believe I've finally been able to pay Alice back for all she's done for me. She helped me find my way and helped bring me closer to my soulmate. I believed it was only fair to do the same. Amara helped too, I imagine."

"She did. She told me about how she first met you guys," I told him.

"I doubt she gave the full story," he snickered. "That was an entertaining day, to say the least. Not as entertaining as when Alice and I first met the Cullens, though. That day was hilarious. It was so incredibly awkward I found it hard not to laugh. Alice never told you that, did she?"

"Er, no," I admitted.

"Well, I'll save it for another time. Right now, I believe you have some important business to take care of, no?"

"Oh. Oh!" I smacked my forehead, remembering. Alice. "I have to go to her."

"Yes, that would be wise."

"What do I do, though? What do I say?"

"Tell her the truth. Tell her how you feel, how you've felt all along. Tell her that everything will be alright. If you want, you could even throw in what I told you. Oh, but if you please, be sure to include what Amara said. I'm sure she said a few things Alice told her not to. I don't want to be the only one who gets in trouble," he chuckled.

"Why would you get in trouble?" I asked confusedly.

"Oh, I wouldn't worry too much about that. Alice being Alice is all. She told us not to tell you any of this; she wanted to be the one to do it. I hadn't intended to give you so many details, truthfully, but Amara is incredibly impatient and wanted to push you to together. I'd imagine she would've told you much more were she able to, but perhaps it's best that she didn't."

"Alright," I responded, getting my shoes back on. "Where is she?"

"She's in the forest. I'll help show you where she is, don't worry."

We both stood up at the same time, though I stood up too fast and nearly toppled over. Jasper caught me effortlessly and helped steady me. We then made our way out the door, myself in front, Jasper behind me. Something occurred to me and I paused to look at him.

"I just noticed that you didn't stiffen when I blushed earlier. And your eyes aren't any darker."

He beamed proudly at me. "No, I'd say not. I'm sure Amara mentioned before that my control was better then hers? Well, it's true. Not to gloat or anything. I've practiced more around your scent, plus I've been at it a bit longer then she has. Besides, I needed to be strong to help you."

I walked over to him and hugged him. He was surprised by the action at first, but settled into the hug and wrapped an arm around me.

"Thank you, Jasper. Thank you for everything. Tell Amara I say thank you and that I owe her a hug later on," I said.

He smiled endearingly at me and patted me on the head.

"If anything, Isabella Swan, I should be thanking you. I can tell that you will bring Alice joy in her life and that pleases me greatly. Amara feels the same way. We'll do whatever we can to help you along the way, I can assure you of that. I know Carlisle and Esme will too."

"Thank you again, though. I'm not sure if I can ever repay you."

He chortled. "Help me win some bets off of Emmett and my wife and we'll call it even."

"I can try," I snickered.

We walked a ways from the house before stopping again. Jasper pointed his finger in the direction of a group of trees bunched together.

"She's past those trees there. It's a few minutes for you, unfortunately, but I'm sure you can get there no problem. You'll come into a part of the forest that dips down a bit into a valley. Another mile or so in and you'll come across a small waterfall that turns into a river. Alice will be there, with Amara too I'd imagine."

I took a deep breath.

"Alright, thanks. Let's just hope I don't fall on my way."

"Yes, that would be bad, wouldn't it?" he joked. His face became serious, though, as did mine.

"You really think I can do this?" I asked.

"I know you can."

I took another deep breath. He smiled encouragingly at me and patted my shoulder.

"Now go get her," he urged.

I gave him another thankful smile before turning and taking off in the direction he pointed in.

Alice.

I would tell her everything. I would make her see.

I believed Jasper. I don't know how or why, but I knew.

She was my soulmate. She was meant for me. I was meant for her. We were meant to be together.

Fuck all this negative, worrywart bullshit. Fuck her thinking she needs to feel guilty.

Jasper is right. We can use what happened as a stepping stone in our relationship, build around it to strengthen our bond.

I didn't fully know what I was getting myself into, but I did know one thing.

As I ran past trees, my mind in a frenzy of different thoughts—I didn't want Alice to see me coming, so I wasn't deciding anything, I was just running—I made my mind up about one very important fact.

The fact was that I, Isabella Marie Swan, loved Alice Cullen. A human loved a vampire. A human, clumsy, inferior and graced with bad luck, was meant to be together with a graceful, majestic super being.

She was my fate. My destiny. I didn't care how lame or cliché it sounded, it was true.

Here I come, Alice.

**A/N: Well, there you have it. The second buildup chapter for things to come, moving things along rather nicely.**

**The mental war is, for now, over. Will it stay that way? Only time will tell.**

**First off all, I used this chapter to give Jasper more screen time. He was always another favorite character of mine and I felt that Meyer didn't really give him enough screen time. Not only that, but she didn't build up the relationship very much between him and Bella. I aim to fix that. That's why I had him talk to Bella. I aimed to make his speech powerful and to show where he stands with her. I also wanted to give some more information out.**

**Next chapter is revelation time. Hope everyone enjoyed this chapter. I enjoyed writing it. I actually finished it in one day. Wee!**

**Review and/or comment if you please. The more the comments, the happier the Hollowgo. God my penname is lame. Ugh.**

**I apologize if anyone was confused in any way by the way Jasper spoke. I remember (I think) reading something similar in the actual book, which is why I wrote it that way. Or maybe because I saw someone else writing it like that. I dunno. Sorry again.**


	13. Admittance

**Disclaimer: I am NOT Stephanie Meyer. Therefore, I can't take credit for Twilight. Wish I could. I can and do take credit for Amara, though.**

**Admittance**

"Ow!" I yelped as I toppled to the ground. "Shit! Damn it!"

I rubbed my now sore right knee, groaning to myself. I swear that nature is out to get me.

Or maybe it's just my unnaturally shitty luck. Yeah, that's it.

Try as I might, I can never seem to run for very long without falling over something. I can't even walk for all that long. It sucks.

I had just finished speaking with Jasper and deciding that I was going to go to Alice and tell her how I felt. I stupidly allowed my excitement to get the better of me and took off running, only to end up tripping not a minute later.

Fuck my life. Seriously.

After another groan I managed to force myself up. I blinked and looked around, trying to remember what direction I was going in.

Jasper had given me a decent description of what I was looking for. The forest would dip downwards into a valley, where I would find a river. That was where Alice was. That was where I needed to go.

I bit my lip, frustrated. What way was I going?

Damn it. I can't help if my sense of direction stinks. Shit.

I closed my eyes and took a deep breath. Just relax. I'll figure it out.

Wait.

I hear something.

What is that? Is that….running water? No, that's chirping birds. I think. I furrowed my brow for a moment before opening my eyes.

"Ah!" I gasped to myself. Okay, I knew where I was going now.

I began moving in the direction I swore was the correct one, only I wasn't running this time. I didn't want to trip twenty five times and get to Alice covered in bruises. I figured that would only upset her and ruin the moment. I didn't want that. I wanted the moment to be as perfect as humanly possible. I wanted to make sure I got through to Alice.

I still couldn't believe that this gorgeous angel was meant for me. I couldn't believe it.

I was amazed. But I was delighted and thankful in the same. Alice was going to be my girlfriend.

Girlfriend. I'd never thought or said that word before. Not for a long time.

I'd thought I'd had one before. That was a year ago, back when I initially thought that I was bisexual and nothing more. God I was an idiot then. I made lots of bad choices. She was the worst of them all, I think.

_Vanessa. _

_That was her name, the girl I used to have a relationship with. Ha._

_If you can even call it a relationship._

_I was sixteen and going to school at the time when I met her. God I hated that place. It was poorly lit, smelled horrible and the teachers weren't very friendly._

_I didn't have any friends. I kept to myself. Most people steered clear from me, though there were always a good number of them who got a good laugh out of my clumsiness. Some even made fun of me for my pale skin. I didn't care. I ignored them._

_I thought I was bi. I had noticed that I found girls attractive. Much more attractive then guys. But for some reason I thought I liked guys too. In reality, I didn't much. The boys at my school were irritating. Most hit on me every day, the others just made fun of me. _

_But I refused to consider myself gay. I was afraid to. I knew that if I did, I'd be bullied even more and treated worse by everyone around me. _

_I couldn't handle that. So I kept quiet. I tried to avert my eyes whenever I saw a pretty girl, fearing being caught staring at someone. It was hard at times, since my mind wandered constantly. _

_Then she showed up._

_Vanessa Stewartson. _

_She was a year older than I was, with short brown hair and piercing green eyes. She was beautiful and became instantly popular for her looks. There was something off about her, something I couldn't put my finger on, but I didn't know what it was. I didn't care either._

_Suffice to say, she became my first crush. I couldn't help it. She was hot. _

_I stupidly thought that I might have a chance with her. I don't know why, because I had no idea if she were straight or not._

_For a while, I didn't speak to her. I watched her from afar, usually while pretending to read or do homework. Yeah, I was lame then. I was stupid, too._

_And then one day we ran into one another. I mean that literally, too, because I hadn't been paying attention where I was going. I was embarrassed and started freaking out, fearing what she might do or say. _

"_I-I'm s-sorry!" I stammered, getting to my feet abruptly. "I didn't s-see you there. I'm sorry, I'm sorry!"_

_She stood up, brushed herself off and smiled at me. "Don't sweat it. I'm fine, see? I'm sorry I ran into you. I wasn't paying attention either."_

_Whoa. She was apologizing to me? That's a first. Usually people push me aside or taunt me or some shit like that. No one's ever actually been nice to me before._

"_You know, I don't think we've met before. My name's Vanessa. What's yours?" she asked, extending her hand._

_I took it hesitantly, "I'm Bella." _

"_Ah. Bella. That's short for Isabella, which is Italian for beautiful, is it not?" she asked. I nodded. "Well, I think it's a fitting name. Talk to you later." With that, she winked and left, leaving me standing there, blushing and staring like an idiot._

_That was how we met. I was smitten almost instantly. I wish I'd of known then what I do know, that little Vanessa, the preppy, popular girl, had a lot of secrets. _

_But I didn't. And I ended up getting sucked into her world. _

_At first, I rarely saw her. But whenever I did, she would always come over and talk to me. I remember some people trying to tell her to stay away from me because I was a freak. She didn't listen though. She kept talking to me, kept being nice to me._

_I considered her my first true friend. I was wrong, of course, but I didn't know it at the time._

_We started seeing each other more and more, spending more time together at school. We became friends. Best friends, even. I was happy. Despite the way my life had gone, I was happy._

_Then she invited me to her house one day. That's when I started noticing._

_Vanessa lived alone. She didn't live with her parents because she had been kicked out of her house. I sympathized with her over that and told her as such. What I didn't know was that, unlike me, Vanessa had fallen farther into depression. _

_I saw empty bottles of beer. I saw broken needles. I realized then that Vanessa was an addict._

"_Look, I just do some small things here and there. I'm not an addict, okay? Just leave it be," she said when I had asked her about them. So I dropped it. I didn't see the fucking danger signs practically being waved in front of my face. Nope. _

_So eventually we started becoming more then friends. We started to experiment. But this wasn't the sweet, loving type; this was the "let's-grope-then-fuck" type. There was no hugging or cuddling with Vanessa. There was only sex. That was it._

_Now, at first, I didn't mind. I was new to it of course, but she was gracious enough to help teach me. Then things became more intense as our "relationship" continued. The thing was, while we were in a so called relationship out of school, in school she started avoiding me. _

_Vanessa spoke to me less and was around me less. She made it seem like she was embarrassed to be with me. I noticed her eyes were bloodshot more often, she jittered a lot and begun not talking with anyone. I was getting concerned._

_I tried speaking to her about it, but she told me off. Like, she literally told me off. And then she asked if I wanted to fuck her later. I was confused._

_What kind of relationship was this, anyways?_

_But I kept at it. I stopped talking to her and left her alone at school, then came over and did it with her at night. Even that started to change. She was becoming more forceful. She wasn't gentle or loving anymore. I didn't like that._

_I ended up with bruises on my body one night from her. She had gotten drunk beforehand and I stupidly got in bed with her. It didn't go too well. And she was pissed off afterwards, demanding more. I told her no. She hit me. I hit back. _

_We tried to patch things up after that, but it didn't work. Things got worse, actually._

_Then she got suspended, followed by being expelled for trying to sell drugs. I was worried, so I went over to check on her. _

_She was a mess when I got there. More empty bottles. Vanessa had fallen completely. When I saw her glazed, bloodshot eyes, my brain finally kicked in._

_I told her we were through. This wasn't a relationship. It wasn't anything but pain. I didn't want that. I told her she needed to get her life situated. She just sat there, staring at me rather dumbly._

_I gave up on trying to reason with her. Then she attacked me. _

"_Who the fuck do you think you are?" she roared, socking me in the face. I hadn't expected that, so I of course fell to the floor. She was on top of me in an instant and started pummeling me._

_I had never had this type of thing happen to me before. I forgot what little self defense I knew and started scrambling about, doing everything I could to get her the hell off of me. She was screaming and cussing and swinging. _

_Finally I had had enough and I struck her back. She fell off of me. I was pissed off. _

_We ended up beating the shit out of each other, each of us bloody and bruised by the time we finished. She started convulsing before passing out. I called 911, but left right afterwards. I went home, sobbing to myself, and locked myself up in my room for a few days to calm down._

_I didn't understand what the hell had happened. I had thought I knew her. I thought we were friends. I thought we were more than friends, even. But we weren't. She just wanted me for sex. I found that out the hard way. Bad mistake on my part._

_I sealed myself up after that, ignoring all life around me as best as I could. Too bad I hadn't known about what would happen a year later…_

I hadn't been thinking straight when all that happened. My mind was in haze. I was too caught up with what I thought I wanted in my life to think clearly and I paid the price for it.

It was a mistake. That was all. I learned my lesson, though.

I didn't do anything that stupid for the rest of the year. In fact, I never saw her again. I do, however, remember seeing on the news that her home had been burned down.

I wondered if she had been the one responsible for it. Even though I felt nothing, I had hoped she hadn't been in it. I wouldn't have wished death upon her, because I knew that that was road I could've ended up taking if I had allowed myself to fall too far.

I didn't. Nor would I ever. Now I had something to look forward to.

Alice.

I smiled, finding that I was oddly proud of how far I'd come since those days. Well, okay, I hadn't come very far at all. But I'd progressed. I'd changed a bit.

Moving past the trees surrounding, I finally saw what I had been looking for. The forest had slowly been opening up until it was nearly clear. That clearing curved downwards into a hill. I stopped at the head of the hill and slowly made my way down, knowing that with my luck, I'd trip and end up breaking something. That would suck.

Once I managed to navigate the annoyingly steep hill, I picked my pace up in the same direction I'd been going. All I had to do was listen for running water. And then I'd find Alice.

Then something hit me. What the hell am I going to say to her, exactly?

_Hey Alice, sorry about not saying anything before, but I'm kind of in love with you._

_So Alice, Jasper told me we're soulmates. So, yeah, wanna go out or something?_

_Alice, I know how you feel about me. I feel the same way. Let's be together._

Okay, no. Fuck no. I have to be smart about this. I don't need to be flashy or suave or anything like that. I just have to be smart.

No.

I just have to be me. Tell her the truth, just like Jasper said. Open up to her.

Yeah, right. That's easier said than done. Well, the whole telling her how I feel part is.

Ugh.

I could faintly hear running water as I further trekked into the forest. I followed the sound for another few minutes, breaking into another run. One minute. No sign of Alice. Two minutes. Three minutes. The water is closer. I'm almost there. Four minutes.

There.

I saw the river. I saw large rock formations. But those weren't what I was paying attention to.

As I came to a stop, my heart pounding as sweat dripped down my face, I saw her.

My angel.

She and Amara had been facing each other, speaking quietly so only they could hear. They stopped long before I had gotten there and turned to face me. I stopped dead in my tracks to catch my breath, panting wildly from running so damn much.

Alice was looking at me surprisedly. Amara, however, had a knowing smirk on her face.

After finally getting my breath back, I slowly walked towards them, my eyes on Alice.

"Bella?" Alice asked. It was strange. Though she had been gone for only an hour, it felt like centuries since I had heard her lovely voice. It was music to my ears, to say the least and I smiled upon hearing it.

"Hey," I said.

"What are you doing out here?" she asked. Her thin eyes brows curved downwards as she frowned, rather adorably I might add. "Please don't tell me Jasper sent you out here."

"No, no. I came here on my own," I replied. "To see you." I added at the end.

"Smooth," Amara snickered. I scowled at her. "Oh. Well, I'll just be going then. Remember what I said, sis. I'll see you two later." She smirked at me before laughing to herself and vanishing into the forest, probably going back to Jasper.

That just left Alice and I. Alone.

Alice was looking at me curiously. One good thing I did notice was that she seemed to be in a better mood. I was glad for that much, at least.

"I didn't see you coming," Alice admitted.

I shrugged. "I kind of wanted to surprise you. Besides, making split second decisions is sort of a habit of mine."

She smiled a very small smile. "I've noticed that. It's one of the things I like most about you."

"Thank you."

We stood there for a while, neither one of us speaking. I could tell that she was waiting for me to speak. I gulped quietly.

"Um, you wanna go sit down?" I asked.

"Sure," she replied. "My favorite spot to sit is close by. Let me show you." I silently followed her as she jumped on top of a large boulder. I frowned.

"Er, Alice?"

She turned around and looked at me sheepishly. "Sorry, I forgot."

She extended her left hand to me and I happily accepted it. Once she pulled me up, she helped me down again and I continued following her. A minute later, we came to another clearing. But this was different than before. I gasped.

The view was spectacular. I could see the lines of trees, the mountains in the distance, a few homes spread out here and there. It was a beautiful sight to behold. I stared at it for a moment before looking back at Alice. She was looking back at me, her honey eyes smoldering.

She was so beautiful.

I sat down, Alice following suit, and we stayed that way, looking out at the amazing view. After a while, I turned to face her. She was still looking at me, gazing into my eyes endearingly.

"Did you see this?" I asked meekly.

She scooted closer to me. "Yes," she answered. "I did."

I blushed slightly. Alice extended her hand and slowly brushed aside a strand of hair from my face.

"I can never get over how amazingly beautiful you are, Bella," she whispered. I looked into her eyes to see them burning with love. Jasper had been right. She did love me. And I finally saw that for myself.

"I'm nowhere near as beautiful as you, Alice," I replied, losing myself in her eyes like I always did. I couldn't help it. I loved staring into them. Everything just seemed…better that way.

Alice shook her head.

"No, Bella. You're wrong. You're more beautiful than I am," she said. Her eyes burned her sincerity and love into me, causing me to choke on a sob. I forgot what it was like to be looked at that way.

I bit my lip, choosing not to argue any further with her. She wouldn't give up until I saw it her way. I still wasn't so sure that I really was as beautiful as she said, but maybe I should just give it some time. Maybe I'll see what she sees someday.

"Alice…" I murmured. "I…God, I don't know how to say this…"

She gently touched my cheek.

"It's okay. Say what you want to say, Bella."

"I…" I paused and took a deep breath. Say it, Swan. Say it. "I love you."

Alice's eyes widened with surprise at my words. I decided it best to continue.

"Alice, Jasper told me the truth. He told me how long you've been having visions of me and he explained your feelings."

Her surprise continued to grow. "I see," was her only response.

"I don't fully understand this, Alice. I'll be the first to admit that. Jasper said it was because I'm not used to having people care for me and because I'm used to caring for them in return, which I guess is true. You're the first person who's ever been truly kind to me, my first true friend. I've had friends in the past, some good, others bad. But you, Alice, you're different than them. They never made me feel the way you do."

"Jasper said that we're soulmates. I…I don't quite understand it, but I guess in some way it makes sense. It's why I'm so pulled to you. I'm not used to the idea of having someone as a soulmate, honestly. It's all so new and confusing to me. I guess it's because I'm human or maybe it's just that I don't know enough about vampires. I don't really care about that. What I do care about is you, Alice. I care about you more then I wanted to admit before. It wasn't that I wanted to hurt you, I just wasn't sure about any of it."

Her eyes narrowed for a moment. Then her face softened as she took on a look of understanding.

"I don't want you to be upset with yourself over what happened earlier today. I can't stand seeing you sad and hurt because it does the same to me. It makes me feel bad."

Alice's hands gently rubbed my shoulders.

"Okay, Bella. I won't be sad anymore. I promise," she said.

I smiled at her. "Good. I like happy Alice. So does everyone else."

Alice smiled and laughed her amazingly soothing tinkling laugh. "Yes, Amara was quite fervent on pointing that out." She paused for a moment and squeezed my shoulders slightly. "Listen, Bella, I'm sorry I've been so broody lately. I realize it isn't myself. Amara made a point of letting me know that I was starting to act like Edward. That alone was enough to snap me out of this little trance I've been in. You know my reasons why, though. I can't stand the thought of hurting you, Bella. I care too much."

"I know that Alice. I care too. I know this may be a bit awkward for us since I'm not used to this sort of thing, but I definitely want to see where this goes. I want to grow closer to you. I want to know you, Alice. I want to know everything, every secret, every triumph, every agony. And I'll do the same. I'll share my heart with you if you promise not to break it. I don't think I could take that kind of-"

"Bella! Bella, stop. Stop, please," Alice said. "Bella, I love you. I've loved you years before you were even born. You know that. I would never break your heart. I would rather kill myself then do that, my God you have no idea how great that pain would be. I won't break your heart, Bella. I promise you that, if anything else, I will protect your heart. And you as well."

I couldn't help the giggle that escaped my mouth. "Wow, Alice. That was really lame."

She crinkled her nose and stuck out her tongue. "Shut up! I'm trying to be serious here!"

"Sorry, but that was just so corny. Couldn't you have been a bit more original?"

"It was supposed to be romantic," she grumbled.

I sighed. "I know, Alice. And I appreciate that. You see, this is what I want. I want us to be ourselves with each other. I want us to be comfortable and I want us to take this seriously, but at the same time, play around with it, you know?"

She smiled and nodded. "Yeah, I understand. I just…I worry about you. You've suffered so much in your life, Bella. I want to take all that pain away from you and show you the world you've been missing. I don't care what it takes, I'll make you happy, I swear it."

"Being with you makes me happy," I told her.

Now it was her turn to giggle. "Now who's being corny? Where'd you get that, some cheap romantic comedy?"

"Fuck you," I growled playfully.

She put her hands on her cheeks and feigned a surprised face.

"We haven't even kissed and you're already trying to get into my pants!" she exclaimed.

I blushed immediately. "W-what are...no, no! That's n-not what I meant! I-"

She cut me off when she started laughing, clutching her sides for added effect.

"Dear me, Bella, you're too easy," she teased.

I crossed my arms and huffed. "Bitch," I grumbled.

"Sometimes, yes. But that's more Rosalie's gig then mine. I'd prefer the term "adorably psychotic" if you please." She frowned and rubbed her chin. "Or was it "psychotically adorable"? I forget what Amara called me that one time. It was one of the two."

"How about we just go with adorable?" I offered. "I mean, have you seen the facial expressions you make? Half the time I see them I just want to pinch your cheeks because you're so damn cute. Of course, that'd probably hurt me so, you know."

She rolled her eyes. "Oh stop that."

I snickered and laid back, watching as the clouds parted once more, allowing the sun to peek through. Several rays of light poured down on us and I looked to my left to see Alice shining as she laid back, mimicking my position.

I lay there, gazing at her flawless and beaming form while she gazed back at me. It was a comfortable, peaceful silence, the kind we hadn't had for a while now. There was more to it this time, though. There was love. I didn't have Jasper's talent, no, but I could practically see the love radiating off of her. I felt a tug at my own heart. It was a good tug, though. It was letting me know that I felt the same way and that it was okay to feel that way.

"You know, on my way here I was trying to come up with some way to tell all of this to you without freaking myself out or sounding stupid. I had forgotten how comfortable I was around you, though. So I guess I was just worrying for nothing."

"I'd say so," she agreed.

"So what did Amara tell you?" I asked curiously. Alice rolled her eyes.

"She told me I was being stupid and becoming like Edward. She said that you were in love with me; you just needed some convincing, so she had Jasper go and talk with you. I knew then that he was probably going to tell you what I hadn't yet, but I was fine with it. I knew that Jasper would be honest and that, if anything, he would help you with your feelings. I was surprised and a little annoyed at first that they had gone behind my back, I'll admit, but in the end I didn't mind it so much. In fact, I'm glad they did."

"Then she consoled me and gave me the slight kick in the rear that I needed. We talked about you, my feelings and why I loved you so much despite hardly knowing you. And then we talked about ways for me to show you how much I love you, ways for us to grow together that wouldn't be too awkward for you. What do you think?"

I thought about that for a moment.

"I think I want to take this slowly, you know? I want to get to know you well and I want you to get to know me. One step at a time. It may be a bit harder for me, since I'm new to this kind of thing and all, but with your help, I'm sure I can pull through."

"That sounds fair enough for me," Alice replied, nodding her head.

"I do have a condition, though."

Her face became serious. "And what would that be?" she asked.

I blushed and looked down at my hands rather sheepishly. "I, er, was wondering if you would be willing to, maybe, um…hold me more often? I really like it w-when you do," I admitted. "Plus, I think I might sleep better that way…"

She didn't reply at first, so of course I thought I had said something wrong. I chanced a glance up and saw that she was beaming at me.

"I'd love to," she said. "Would you like a hug right now?"

I blushed again and nodded. "Y-yes, ma'am."

She rolled her eyes at me. "Don't call me ma'am. Only Jasper can get away with that, since he's from the south. It makes me feel all old and stuff when people call me "miss" or "madam" or "ma'am"."

"He's from the south?" I asked. "He doesn't have much of an accent. And you are technically older then I am."

"He used to," Alice snickered. "I used to tease the hell out of him for it, too. We all did. He did away with it, though sometimes he uses it by mistake. It's pretty damn funny, I'll admit. And I'm going to pretend I didn't hear that last comment," she said, sticking her tongue out at me again.

"Oh, alright, _ma'am_," I teased.

"Are you going to hug me or what?" she demanded.

"I planned on it," I replied.

"Then get the hell over here."

And so I did. I moved closer to her as she did to me and in seconds her arms were around me, pulling me into her body. I wrapped my arms around her and we both pulled each other close. I rested my head on her shoulder, inhaling her sweet smell. I could feel her doing the same, taking in several deep breaths before exhaling. This was what I enjoyed, the feeling of her arms around me. Bliss. Sweet, loving bliss. That was the best way I could describe how I felt right now.

"So did you have a vision of me spilling everything?" I asked.

She giggled into my shoulder. "Yeah, I did. It was pretty entertaining, really. You were as red as a tomato and sweating like mad. You were adorable, really. But I didn't want it to be that awkward for you, so I opted to help you out a bit."

"Thanks," I murmured.

"You're welcome. But don't expect that every time. After all, you're incredibly adorable when you blush."

I rolled my eyes and squeezed her tightly.

"No more moping Alice?"

She giggled. "No more moping Alice."

"Good."

We silently stayed that way, enjoying the other's presence. Alice was cold and hard, true. But she was incredibly soft. Plus, she smelled fucking amazing. So in essence, it was like hugging a statue that smelled good, only a tad more comfortable. Honestly, I found her coldness soothing. The hardness I wasn't too fond of, but I wasn't about to complain. I could get used to it.

Suddenly I felt my body begin vibrating. What the hell?

Wait. Alice is vibrating. No, not just vibrating. She's…

Purring? Oh my God, is she really?

"Are you purring?" I asked.

I felt her lips softly press my shoulder, sending jitters through my body.

"Yup. Does it bother you?" she asked.

"Mm. No, I like it. It's n-n-nice," I said as she rubbed into me. God. I can't believe she's purring.

She's like a cat. No. A kitten. An oversized, sexy-as-hell, bloodsucking kitten that happens to be my soulmate. Yeah. I'd like to see a poet try and make sense of that shit right there.

Her purring was incredibly relaxing. I found myself almost nodding off in her arms. Almost. I wasn't about to fall asleep. Not here, not now. It wasn't even night yet, for God's sakes. I mean, it was starting to get dark, but I was in no way tired. No. Nuh-uh.

"Bella?"

I blinked. "Yes?"

"You're still worried about this, aren't you?" she asked. "I can feel how tense you are."

I sighed. "I just…I don't want to fuck this up, Alice. I want this to work out. I can't stop worrying about it either. I don't know what to do and I don't know how this relationship of ours is going to evolve. I'm a little confused about why I'm actually so accepting of it, but I guess that's a given, isn't it."

"Bella, relax. It's true, this will be a bit difficult at times. But that's the same with every relationship. You work your way through the hardships and it helps strengthen your love for each other. No relationship is perfect, mind you, but then again, nothing in life is. Please don't worry. It will work out, I promise. I've seen it. And I'm never wrong. You should know that by now."

"You were wrong earlier today," I pointed out.

I felt her frown against my shoulder. "What do you mean?"

"You were wrong when you were worried that I'd hate you. You were wrong when you thought that I wouldn't want to be with you and that I didn't want to know the whole truth. I mean, yeah my brain feels like it's about to have a meltdown, but I'd rather be informed of all of this and work my way into understanding it then be out in the dark. Does that make sense?"

"Yes, it does. I'm sorry. I won't let that happen again," she cooed.

"That's good. Otherwise you'd be sorry," I warned jokingly.

She laughed. "Oh? And what would big bad Bella do about it?"

"I'd get Amara to torch your clothes," I snickered.

I felt Alice growl against me. "That is _not_ funny, Isabella."

"Oh you know it was." She didn't respond to that and I nearly rolled my eyes. "I can't believe I'm making jokes all of a sudden. Today has been an insane day."

"You know, if you'd like, I could help end it on a good note," she stated softly.

I frowned and pulled myself away from her shoulder to look her in the eyes.

"What do you mean?" I asked.

She licked her lips and stared hungrily at mine. Oh.

OH.

She wants to kiss me. Hot damn, she actually wants to kiss me.

"Would that be okay with you? I mean, I can control myself, I swear. I already hunted, Bella. I'm in no way about to lose control. If you don't trust me enough, I understand," she jabbered, clearly remembering what she had told me today.

I thought about it for a couple seconds before shaking my head.

"I trust you, Alice. I know you would never purposefully do anything to hurt me. Like I've said ten thousand times, what happened before was an accident. Look, you've been sniffing me for a while now and you're fine. See? It was an accident. I trust you."

My words seemed to ease her a bit, though I could tell she was still hesitant. So I decided to make the first move.

I leaned in towards her and rested my forehead against hers. It was as cool, hard and soft as the rest of her, but I wasn't focusing on that. I was focusing on her eyes. Those limpid pools of honey that I always found myself lost in. I loved her eyes. They were amazing.

I gazed intently into her eyes as she gazed intently back into mine. We held each other's eyes for a few minutes, soaking in the warmth and love radiating from them. I slowly started leaning in, Alice doing the same.

This was it. I was gonna kiss Alice.

Yes! Fuck yes! God, I'd wanted this for so damn long!

Well, I mean, since we met, and…oh, fuck thinking about it. Ugh! Stupid over analyzing brain.

Our lips inched closer together. My heart was pounding madly as my eyes slowly started to close. I wanted this. I wanted it badly. I knew she did too.

I closed my eyes all the way as she closed hers. Our lips were about to connect.

And then everything was shattered away.

"Well, isn't that a sight? It looks like our little toy has found herself a friend!"

My eyes shot open.

No.

No, no, no, no, no, no!

Fuck! Why? Why now? Why me? Shit!

Alice's eyes were open, alert. In an instant we were on our feet and by a nearby tree, Alice's back pinning my body against it protectively. Her golden eyes were now coal black, her teeth bearing as she let loose a threatening snarl. Her growling was met with icy laughter.

Familiar laughter.

I turned my gaze in the direction of her glare and was met by the sinister smile of one face and the infuriated glare of another.

James and Victoria.

They had found me.

**A/N: What?**

**Can you believe I finished this in a single day? Right after I finished the one before it (in a single day)? Yeah. I'm awesome. It's only because of you guys that I'm doing it, though. So keep on reviewing. Come on, peeps. I love the feedback. Though I do ask that I get something other then "great chapter" or something along those lines. I'd like some actual feedback. Tell me what I'm doing good, what you want to see more of, etc. All that helps me and pushes me. It puts me into Super Hollowgo mode, allowing me to pump out a chapter in a single day. Seriously, though, don't expect that forever. I need to take a break from time to time, you know?**

**Reviews are welcome and loved. Keep it up, peeps. Thanks!**


	14. Ambush

**Disclaimer: Why do I keep putting this here? Really? You know the drill. Amara is mine, everything else is Meyer's.**

**Ambush**

James smiled sinisterly at us, pacing back and forth from where he was.

"How cute. It looks like you've found yourself a girlfriend," he cackled.

"Are they the ones?" Alice asked in a low, threatening voice.

"Y-y-yes," I stammered.

I thought the snarl she had let out before was terrifying. No. Alice curled her lips back and let out the loudest, fiercest snarl I've ever heard in my entire life. I was frozen against the tree in sheer terror at the sound, quivering like a frightened infant.

That's what I was compared to these vampires. A weak, helpless little infant.

James laughed mockingly at Alice's outburst. "My, my, you're quite touchy aren't you?" He narrowed his eyes and studied her for a moment. "Hmm. I can't help but think I know you from somewhere before. Have we met?"

"No. But you will die here," Alice seethed.

"Ooh, big words coming from someone so small," mocked James.

"You'd best back away from her, girl," snarled Victoria, who finally decided to speak. Unlike James, who looked amused, Victoria looked downright furious.

"No," growled Alice.

Victoria glared venomously at her. "You listen and you listen well, bitch. That human you have behind you happens to be our plaything. So if you don't-"

"SHE IS NOT YOUR PLAYTHING!" Alice roared . "SHE IS MY MATE AND YOU WILL STAY AWAY FROM HER!"

Both James and Victoria were startled by the fury in Alice's voice. I was too. I couldn't stop the quiet whimper that escaped my mouth as I backed into the tree as much as I could. Alice cringed, and I knew that she had regretted scaring me. But now wasn't the time for that. And I understood that. I didn't speak; I stayed perfectly still, behind my Alice.

Did I just call her my Alice?

Huh.

Yeah, I guess she is. She's mine. All mine. And I'm hers.

Whoa, seriously, where the fuck did all of that come from?

Gah! Stop thinking! Enemies in front, no thinking! Stay silent!

"You'd best rethink your words," warned Victoria, who took a step forward. I shuddered and Alice tensed up, her hands clenching into fists so tight I could see the veins bulging out of her skin. Alice let out another guttural growl, this one deeper and lower than before.

"You HURT my Bella. You will DIE!" Alice hissed.

The smirk disappeared from James' face, all traces of humor finally gone. He scowled at Alice, baring his teeth at her.

"Then it looks like _you'll_ have to die," he growled. "I should've killed you when I had the chance all those years ago."

Wait. What?

Did James know Alice?

Alice shook her head. "I don't know what you're blathering about."

James snickered. "Aw, you can't remember. How sad."

"Enough James," growled Victoria. "I'm going to rip her apart. You stay and make sure our toy doesn't wander off, hm?"

Alice snarled again. "SHE IS **NOT** A TOY!" The fury behind her voice was enough to shake the very ground I was standing on.

She didn't give Victoria a chance to respond. In a flash Alice was lunging at Victoria, aiming to rip out her throat with her teeth. Victoria, however, smirked and sidestepped, avoiding Alice with ease. Alice growled and spun around to face Victoria.

While the irritation was plain on Victoria's face, she was now donning a mocking smirk.

"My, my, quite the temper you have. How is that supposed to help you, girl?"

Alice ground her teeth together, desperately trying to calm herself down. She wouldn't be able to win if she just rushed in, even with her ability to see the future. I wished I could do something to help her. I hated being helpless. I bit my lip and merely stood still.

After a moment, Alice unclenched her hands and leapt for Victoria again. This time, however, while her rage was obvious, she was more controlled. Victoria moved away again. But Alice wasn't done yet. She swung her left arm for Victoria's face, grazing the redhead's cheek as Victoria barely avoided the strike. Then Alice did the same with her right, then the left. Her strikes were fast and efficient, Victoria barely being able to dodge each. She hissed in irritation as Alice picked the pace up.

James watched on with amusement, clearly finding Victoria's struggle humorous.

Victoria suddenly caught Alice's right arm when she swung it and countered with a punch of her own, nailing my pixie clear in the jaw. I yelped as Alice flew backwards, Victoria smirking, clearly pleased with herself. She crouched down for a few seconds before leaping onto the smaller vampire. But Alice was prepared. Alice was on her feet in an instant and twirled to the side, neatly avoiding Victoria's body. Just as Victoria was starting to turn around, Alice's left leg careened into her, sending her crashing into a nearby tree.

The tree's trunk shattered instantly as it toppled to the ground, Alice allowing herself a small smile. A loud growl from Victoria cut the smile from her face as the angry redhead lunged at her again. Alice gracefully avoided her again, but before she could counter Victoria caught her leg. She tried to strike Alice in the face with her fist again, yet missed when Alice moved her head out of the way. Victoria let out another snarl as she began furiously trying to punch at Alice.

Her arms and legs flailed about in wild strikes, my graceful pixie dancing about as she avoided them with ease. Alice then surprised Victoria with a quick right spin kick to the gut, causing the redhead to lurch forwards. This was followed through by a left back kick to the face. She wasn't finished there, though. She grabbed Victoria by the legs and with a heave threw her directly into James, who had yet to move from his spot.

The two vampires were on their feet shortly after, both of them angry now.

"You little bitch!" James cursed.

He blurred forward and swung his arm at Alice. Like always she ducked under his attempted blow before sweeping him off his feet. Victoria was there seconds later only to be met by the back of Alice's left hand as it swatted her aside. Alice used the momentum to spin further, nailing a standing James with her right hand.

James rolled back to his feet, Victoria doing the same. They stood there for a moment, staring down my Alice. Before I could even blink, all three of them suddenly disappeared into thin air.

I frowned and frantically tried to find where Alice had gone, only to be pushed back by a shockwave. That's when I realized that they were fighting at super speed now. All three of them were blurs moving about like lightning, hissing, growling and striking like mad. Sometimes a blow would connect, creating a booming shockwave that would force me back.

It was like a thunderstorm. Everything was fast, furious and loud. My human eyes were barely able to focus on what was going on since all of them were moving so fast. Craters were formed in the ground below; trees were cracked and nearby boulders decimated as the fighting continued, minutes passing by as neither side gained an advantage.

In time, the speed at which they moved seemed to slow. I didn't understand why, though, since vampires couldn't get tired. Still, it allowed me to see more clearly what the hell was going on in the fight, my concern for Alice building.

It was one against two, after all.

To my surprise, however, Alice was winning the fight. James and Victoria tried time and time again to strike or bite my Alice, but Alice would always avoid their strikes and counter them with unparalleled grace. Yet they kept at it, sometimes moving in unison to try and harm Alice. That never worked, though and Alice proved to be much faster than either of them combined.

I contemplated cheering her on when I noticed something.

The look on James' face. It wasn't anger. It was…excitement? He was smiling, laughing even, as he tried and failed I didn't understand. He was losing, why was he so happy? Maybe he was just a battle junkie or something like that Yet Victoria, who still looked pissed off beyond all recognition, seemed to be smiling too.

What the fuck?

That's when it hit me.

They were just toying with Alice. Neither of them was taking this seriously at all!

No sooner had I realized that did Victoria and James begin speeding up. Their strikes became less wild and more precise, their movements more controlled. They even seemed to be working together better than before. Alice, however, stepped her game up as well. Her dodging became more fluid, her strikes faster and harder. That made me happy, at least.

Their movements never stopped. It was constant. Strike after strike after strike.

Victoria zipped her right fist towards Alice, but before it got to close she reeled it back and thrust her left fist instead. That action caught Alice off guard and she ended up eating the powerful strike, flying backwards. James was there in a flash, catching her and wrapping his arms around her smaller body and squeezing.

No!

Alice hissed and thrashed about vigorously in the cocky blonde's arms as he sneered delightedly.

"You gonna kiss her?" he asked, glancing at a smirking Victoria.

Fuck. No.

He did NOT just ask that.

That bitch better not even THINK about touching MY Alice.

Victoria cocked her head to the side and studied Alice, who continued hissing angrily and trying to escape James' arms. He wasn't having it though.

What the hell?

Come on Alice, you're stronger then that!

Victoria slowly approached her and licked her lips.

"I might consider it," she purred. Alice growled at her.

"Get the **fuck** away from her you fucking whore!" I snarled.

Holy shit. Did I just _snarl_? Hot damn, I've been around vampires for too long. Still.

Victoria spun around and glared daggers at me. Oh fuck. What was I thinking?

Shit, shit, shit!

"_Excuse_ me?" she growled.

"Ooh, she called you a whore," James cackled. "What are you going to-?"

Whatever he was about to say was cut short when Alice broke free from his grip. She stomped down on his foot, causing him to release her, then quickly spun around and nailed him hard in the head with a left kick. I heard a sickening snap noise as he was sent crashing into a tree. Victoria spun around and ate a kick herself.

In a flash Alice was in front of me again, crouching down and growling.

I watched the two vampires get up. These two kept coming, no matter how many times my Alice knocked them down. Were they that desperate or were just dumb? I mean, they obviously weren't too bright if they were going to keep going after Alice. She'd beat them every time. I knew she would. And I knew she wasn't even fighting seriously, too.

"Alright, I think I'm done playing around," growled James as he rubbed his head.

"Yes," Victoria agreed. "This is getting us nowhere."

"You want to take her or should I?"

"I will. She's pissing me off."

"Bella, stay behind me," Alice growled.

"O-okay," I murmured.

"I'll protect you. I promise."

Victoria laughed. "You'll _try_ to, you little bitch."

Unlike before, neither vampire lunged at one another. No. They slowly began circling each other. It reminded me of a video I had seen online of two rival lions, preparing to fight over a lioness, which they both wanted to mate with.

The difference here, of course, was that while one of them wanted me as a mate, the other just wanted me as a toy. And I sure as shit was done being the toy of Victoria and James. I was sick of them and I wanted nothing more than for Alice to kill them. Rip them to shreds. Then I would torch the pieces and laugh at their burning remains.

What the fuck? What's gotten into me? Where are all these weird thoughts coming from all of a sudden?

Then again, they are true.

I wanted to shout for Alice to kick her ass. But I held my tongue. I was too scared to, honestly. I'll admit that I was a little afraid of Alice. I had never seen that look in her eyes before. It was like she was deceptively calm, when in reality she was infuriated to the core. I could practically see the rage emanating off of her. I was surprised Jasper wasn't here.

Wait. Jasper and Amara. Where did they run off to? They could help, if anything.

No. Alice didn't need them. She would kill the bitch and her annoying friend.

Yes.

Victoria and Alice's eyes remained deadlocked, glaring the other down.

"You can't win," Victoria jeered.

"I always win," Alice retorted. Then she leapt forward.

BAM.

Like hearing the roar of thunder as the two vampires collided. Each strike was blocked or avoided altogether. Some grazed the other, but nothing ever hit clean.

The speed was intense. Faster than I could see.

Roars like wild animals. Wild and savage.

Through the constant blurs, I saw Alice's face. Her lips were curled back, her glistening teeth were shining with venom, her eyes were blacker then black itself. I could see that her pupils were no longer circles, but slits. Her teeth looked sharper, too, but not pointed. The way she moved and hissed, the way her spiky hair flared outwards. She looked animalistic. Feral.

My Alice was gone. This was the animal within. But it wasn't a bad animal. No. It was my protector. My defender.

My mate.

It was a strange word to think of, the term mate. Usually it was something a person would use to describe an animal. Was that what I saw her as? Fuck no. She was no animal. Anyone who thought of her like that was an animal.

I watched on in awe. Even though I could hardly see what was going on, I could feel that Alice was neither winning nor losing. I had been right before. Victoria had only been playing around. Now she was serious, and the various shockwaves and thunderous noises proved that theory correct. But Alice was the same.

James was watching intently. There was no trace of humor on his face. He watched with interest as the two women battled it out, looking for a chance to end the other's life. If Alice won, though, she would need to take out James.

Now, I'm in no way knowledgeable on fighting. Especially vampire fighting. If that's what they even call it. I'd figure they'd have some fancy name for it or some shit like that. I don't know.

But I can usually tell how good someone is. Victoria, I know, is incredibly strong and incredibly vicious. She's better then James is. I could see that when they double teamed Alice, the difference in their motions and strikes, what little I saw of them, that is. James may be stronger then I think, though, but he looks more like the type who enjoys making a game out of a serious situation then Victoria does. Maybe.

God. My brain hurts again. I don't think I've done this much thinking throughout my entire life.

My thoughts were broken when Victoria suddenly flew past me. An angry Alice snarled and lunged after her. I heard multiple crashing noises and falling trees behind me. I stood there, frozen in place.

Oh. Shit. James.

I spun around to see James leaning against the tree I was at, smirking at me.

"You know, you're friend's pretty tough," he said.

I bit my lip. "I seem to remember it being more than ten days," I lied, hoping he would fall for it.

What am I, stupid? He's a vampire!

James laughed. "Oh, dear Bella, how wrong you are. Even so, do you really think we would just leave you be? Honestly, what kind of hunter do you take me for? I'm no fool, Bella."

I glared at him, but I couldn't come up with a comeback. Not like I'd want to anyways. I took a step back from him. He merely smiled, not moving an inch from where he was. He could easily catch me anyways. Stupid fucking vampire speed.

"How do you know her?" I asked, trying to change the subject. Maybe Alice would get here and take care of him before he got a chance to do anything.

He grinned widely. "You'd like to know, wouldn't you? Tell you what, you come with me peacefully, and I'll tell you."

Uh-uh. Fuck no.

"No," I growled, trying to sound menacing. Didn't work.

"Aw, you're no fun," he whined mockingly. "Ah well. As if it matters. Victoria will rip her little head off in a matter of minutes anyways. She gets more dangerous as she keeps fighting. You should consider yourself lucky you don't have to watch it."

"Shut up!" I snapped. "She'll kick that bitch's ass!"

James laughed maniacally. "Ha! That'll be the day, Victoria losing to some weakling shrimp!"

"She's not a weakling," I seethed. "She'll rip both of your fucking heads off like nothing!"

He seemed amused. "My, you have such faith in your little friend." He snickered and was suddenly standing in front of me. "Too bad that faith is meaningless."

I stepped back. "Get away from me."

"Or what, are you going to scream for your little girlfriend to come and save you?" he asked, taking a step forward. I took another step back. He followed again.

"I said get away from me," I growled, sounding a tad more menacing than before.

He chuckled. "Bella, Bella, Bella. Do you really think your deadpanned threats are going to frighten me? You foolish little girl."

He reached forward, trying to grab my arm. I jumped back and glared him down, but he kept reaching.

"I said GET THE FUCK AWAY!" I roared. And he did. Rather, he was flung backwards. By what, though? Alice wasn't near me and there's no one else here.

I blinked in confusion. What just happened?

James was on his feet seconds later, clearly as confused as I was.

"What the hell? What did you do?" he growled.

"I…I don't know!" I shouted, frantically remembering what I had been trying to do before.

He scowled for a moment before shrugging it off. "No matter. Now then, where were we? Oh, yes." He blurred in front of me and grabbed my right shoulder, squeezing it tightly. I winced at the pain and struggled to get away, to no avail of course.

"Get off!"

James' amusement became annoyance. "Shut up," he growled, flinging me backwards. My back slammed into a tree as I toppled to the ground. I whimpered at the painful impact and squirmed about, trying to get to my feet. James' foot was on my back in seconds, pushing it down forcefully. I let out a yelp.

"You know, you've been entertaining for the last four months now, Isabella. I must admit I was lucky when you stumbled into us. We'd of been bored otherwise. Now, though, you're becoming a nuisance. I think I might just kill you now." He paused for a moment and smirked at me. "Of course, what better way to kill you then in front of your precious friend, don't you agree? Then Victoria and I can have some fun with her before we tear her apart. Then everybody's happy."

"You stay away from her!"

Again, James was suddenly flung backwards. This time I watched as what looked like some kind of invisible force was flinging him, like a shockwave of some kind.

What was doing it, though? It didn't make any sense.

James snarled. "That's it!"

Before he could lunge at me, another blur zoomed by and careened into him. I recognized the guttural roar that accompanied it and sure enough, there was Alice, pounding away at the downed James with vicious strikes.

"You. Don't. Fucking. Touch. My. Bella!" She snarled in between each thunderous strike. James looked utterly helpless, growling and twitching angrily on the ground. Alice pinned his arms down and opened her mouth, her venom drenched teeth fully exposed.

Before she could move, however, Victoria was there, kicking her off with great force.

"Stupid little shit," hissed the redhead. I noticed most of Victoria's clothes were torn. Hell, most of Alice's were torn too. I noticed long gash marks on Victoria's right shoulder and left arm. Alice had them on her right arm and her neck. What the hell?

That's when I noticed Victoria and Alice's hands. Her fingernails had stretched out, forming dagger-like claws. They weren't freakishly long, but they sure as shit looked sharp. I mean, if they could leave claw marks in each other's granite hard skin, they had to be. These weren't the "like-let's-go-get-a-pedicure" nails, these were the "I'm-gonna-gouge-your-fucking-eyes-out" nails, which scared me and fascinated me in the same.

So vampires had more than just fangs and venom for weapons. Huh.

Part of me, the stupidly curious part, wanted to know what else they could do, what other bits of new information I could find out.

Why where their eyes slits now, for example?

I didn't get the chance, though, since Victoria suddenly turned and lunged at me.

"NO!" screamed Alice, quickly jumping in front of me. I watched in horror as Victoria's teeth sank into Alice's right shoulder. She screamed in agony as the bitch bit down. I felt an overwhelming pain surge through me, as if her pain had literally become mine. I bit my lip and started crying, hating Victoria for what she was doing to my Alice.

Victoria tore away leaving a similar crescent shaped bite mark where her teeth had been. Alice fell to her knees and clutched her shoulder in agony.

"Damn you…"

Victoria wiped her mouth and smiled. "Pity. I was aiming for your throat."

Alice ground her teeth together, glanced at me, then got to her feet. I noticed her right arm slump downwards and was instantly overcome with concern. Was she okay? Was her arm okay? Would it get better? Shit!

James and Victoria both started getting in close. James' nails had turned into claws as well, his teeth taking on the same, sharpened appearance that both Alice's and Victoria's had. He was clearly ready to end this here and now, as was Victoria.

"I say we kill them both," James mused. "But we should make it fun."

"No," Victoria disagreed. "Isabella is my plaything. She is mine. The other can die. But I agree. We should make this a bit fun." She licked her lips as she finished that last part, her feral eyes burning into mine with lust and something I couldn't understand.

Alice, one armed or not, hissed angrily at the pair, earning her their trademark bone-chilling laughter. I grimaced and whimpered as I got to my feet. Was this really the end?

If this was, I decided I would tell Alice I loved her. That would mean something, at least.

Alice, however, had other plans.

"Bella!" she snapped. "Get on my back, now!"

"I-wha?"

"JUST DO IT!" she snarled. I cringed at her anger, but bit my lip and started to move towards her.

No such luck.

James and Victoria both attacked, lunging at Alice. Alice cursed under her breath and jumped towards them, spinning to avoid their attacks and gracefully knocking both back. They lunged again seconds later.

I watched helplessly as Alice fought against them with just one useable her, her right arm still limp at her side. Oh God. She wasn't going to win now. She couldn't win, even with her ability to see the future. Damn it.

This was my fault. It was all my fault. Damn it!

What could I do? Nothing! I couldn't do anything and I loathed that that the most.

I was helpless.

Worthless.

Pathetic.

How could I stand up to vampires? Fuck!

I hated this. I wanted to cry. I wanted to scream. But I couldn't. I couldn't because then Alice would be hurt even more. She could die, even. I couldn't let that happen. I WON'T let that happen. Ever.

What can I do? What can I do?

I got an idea then. I could at least distract one of them, giving Alice the chance to fend the other off. Then she could grab me and we could get the fuck out of here. She had to be fast, right? Jasper and Amara would be around, right?

How though? How do I grab their attention? Ugh! Think!

My brain started wandering and analyzing, trying to figure things out.

Alice successfully managed to avoid the barrage of strikes from both her attackers, subsequently nailing Victoria with a vicious combo of kicks that sent her back. James growled and clenched his fists tightly, clearly pissed off.

Suddenly Alice went rigid in her stance. Her eyes glazed over.

Oh fuck, she's having a vision? Now? Damn it all!

James cocked his head to the side, confused. When he noticed that Alice wasn't moving, he grinned and crouched, ready to attack.

Shit!

I utilized every fiber of strength in my body and surged forwards.

"No!" I yelled as he started to move. I made it in front of her, extending my arms to shield her from his fangs and claws. James stopped mid-attack, flustered, but shrugged after a second and continued.

I felt a cold arm wrap around my waist and within seconds I was no longer in front of James, but far to his left. James growled in frustration and turned to face me. I blinked. What the?

Oh! Alice.

She had snapped out of her vision in the nick of time and now had me in her arms. Or, rather, arm. I grimaced and hurt that she was still injured.

Alice didn't wait around, though, she pinned me into her cold, hard body and took off.

"What were you thinking?" Alice snapped as she moved speedily past trees. I couldn't see either James or Victoria anymore, instead watching as everything turned into some kind of abstract, fast paced movie.

"What?" I asked weakly, my stomach feeling incredibly weird as she moved. I decided to focus on her shoulder, since everything else was making me feel a tad sick.

Yeah, throwing up would be very, very bad.

"You stupid girl!" Alice snapped angrily. "What were you thinking jumping in front of me? He could've killed you!"

Her words felt like knives stabbing my heart. It wasn't that they were particularly mean, but they were harsh and angry.

I glanced up to see the fury plain in her feral eyes as they _glared _back at me.

Why was she so upset at ME for? I was trying to protect her!

"I-I-I was t-trying to protect you," I replied, feeling incredibly small under her wrathful gaze. I couldn't help trembling at the sight and tried to turn my eyes away. I couldn't. Her eyes were pulling me in, making me see the anger behind them. I felt tears rolling down my cheeks as my body quivered.

I couldn't help it, she was terrifying me!

I watched as Alice's eyes seemed to take in the sight of my tears. There was a slight flicker of something there as the slits widened ever so slightly.

"I'm…sorry…" she groaned out, her voice heavy and strained. "I'm not myself right now. I'll…make it up…to you…later."

"O-okay," I answered, still feeling the effects of seeing her look that way.

We moved silently up the hill and past more trees. I still couldn't see Victoria or James, but I knew they were following us. Why wouldn't they be?

In moments we were back at the house. Alice set me down and looked about frantically, a scowl forming on her pissed off angelic face.

"Shit!" she cursed. "Of all the times for them to be gone! Damn it!"

I gulped and wondered what to do.

"Get insi-"

She was cut off when the two vampires appeared in front of us, clearly more pissed then before, especially Victoria. Lividly, Victoria started to move towards us, not speaking or bothering to acknowledge James, who did the same. I cringed.

This was the end, wasn't it?

Fuck.

No. Wait.

As if descending from the heavens themselves, Jasper and Amara appeared from what seemed like out of nowhere. Jasper stood in front of James and Amara in front of Victoria.

Blonde to blonde, ginger to ginger.

Now that I think about it, Jasper and Amara were like good versions of James and Victoria. Jasper and James' names even started with the same first letter. Huh.

Damn it, why am I thinking of that at a time like this?

Jasper and Amara both growled loudly at the two intruders. James and Victoria both growled back. They weren't going to leave without a fight, it seemed. And judging by the smile on Amara's face, she was more than happy to give it to them.

Like lightning the four of them blurred into action.

This was different than before, though, when Alice had fought them. In reality, I knew Alice hadn't actually been fighting them. I could tell that, despite her intentions, she was merely just dodging their strikes and hitting them when she found an opening. She wasn't trying to fight them the way she could've and probably should've been, but she was outnumbered two to one.

Amara and Jasper, on the other hand, were fighting for real. And I was amazed.

Neither James nor Victoria were able to land a single blow. Amara and Jasper were fast, efficient and powerful in their movements. Jasper was more refined and a tad faster, Amara wilder, yet stronger and still precise. I could hardly see them, of course, but from what I could see, they were winning.

Winning? No, the two of them were fucking dominating their enemies.

It was like watching two schizophrenic kittens trying to fight two full grown tigers. Alice stood completely still where she was, shielding me, of course. I just stood there dumbly, gawking at the speed and viciousness being displayed by Jasper and Amara.

These two clearly knew how to fight.

Not that Alice didn't, that is.

The fighting didn't last very long. Both James and Victoria jumped backwards to avoid any more strikes after a few minutes. Their clothing was torn, their bodies covered in claw markings. James was clutching his left shoulder, Victoria nursing her right.

"Shit!" Victoria growled.

"You should leave now," Jasper warned in a low, threatening voice. "Or else we will kill you."

"Fuck that, why don't we just kill them now?" Amara shouted.

"These are the two who hurt Bella," Alice hissed. Amara and Jasper both growled in unison at that, obviously changing their minds.

Amara licked her lips. "Go light a match. I'll finish em' off in seconds."

"No. They're mine," Alice stated coldly.

Jasper shook his head. "Alice, you're injured and Bella's terrified. Let it go for now, we can finish them off later."

"What?" Alice snarled. "No! They deserve to die now!"

"Alice, remember what Carlisle and Esme taught you," Jasper responded, firmly yet gently.

"Ugh, fine, I won't kill them," Amara huffed, clearly annoyed. "Next time, though…"

"NO!" Alice screamed. "They die now!" She lunged forwards only to be caught by Jasper, who wrapped his arms firmly around her body.

"Alice. Stop."

He was touching Alice…

MY Alice. How DARE he touch her?

I felt intense rage building within me at the sight, for reasons I didn't even understand. Jasper turned and stared at me for a moment. I suddenly realized what I was thinking and blinked rapidly, the anger dissolving quickly.

Now I was confused. What the hell?

"Screw this, we're leaving!" Victoria snapped. She bounded off into the woods, James growling once before following.

A wave of calm descended upon me right after they left. I watched as Alice struggled in her brother's arms for a moment before slumping into them, clearly giving into the calmness. With my earlier rage gone, I succumbed to the calmness as well.

Jasper released Alice and slowly walked towards me.

"Are you alright?" he asked.

I nodded. "Thanks to you two. You guys kicked serious ass."

They both chuckled at that.

"Yeah, we're both more experienced in fighting," Amara informed me. "Not that Alice isn't, of course, but we've got years more experience."

"Amara especially," Jasper added.

Amara rolled her eyes. "I still would've liked to torch them. I wish you would've let me," she grumbled.

Jasper frowned for a moment before sighing. He then turned his gaze back to me, curiosity imminent in his golden eyes.

"What was that earlier, Bella? That rage. I felt it the moment I grabbed Alice to stop her," he noted.

I blushed and hung my head ashamedly.

"It's nothing to be ashamed of, I'm merely curious." Jasper said softly.

"I…I don't know. I don't know where it came from. It was just there, you know? I couldn't stop it until you looked at me. I'm sorry," I replied.

"Bella, what did you feel when that happened? Like, what did you feel exactly?" he asked.

Alice, who up until this point had been standing like a statue, finally stirred and turned slightly to look at me. Her pupils were almost full circles again and I could see some of the color returning. Her nails had shrunk down to normal size as well. Her arm, however, was still limp.

I blushed again. "Um, well, I felt, er, protective of her. I didn't like seeing someone else touch her…" I trailed off, confused, embarrassed and ashamed all at once. What was wrong with me?

"Interesting," Amara mused. Then she laughed. "It looks like you'll fit in with us just fine."

Alice walked over to me then, slowly, of course. Her face was etched with a mixture of anger, pain and sorrow.

"I'm sorry for snapping at you before," she whispered, her tone drenched in remorse. She gently placed her left hand on my shoulder and rubbed it. "I gave into my more animalistic senses. When that happens, it's hard to control my thoughts and emotions. I saw that I was scaring you and hurting your feelings and damn it if I didn't feel terrible at that moment. But I couldn't stop because I had to protect you. I'm sorry, though."

I pulled her into my arms and hugged her. She hugged me back, albeit with one arm still.

"It's okay," I murmured. "I was just concerned with you. I was worried. What about your arm?"

She pulled back slightly and smiled warmly at me.

"Don't worry about it. It'll heal pretty quickly," she responded. I furrowed my brow in uncertainty.

"You said that the venom doesn't cause that much damage. Or did you lie to me about that as well?" I asked, quirking an eyebrow. She grimaced and bit her lip, so I knew it was the latter. I frowned deeper. "Alice…"

"I'm sorry, Bella. I am, really. I just didn't want to worry in case something like this happened, you know? The truth is, when we're bit and injected by venom, it burns us like it does a human, but the burn is more intense. It sort of numbs wherever we were bit and renders it useless for a short period of time. It's no big deal, though, I promise. My arm will be fine shortly."

To prove her point, I watched as she clenched and unclenched her right fist. She smiled.

"See? It'll be fine. Now let's get you inside."

She didn't wait for a response and quietly scooped me into her arms before running inside and dropping me gently on the couch. She turned towards Jasper and Amara as they walked in, each looking at one another as if having a silent conversation with their eyes.

"Are you going to call Carlisle?" Alice asked.

"Yes," Jasper answered, turning to look at her. "I'll inform him of what's happened."

"I'll call Esme and Emmett," Amara added.

"Please break it to Esme gently, Amara. You know how she gets," Alice stated. Amara rolled her eyes, but nodded nonetheless. They both glanced at me and smiled, which I returned, before they disappeared in a blur, leaving Alice and I alone.

Alice sat down on the couch and gently leaned me downwards so my head was resting on the arm portion of the couch, which was amazingly conformable. Then again, I was with Alice. Lame, I know, but it was true regardless.

She gently stroked my cheek with her left hand, looking at me lovingly. Her eyes had finally returned to being the beautiful, smoldering pools of honey that I loved, glistening as they took in my appearance.

"God you are so beautiful," she cooed, leaning in and brushing her lips against my forehead.

I blushed, reveling in the coolness of her hand and lips and her amazing smell.

"Thanks," I murmured, looking up at her intently. She returned my gaze and slowly started to lean in.

Ah. We were going to finish what we had started before James and Victoria interrupted us.

Sweet.

Alice slowly leaned in and closed her eyes as I started closing mine. She suddenly stopped, however, at the sound of a throat being cleared. We both frowned and turned in unison to look in the doorway.

My face heated up.

Standing in the doorway was a man. Well, he looked more like a boy, I should say, since his face was relatively young. He had spiked, bronze colored hair and the same pale skin and gold eyes as Alice and the others did.

That was when it hit me.

This must be Edward.

**A/N: Excuse me while I go hide from the massive rage that will most likely be directed towards me. Ahem.**

**What? Yeah, I'm evil, I know. It was too good to resist though. I mean, come on, the denying is funny! No? Oh, psh. Don't worry, you guys will get what you want sooner rather then later. Sheesh.**

**My one concern regarding this chapter was the action sequence. It was my first time writing one, so I'm not sure if I did well or not. Twilight never really had much action in it. Plus, it's in Bella's perspective, so she can't see every move going on, just the blunt end of it. Still, I feel I did good. **

**By the way, you guys are awesome. Thirty two reviews last chapter! That's my second best yet! Come on, don't let it fall too far. Keep up the reviews peeps! Thanks!**


	15. Edward

**Disclaimer: I don't be taking credit for Twilight. I only own Amara. That is all.**

**Edward**

Edward. The one Cullen I had yet to meet.

He stood silently in the door way, his dark ocher eyes taking in the sights in front of him with surprise and confusion. He cocked his head to the side, narrowing his eyes and clenching his jaw rather tightly, obviously having a difficult time understanding what was going on.

It was simple, really. He was intruding upon my time with Alice. Bastard.

His eyes suddenly snapped to meet mine, the ocher orbs darkening even more so then before.

Oh.

Shit.

I forgot he could read minds.

Edward's jaw unclenched as his mouth opened slightly, just enough to let out a slight hiss.

Alice, who had yet to move from her position, was suddenly on top of me completely, letting out a low, rumbling growl that came all the way from her chest. Her eyes had darkened slightly as well as she stared down her sibling, who had yet to move from where he stood.

"Don't you dare, Edward," Alice growled. "You stay away from her."

Edward's eyes moved to hers, his face becoming strained. His eyes were now jet black. I watched as the muscles on his face tightened, his hands curling into fists. It was then that I understood what the problem was.

Edward seemed to struggle with controlling himself for a moment before closing his eyes, furrowing his brows as he concentrated on something. When he reopened them, I was surprised to see that his eyes were much lighter in color. They were still dark, however, and I could see the thirst in them.

Just like Alice's from before…

Fuck! I didn't want to think about that!

Edward's brow slanted even more as he frowned at me, then at Alice. He was about to speak when Jasper and Amara were suddenly in the room, Jasper grabbing his right arm, Amara the left.

"Edward, you need to hunt," Jasper stated in a firm voice.

Edward scowled and attempted to resist, but neither of them released their holds.

"Now," Amara growled.

Edward stared at her for a moment. I could see the agony in his face as he surrendered to their grasps. He turned towards me, a sorrowful look on his face.

"I'm sorry," he grunted.

With that said, the three of them vanished into the woods. I let out the breath I had been holding in as Alice relaxed on top of me. She slowly moved off of me, allowing me to sit upright. Of course, she quickly grabbed me and pulled me into her lip, cradling me in her arms.

I didn't say anything; I merely rested my head on her as she laid her chin on top of it. We held each other for a while, neither speaking. We didn't need to, though. I silently enjoyed the feeling of her arms around me and the smell of her body, allowing me to relax further into her. She sighed once and nuzzled the top of my head lovingly.

It was a peaceful moment.

"So that was Edward?" I asked quietly. I didn't want to ruin the moment, but my curiosity always got the better of me. Alice tensed for only a few seconds before relaxing again, gently stroking my shoulder with one hand and wrapping around me with the other.

"Yes," she replied. "I'm sorry about that. I didn't see him coming; otherwise I would've been more prepared. And I didn't realize he hadn't hunted. It was a stupid mistake on my part. I'm sorry, Bella."

"It's fine, Alice," I said. "He kept himself from hurting me. No harm done. I think I may have dropped the ball, though." My face fell as I finished, remembering how stupidly I had let slip the accident from earlier.

"What do you mean?"

"Um, I, er, thought about how his eyes reminded me of yours…" I murmured ashamedly.

"Oh."

I looked up at her. "I'm sorry, Alice. I'm really sorry. I didn't mean to. I forgot he could read minds and-"

She cut me off with a finger to my lips. "Shh. It's okay, Bella. I'm not mad. I do imagine Edward won't be pleased with me, though."

"Sorry," I murmured. She sighed again and gently kissed my forehead.

"Don't apologize. It's okay. I just don't like remembering what happened."

I didn't respond, I just nuzzled into her. I liked the feeling. I didn't want to think about anything else other then Alice. That was all I cared about right now.

Another minute passed before the others returned from hunting.

Jasper walked in first, followed by Amara, then Edward. Jasper and Amara both seated themselves on the couch. Edward, on the other hand, remained standing near the doorway, staring down at the floor.

Now things were awkward.

No one spoke. Alice was staring rather sternly at Edward, who looked rather sheepish and disgruntled in the same. Jasper was looking between the two of them, clearly waiting for a moment to intervene with his gift if necessary. And Amara…well, Amara was staring off into space, clearly not concerned about the situation unless she needed to be.

I didn't know what to say, really. What do I say? So instead I waited for whoever decided to speak first.

A minute passed. Still nothing. Edward and Alice hadn't budged an inch. Or even a half an inch. Shit, they just looked like fucking statues the way they were. I guess it didn't bother them standing still like that.

"So Edward how was your trip?" Amara asked, suddenly breaking the silence. I couldn't help but give her a grateful look, since the awkward silence was beginning to get on my nerves. I could tell she was feeling the same way. At least I wasn't alone in that sense.

Edward looked up finally and sighed. "It was fine, I suppose. Uneventful, mostly."

"You were gone a lot longer than usual, Edward," noted Jasper. "What were you up to?"

Edward frowned. "I was mostly doing some traveling and light sight-seeing. I also visited the Denalis for a while, since I hadn't seen them in a few years. They're actually planning to come and visit us in a few months."

"Who are the Denalis?" I asked quietly. Again, my damn curiosity talking.

"They're the coven of vegetarians that live in Alaska," Alice answered. Her eyes never left Edward, though.

Edward glanced over at me, a frown on his face. "I believe I owe you an apology. And an introduction, it seems." He slowly yet casually walked over to where I was seated. Alice tensed up and let out a very soft growl. Edward stopped immediately and flashed her a scowl. "Alice, you know better than that. I'm in control now. Relax."

She didn't respond, instead growling louder when he took another step towards me.

"Alice, he's not going to hurt her, he just wants to introduce himself," Jasper stated calmly.

She clutched me tightly into her arms. It was almost…protective? Why was she trying to protect me? Edward was obviously in control of himself. What the hell?

"No! He's going to try to take her from me!" Alice hissed, baring her teeth.

Edward took a step back and shook his head. "Alice, you know I would never do that."

"You lie! You have no mate for yourself so you'll try to take mine! I won't let you! She's MINE!" Alice snarled. Her grip was starting to get a little too tight.

"Alice…" I wheezed. "Can't breathe…too tight…"

Her grip softened as her head snapped down to face me. "Bella…oh, Bella, I'm sorry!" She pulled me into a very gentle, tender hug. "You stay away!" she growled at Edward.

A wave of calm suddenly enveloped us. Alice glared at Jasper for a moment before her face softened.

Edward ran a hand through his messy hair and sighed. "Well then." He turned towards me. "In light of what's happened, I'd like to take this time to apologize for my earlier actions. And, as you already know, I'm Edward. You must Bella."

I nodded. "Yeah. It's nice to meet you at last, Edward."

He chuckled at that. "Indeed. I'm assuming my siblings have been feeding you all sorts of lies about me, correct?"

"Only that you're good at playing the piano, you read minds and that you're a bit on the broody side most of the time," I replied.

"But of course they'd tell you that," he said, rolling his eyes.

"It's true," stated Amara, grinning evilly at her brother. Edward scowled at her, which only made her grin wider.

Edward turned towards Alice, who seemed to come out of her Jasper induced stupor. "Alice, may I have a word with you?" he asked.

"We're speaking now, aren't we?" she retorted. She was still upset, it seemed, though I was still uncertain as to why.

"Alice, I'd like to speak with you alone, if I may."

"No," she growled. "I am not in the mood for a fucking lecture, Edward. So don't start with me."

"Alice…" Jasper warned.

"For God's sakes woman, I have no interest in your mate and she has zero interest in me! Now stop acting like this. I just want to talk with you about a few things, nothing more," Edward growled, growing irritated by his sister's behavior.

"Alice, what's wrong?" I asked, looking at her concernedly. Her steely gaze softened immediately when she turned towards me.

"You are _my_ mate, Bella. Edward has no mate; therefore he might try and take you from me. I won't allow that. You are _MINE_ and no one else's." She gave Edward a threatening grimace. "I don't want you near her, Edward."

"Alice, stop. He's not trying to take me away from you," I reasoned.

She shook her head furiously. "No! He will!"

What the fuck was getting into her?

First she was all sweet, now she's angry and possessive. Seriously now.

I cupped her cheeks and forced her to look me in the eyes.

"Alice. ALICE!" I shouted when she refused to look at me. "Alice, stop this, please. You're not acting like yourself. It's scaring me. Please, stop this."

She didn't respond, though I could see the turmoil in her eyes. Suddenly Amara was standing front of us and in one brisk movement her left hand smacked Alice in the back of the head. Alice blinked several times, then looked back at me.

"Sorry," she said softly, kissing me on the cheek. Her eyes then darted to Edward. "I'm sorry, Edward. I don't know what came over me."

His face softened as he nodded. "It's fine. I understand. Would you come and speak with me, please?"

"Sure," she replied. She kissed my cheek again, letting her cool lips linger for a moment longer, before gently moving me off of her lap and going out the door.

Edward turned to follow her, but glanced over his shoulder. "It was a pleasure meeting you, Bella. I hope we can become friends after this is settled." He gave me a rather crooked looking smile before departing after his sister.

I stared after them for a moment, a tad confused, but otherwise satisfied that Alice was alright.

"Thanks Amara," I said, turning to the redhead as she seated herself.

She smirked at me. "No problem."

"What was that, by the way?" I asked. Jasper and Amara glanced at one another before bursting into laughter. I frowned, lost beyond all recognition.

Jasper was the first to stop laughing, giving me an apologetic look. "Sorry, Bella." He nudged Amara to stop laughing, which she did after a moment.

"Oh my God, did you see the look on his face? Priceless!" she laughed.

Jasper cleared his throat, signaling her to stop altogether. She snickered once more before closing her eyes and calming herself fully, though her eyes were still full of mirth.

"Ahem. To answer your question, Bella, you first have to understand that vampires are very territorial. What you witnessed was Alice's, shall we say, animalistic nature taking over. She was being protective of you because Edward, like she said, has no one of his own. She felt threatened and as such was protecting you from him. In a way, she's claimed you as hers and hers only. That is similar to how you reacted when I touched Alice outside, if you recall. The only difference is its much worse for her. Does that make sense?"

"I guess so. What made her become that way, though?"

Amara was the one to answer.

"You told her your feelings, yes?" I nodded. "Well, then you sealed the deal on your relationship with her. Basically that made a part of her brain click and now her maternal instincts are pushing through. It's a new sensation for her, so she's got no control over herself, though."

"So what, I can't have anyone near me for a while? I don't get it," I muttered, still pretty confused.

"She won't like it when you're approached by someone, especially if they're single. If they already have a mate, she'll still be protective of you, but on a lesser scale. You see, when the urge to protect your mate is your main concern, you don't see others as friend or foe. You see them as threats to your mate, plain and simple. I know it's hard for you to understand, but you'll come to understand it in the future," Jasper explained.

"I'm her first mate?" I asked.

"Yes," Jasper replied. "You are her first true mate. That's why everything is strange to her and why she has such poor control over her instincts. Don't worry, she'll gain control soon enough and learn to cope with it."

"I see," I replied.

Okay, I didn't see fully. This was all new to me, after all. Then again, I guess it made sense. In fact, I was actually flattered by her protectiveness. As long as she wasn't too overprotective or anything like that, I think I'll be fine.

I just hope Edward doesn't yell at her or anything.

That would piss me off. Nobody yells at my Alice. Nobody.

There I go again with that my stuff. What's up with that? And then there was the fact that I fucking snarled at a vampire earlier on.

Is all of this because I've been around vampires for so damn long?

I…

Oh. Whoops. Human moment.

I quietly excused myself from the couch and ran up the stairs into the bathroom. Once I finished, I noticed that there was a toothbrush and a tube of toothpaste with my name on it. Remembering that I had not brushed my teeth in quite some time, I brushed away, using half of the damn tube in one sitting. I knew my breath probably didn't smell bed to them, but it stunk to me.

Once I was finished, I walked back downstairs, enjoying the minty taste left over in my mouth.

I was surprised to find only Edward in the house, sitting quietly on the couch.

"Bella," he greeted in an even voice.

"Where'd the others go? Where's Alice?" I asked. I was getting worried now.

Edward stood slowly and gave me a gentle look. "Relax, Bella. Alice is fine. She went hunting with the others. Nothing more, nothing less. Besides, I requested that I have a chance to speak to you in person."

I frowned. What could he possibly want to talk about?

"Everything that's transpired in the time that I've been gone," he replied.

Fucking hell, I keep forgetting he could read minds.

"Sorry," he said. "I know it's irritating at first, but you get used to it after a while."

"Can't you shut it off?" I asked.

He shook his head. "Unfortunately, no, I cannot. I'm always hearing the thoughts of those around me within a mile radius. However, I can tone down the volume of their thoughts. I still hear them, but they're distant and not too much of an annoyance."

"Why don't you come and sit down?" he offered, waving his arm at the spot near him. "I have no intention of harming you or anything of the sort. I'd just like to talk is all."

I shrugged and sat where he had indicated. We sat there silently for a moment, Edward lost in thought. He then gently turned to look at me, curiosity in his eyes.

"So you've come a long way."

"What do you mean?" I asked.

He rested his chin on the palm of his left hand. "I mean in terms of your life. You started off being poorly raised by your parents, and then transitioned to a foster family. Now here you are, being hunted by and surrounded by vampires. It's strange to see that you're better off with the vampires surrounding you then you were with the people who were meant to raise you."

"I guess so," I murmured. "I haven't really soaked it all in, yet. There's been so much in such a short amount of time. It's weird, really."

He nodded in understanding. "I get your point. I'm amazed at how strong willed you are, actually. Most normal humans wouldn't have taken everything as well as you have considering everything you've been through."

"I was kind of thinking that myself. I mean, it's all insane yet I feel comfortable with it all. Does that have anything to do with the whole "Alice is my soulmate" stuff?" I asked.

Edward pursed his lips and thought for a moment. "I honestly don't know. I don't fully understand it myself."

I sighed.

"So what did you talk with Alice about?" I asked.

"We talked mostly about what's happened. She told me about you and what happened to you, actually. I'm truly sorry that you had to suffer the way you did. It angers me to no end that those…those _beasts_ would do such a thing to an innocent human," he growled, gritting his teeth angrily. "I mean, I oftentimes see myself as a monster, but people like them truly define the word in every way possible."

"Why do you see yourself as a monster?" I asked, confused. Alice had thought the same thing and it annoyed the hell out of me. Was it some disease that they thought they were all monsters or something?

I was reminded of earlier today and the words I had used to relay how I didn't think she was a monster. I still didn't. I couldn't see how vampires that fed on animals could consider themselves monster despite the fact that there were vampires like James and Victoria out there that tortured humans for fun instead of surviving.

Edward sighed. "As meaningful and kind as your words are, you forget that we aren't perfect either. We still slip up from time to time, as Alice did earlier today. That was a serious issue that Alice and I talked about as well."

I snapped my head to face him. "You'd _better_ not have made her feel bad," I growled. I suddenly stopped and realized that I had yet again growled at someone, another vampire no less!

Edward's eyes studied me with concern and astonishment for a moment before taking on an air of intrigue and gentleness. "No. I may overreact at times, but I would never intentionally do something to upset her. You have my word, I was gentle in my approach and merely played the part of the brother that I am. I asked that she speak to Carlisle and Esme as well, since it is only fair that they know what went on."

"I assure you that Alice won't be yelled at or ridiculed for her actions. Carlisle and Esme are far too loving and far too kind to ever do such a thing. They would merely want her and you to be okay. That's their main concern, as it is mine."

"Sorry," I murmured, feeling abashed. What was getting into me lately? Was it some side effect to the territorial mate thing?

"I don't believe it is," Edward stated, appraising me. "I can't be sure, though. Perhaps you should speak to Carlisle when he returns. I'd imagine he may have an answer, given the fact that he's been around the longest out of any of us."

"You sound like you're pretty close to him," I mused.

He smiled. "Yes. I was the first one he changed, actually."

"Really?" I asked.

I was intrigued. I had yet to find out much about any of the Cullens' back-stories, despite being here for a few days. I was curious about them all.

Edward chuckled. "Indeed I was. You see, Carlisle had spent much of his lifetime as a vampire alone. If you'd like the full story, you'd have to ask him yourself, of course. He has quite a few tales I'm certain you'll find interesting. Anyways, he found me in a hospital in Chicago. I was dying from Spanish influenza at the time. Carlisle had been working at the hospital and decided to change me. My parents were both dead you see and Carlisle had been desperately searching for a traveling companion. I was his first and I ultimately became his son."

"However, I didn't stay with him at first. I was confused and uncertain about my new life, but most of all I feel angry at Carlisle for turning me into a monster without my knowledge. So I left him for a few years, traveling around on my own. I discovered a lot about myself and about the new life I had, including the bloodlust. I remember one day that I accidentally killed a human. I was mortified with myself over what happened. I ended up returning to Carlisle, telling him what I'd done and begging his forgiveness. He accepted me back with open arms and didn't ridicule me in the slightest; despite the fact that I felt I deserved it."

"Carlisle has always been the most compassionate man in existence, Esme his female counterpart. I remember that she accepted me as her son not too long after her transformation, though she, like I, made a few mistakes. That isn't my story to tell, however."

I nodded, absorbing the new information in eagerly. Edward chuckled again.

"Can I ask you something?"

"Certainly," he responded.

"Why did you really leave?" I asked.

Edward's face fell slightly. "What were you told?"

"That you and Alice had gotten into an argument about me."

He frowned and shook his head. "That's not quite the full story. Carlisle and Esme are the only ones who know my real reason, really." He paused for a moment and sighed. "To be brutally honest, I'll admit I flew off the handle when I discovered that Alice had been hiding her visions from us. Not only that, but I saw…other things that disconcerted me. I acted rashly and I felt guilt ridden over it, most definitely. We did indeed argue about you, I'll admit. It wasn't one of my best moments and I do apologize for it, even though you weren't even here at the time."

"You see, Bella, my family and I have always been hesitant around humans. One slipup could cause a series of problems for us, including the threat of our exposal. And that would be one of the worst repercussions, alongside the fact that someone could be hurt or die. So when I found out about all of this, I was upset. Not just because she had been keeping secrets, but because of how dangerous it was for you. You know that not all of us have the best of control, yes? That was one of my biggest concerns."

"Carlisle has the best control out of all of us. It's perfect. The scent of humans doesn't faze him and you could be bleeding like mad and he wouldn't flinch. The rest of us, however, don't have that same level of control. I'd say that Emmett and Esme have the second best control, then myself, then Rosalie, then Alice, then Jasper and lastly Amara. However, as you've seen, both Jasper and Amara have been doing what they can to make sure their level of control isn't a problem. I wasn't aware of that at the time, though."

"I screwed up. I know I did. I apologized profusely for what happened and am thankful that she forgave me, though she did make me promise to be on my best behavior when I met you, which, aside from my earlier mistake, I feel like I have been. That brings me to your question of why I was gone. Truth be told, it was several things."

He paused for a moment, seemingly reflecting upon something.

"I left number one because I wanted to take some time to train myself. I wanted to train my strength around humans to make sure I would be prepared for when you came. I was concerned that I wouldn't be able to handle being around a human for prolonged periods of time, hence one reason why I left. I also left because I did indeed wish to visit the Denali Coven. They are close friends of ours, but we rarely see them. The main reason I left, however, was the training."

His face grew somber as he stared at the table in front of us.

"Alice told you about Amanda, correct?" I nodded. "I had a similar situation. Mine was…slightly different, however. Whereas Alice had merely been friends with the human, in my case, my feelings had been… a bit more developed."

"What happened?" I asked.

He smiled sadly at me. I realized then. "We've all made mistakes in the past, Bella. Everyone does, I understand that, but mistakes like the ones that Alice and I made are hard to correct. She's beaten herself up over it for years now. But now she has you. And you make her happy in ways I've never seen. You may not have noticed given recent events, but I can assure you that in no time you will witness the real Alice, the one that everyone loves. As far as myself, I've never been the optimistic type, even as a human."

"I'll admit, I do suffer from depression. I suffered from depression as a human and I suppose it carried over when I changed. I fight it, though. I don't enjoy being brooding as much as the others may think. I try to find things I enjoy doing, like playing the piano or spending time with my family. It's those little things that help clear away the haze of depression that oftentimes clouds my mind. I'm quite pleased with how things are, but I can't help wish I could go back and change some things. Fix mistakes I've made. Save lives that I've taken. I can't, though."

"I want Alice to be happy. If being with you makes her happy, then I'll be happy. I know I'll find my soulmate eventually. It just takes time. And don't worry, I won't interfere with your relationship with one another anymore, I promise. I swear my first intrusion was an accident," he chuckled. "Your thoughts were mildly entertaining, I must admit."

I blushed furiously upon remembering what I had been thinking. Wait. What had I been thinking? Was it that bad?

"Heavens no. Your thoughts were surprisingly rather clean, unlike the vulgar things I'm often forced to hear in my head each day. Usually from Emmett. It's even worse at school when every girl ogles me from afar, some with far worse minds then Emmett's even. And that scares me."

"What grade are you guys in?" I asked. I remembered Alice mentioning school before, but I had never asked about it.

"Alice and myself are Juniors this year. Em, Rose, Jazz and Amara are all Seniors."

"Oh. So high school girls aren't your thing?" I inquired jokingly.

He smiled crookedly at me. "Not really, no. Most of them are far too hormonal for my taste. There are a few decent ones here and there, I suppose, but I tend to steer clear from them altogether. I'm waiting for the right woman, you know? I feel that I'll know her when I see her, be her human or vampire."

"So it must stink redoing high school over and over again, huh?"

He chuckled again. "Not too bad, actually. I've always enjoyed the experience, though there's always a few minor annoyances here and there. We've discovered that the younger we portray ourselves, the longer we can stay in a designated area. We've been here for two and a half years now and I imagine we'll be staying for another five or so, give or take."

"Wouldn't you still look the same, though?" I asked.

"Yes, but in today's world, many humans often look younger then they really are. That's the excuse I've used in the past, others being that I have a disease that causes me to age slowly. Or I let Alice use her makeup skills on me, which is a traumatizing event, let me tell you. I hear you still have some shopping to do. You have my condolences."

"I really don't mind shopping that much, though," I defended.

Edward shook his head. "Shopping with Alice isn't just a casual thing. You're there for hours on end, roaming through stores and trying on different clothing apparel. Alice takes her shopping very seriously and will not be pleased if you try to escape. And an angry Alice is a very, very frightening thing, let me tell you. Fashion is a passion of hers, so I'd advise you not to critique her on it too badly. Then again, I doubt she'd say anything drastic to you given that you are her mate and all, so maybe she'll be more lenient with you. Who knows?"

I shrugged.

Alice, Jasper and Amara all came in through the door then. I grinned excitedly.

"Alice!" I shouted happily, flinging myself at her. She caught me with ease and snuggled me, giggling into my shoulder.

"My, my, so happy to see me, yet I've only been gone for a few minutes!" she sang cheerily, happily embracing me.

As we hugged, I thought about that for a moment.

She was right.

She had been gone for only a few minutes, yet it felt like she had been gone an eternity. Strange.

Then I was reminded of my earlier actions, the growling and snarling I had done. I was confused by that. Maybe I should speak to Carlisle regarding it. He might know.

"Did you guys call Carlisle and the others?" Edward asked.

"Yes," replied Jasper.

"Carlisle will be here in four minutes and forty two seconds. Then Esme, and lastly Emmett and Rosalie," Alice stated.

Edward nodded. "Good. We need to start discussing what we're going to do about our current problem."

"I say we just kill them," Amara snorted. "Better yet, let me handle them. They'd be dead in seconds and our problem would be solved."

"It's not that simple, Amara. For one thing, we don't know where they are. And another thing, you might injure a human. We can't have that and I know you don't want that," Edward said.

"I agree. Besides, Carlisle and Esme wouldn't want you to do that anyways," Jasper added.

Amara huffed. "Bah! Alice, what do you think?"

Alice tensed slightly as she sat down, me in her lap once again. "They deserve to die," she growled in a deceptively calm voice. "There's no other option other then killing them. I for one would be more than happy to rip their heads off and torch them myself. They'll pay for what they did to my Bella."

Neither Jasper nor Edward chose to argue with that statement. Amara merely smirked.

We all waited the remaining few minutes silently, sitting on the couch. I sat cozily in Alice's lap; Edward sat on one end while Jasper and Amara sat on the other.

Just as Alice had predicted, I heard cars driving up outside. In seconds Carlisle, Esme, Emmett and Rosalie were all inside the house, a variety of emotions on their faces. Carlisle and Esme were naturally glad to see their son, but were both concerned. The minute her eyes fell on me, Esme moved over and wrapped me into a warm hug. Alice tensed slightly, but relaxed shortly afterwards, which I was happy for.

I didn't want her snapping at Esme the way she had at Edward. Besides, I loved the Esme hugs.

Emmett looked relatively upset. And Rosalie…well, Rosalie looked upset, annoyed and bored in the same. She nodded in Edward's direction, but shot me an irritated glare. Alice let out a slight hiss and glared daggers at Rosalie, who rolled her eyes and seated herself near Emmett.

Carlisle was the first to speak, looking at me gently and apologetically.

"I'm terribly sorry we weren't here to protect you, Bella. I do hope you are unharmed."

"It's okay. Alice protected me," I said, looking at her endearingly. She returned the look with a loving smile and kissed me on the cheek.

Damn. Still no lips yet. I guess she had given up on that for now since _someone_ had to interrupt us.

Edward let out a quiet snicker as Carlisle and Esme appraised us. Their eyes both lit up delightedly, Esme beaming with joy.

"You two are together now?" she asked. Alice and I nodded in unison. "Oh, how wonderful!"

"Dude, that's hot," Emmett chortled. Seconds later he was met with a smack to the back of the head from Rosalie.

"No, it is _not_," Rosalie grumbled. Carlisle and Esme both shot her disapproving looks. "What? How can you all pretend that this is normal? How can you act like this is a good thing? The human has been nothing but trouble since before she even got here! And now not only do we have to worry about being exposed, but she's brought two rogue vampires here as well. Do you not see how disastrous this is for our family?"

Carlisle was about to speak, but I cut him off. "_Excuse_ me, Rosalie, but I didn't _ask_ for them to follow me, nor did I know any of you _existed_. So why don't you keep your damn thoughts to yourself because I don't remember asking for your opinion," I snarled.

I immediately gasped and clasped my hand over my mouth.

Oh fuck. Now I was in for it.

Rosalie was stunned. She stared at me with wide eyes, apparently not believing what she had just heard. Carlisle and Esme were surprised as well, though I could see a form of curiosity in Carlisle's eyes. Edward looked thoroughly amused, while Jasper was puzzled. Amara, to my surprise, was appraising me thoughtfully Emmett, to my surprise, looked oddly proud, though he quickly discarded the look when Rosalie glanced at him.

The room was silent for a moment.

Thankfully, Jasper took this as his cue to send an air of calmness throughout, easing the awkward tension. I didn't look back up towards any of the Cullens and I didn't dare look in Rosalie's direction. I kept my eyes sheepishly trained on Alice's angelic face, which seemed about at the halfway point from bursting into laughter. She held it in, though.

Carlisle decided to break the silence.

"Well then. As I was saying before, I'm thankful that you are unharmed, Bella. Alice, I heard that you were injured. How are you faring?" he asked, taking on a fatherly tone.

Alice smiled at him. "I'm fine. It's no big deal, really. Jasper and Amara came at the right time to help out."

"Indeed. However, I believe it best that we begin discussing what we intend to do about them."

"I say we fight!" Emmett boomed.

"I agree," Amara stated.

"It might be best to make a plan of some kind," Jasper stated calmly.

I let out a quiet yawn. All of a sudden, I felt tired. Like, super tired. And I knew it wasn't Jasper's doing either.

Alice frowned at me. "Tired?" she asked softly. I nodded. She smiled and scooped me into her arms.

"Ah, yes, it is quite late. Goodnight, Bella. We can speak tomorrow if you'd like," Carlisle said, giving me a warm smile.

"Goodnight dear," Esme added, the same warm smile on her face.

"Night," I murmured, nestling into Alice. _Edward, can you tell Jasper, Amara and Emmett I say goodnight?_

"Will do," he chuckled quietly.

Their voices became quieter as Alice carried me up the stairs and into her room. She gently laid me onto her bed and helped me remove my socks and shoes before pulling the covers over me.

"Today's been a long day," she mused.

"It sure has," I replied. "I think you still owe me, though."

She grinned cheerily and slowly moved on top of me. Her arms wrapped around the back of my head and without any hesitation her lips pressed against mine.

H-O-L-Y. S-H-I-T.

That was all I could think as her cold, soft lips moved tenderly against mine.

My God it felt amazing. It tasted amazing too.

I moaned softly as I wrapped my arms around her, pulling her closer to me. She slowly and lovingly kissed me, rubbing my back with one hand and the back of my head with the other. My hands ran through her silky hair that I had been dying to touch since I'd first met her, enjoying the soft texture.

Alice's lips were ice cold and hard, yes, but they were unnaturally soft. It was, to put it simply, like kissing a statue. Well, a statue that moved and smelled like both chocolate, strawberry and vanilla at once.

Her movements were slow, gentle and rhythmical, which I quickly fell in sync with. As cliché as it was, it was like magic.

I had dreamed that our first kiss would be great, but never before had I experienced euphoria like this.

Never.

The best part was that there was no lust involved. It was passion, love and tenderness. We weren't thrusting our tongues into each other's mouths or groping each other furiously. There wasn't a heated attempt at getting an orgasm or any clothing being torn off.

No. That's not what I wanted and I knew that wasn't what she wanted. What she was doing now was more than enough.

Bliss.

That's what it was. Pure bliss soaked with passion.

I moaned once more as she slowly removed her lips, though I quickly recaptured them for one more loving kiss. She smiled as she rested her cool forehead against my heated one, gazing lovingly into my eyes.

Such warmth. Such love.

I felt a tear trickle down my cheek as I smiled up at her. She smiled back and kissed my cheek as she wrapped her arms around me.

So this was what love felt like.

I could definitely get used to it.

As slumber slowly took hold of me, I heard her angelic voice whisper the words I had waited my whole life to hear from someone.

"I love you."

**A/N: Alright, they finally kissed!**

**I actually rewrote this chapter after I had gotten halfway through it. I wanted to change the interactions between Edward and Alice. Before it had been less more interesting, let me tell you. I'm pleased with how this one came out.**

**Reviews are loved. Always. Keep em up. You guys are what make this possible.**

**By the way, I'm looking for someone who knows how to erase facial hair using Photoshop. It's for a picture. Nothing too grand, I'd say. Contact me for more details.**


	16. Decisions

**Disclaimer: Meyer owns Twilight and all it's characters. Bummer, right? I own Amara, though. You know she's awesome.**

**Decisions**

Waking up to Alice's soft lips kissing me was perhaps the greatest experience of my life. My eyes fluttered open as I felt her smooth lips merge with mine, tasting the delicious scent that always hovered around her body. I moaned slightly at the sensation, feeling incredibly giddy when she pulled away.

"Good morning, sleepyhead," she giggled, her face radiating with joy. I was distinctively aware that her arms were still around me, which made things even more peaceful. I really did enjoy the feeling of being in her arms.

"Morning," I mumbled, still half asleep.

"Did you sleep well?" she asked.

I nodded lazily before yawning and rubbing my eyes.

"So what's on the agenda for today?" I asked.

Alice frowned for a moment, but it disappeared shortly after. "Well, for starters, Carlisle would like to speak with you on a few things. Nothing bad, I promise, though I know that he was curious about what happened last night."

I grimaced, remembering that I had actually _snarled_ at _Rosalie_ of all people.

"I'm dead, aren't I?" I asked.

Alice giggled. "No, no. You're fine. In fact, I forgot to mention how proud of you I was for standing up to Rosalie. Few people have ever done that before, fewer still have actually come out of it unscathed. But Rosalie knows that if she touches you I'll rip her arms off, so no worries there." She sounded so cheery despite making a threat towards her sister. Damn.

"Um, okay," I murmured. "So aside from talking to Carlisle?"

She beamed at me joyously. "Shopping!" she sang.

I shrugged. "Alright, that sounds fine."

"Excellent! Now get up, Esme's making you a big breakfast!"

I was up in seconds, my mouth watering already.

Esme's cooking. Best. Food. Ever.

Alice happily linked arms with me as we made our way downstairs, where I was instantly hit by the smell of Esme's wondrous cooking. Eggs, bacon and toast. Dear lord, this woman was a saint.

Esme smiled warmly at me as she placed the plate of steaming goodness down on the kitchen table before sauntering over and wrapping me up in a hug.

"Good morning, dear," she chirped happily.

"Morning," I mumbled, gaping wide-eyed at the food that would soon be inside of me.

Esme chuckled melodiously. "I do hope you like what I've made."

I nodded briskly before practically jumping into the chair and attacking the meal with my fork. I piled bite after bite into my mouth, savoring the flavor of each—I didn't forget to chew, of course, since a choking Bella was a safety hazard to anyone—before swallowing, taking breaks occasionally to wipe myself or guzzle down some of the milk next to me.

"She acts like she hasn't eaten in days," I heard Edward snicker.

"She didn't eat much yesterday," Alice replied.

"I'm so glad she likes my cooking," Esme squealed. "Oh how I love being able to do this."

I finished my last bite of egg and washed it down with the remainder of my glass of milk before leaning back into the chair and letting out a satisfied sigh. Esme was there seconds later removing the dishes from the table and quickly washing them in the sink. Alice sat near me, appraising me with an amused smile.

"You do have quite the appetite," she said, grinning ear to ear. "I swear you're acting more and more like one of us each day. You attacked your food like I do mine."

I blinked and stared at her confusedly. Her statement made something click in the back of my mind, recalling my previous actions the other day.

She was right.

I _was _becoming more like one of them.

Should I be worried?

I mean, it is a little weird looking back on it. But at the same time, I find it oddly…thrilling. Shit, I hope I don't start craving blood or anything. That'd be a bit too weird.

Or would it?

I furrowed my brow as I thought more on the subject, only to have my thoughts interrupted by a cold hand on my shoulder. I blinked and saw that Alice was looking at me concernedly.

"Are you alright?" she asked.

"Oh, yeah, I'm fine," I said. "Sorry, I got a little lost in thought is all."

I noticed Edward giving me a curious look, obviously thinking about what I had thought.

"You should see Carlisle," he stated. "He may be able to give you some answers."

Alice glanced between the two of us confusedly, but shrugged it off. She stood up and pulled me to my feet, grinning excitedly.

"Ooh, I can't wait to go shopping! It'll be so much fun!" she chirped.

I heard someone snort and turned to see Amara with her arms crossed, clearly unamused. I couldn't help snickering at her facial expression, which Alice noticed as well.

Alice grinned devilishly at her. "I wouldn't do that, Amara, because you're coming too." Amara's eyes practically bulged out of her sockets as she snapped her head to look at Alice. Alice's evil grin—and damn did it look sexy—widened even more. "Yup, you're coming too, even if I have to drag you there."

Amara's wide eyes became a fierce glare. "You can kiss my ass, midget. I am _not_ going shopping with you and your girlfriend. No offense, Bella."

"None taken," I said, smiling.

Alice's sinister sneer had yet to drop. "You're going."

"No," Amara growled. "And nothing you do can make me."

Alice cocked her head to the side. "Oh? Is that a challenge?" she asked.

Emmett, Jasper and Edward, who had been sitting on the couch playing a video game, paused and looked between the two girls, smirks forming on their faces.

"I bet Amara caves," Emmett chuckled. Amara glared at him, which only made him laugh harder.

"Ditto," agreed Edward, earning him a glare as well.

Jasper was trying hard not to burst into laughter, his lips twitching like mad as he tried to keep a straight face. Amara gave him a pleading look, practically begging him to help her out in her "horrid" situation.

I sighed and remembered Carlisle.

"I'm gonna go talk with Carlisle, okay?" I asked. Alice turned and smiled at me, kissing me on the cheek before walking towards Amara. Amara stood, towering over the shorter girl, and the two began having a stare down, Amara scowling while Alice sneered.

I rolled my eyes and walked up the stairs.

It felt so weird doing this. I remember that before it felt awkward. Now all of a sudden it felt natural, like I had lived here for years.

I walked over to where Carlisle's office was, remembering rather well which door led to which room, especially since each door was unique in its own way. Alice's, for instance, was yellow, while Esme's was sky blue. Carlisle's was old fashioned in appearance, but I noticed that the wood was much thicker.

His door was cracked open ever so slightly. I stopped at it, uncertain how to continue.

"Come in, Bella," Carlisle called from inside.

I quietly made my way inside, gently closing the door once I was inside. Then I gasped.

Carlisle's office was far larger then I had thought it would be. But it also looked much different then I originally imagined. Half of the room was shelves filled with books, ranging from medical books to classical literature, even a few newer aged books. The rest was beautifully made paintings and pictures of him and the family, likely spanning across the various years they'd been alive. Everything was neat and refined, much like Carlisle himself.

"Do you like?" he asked. I blinked and noticed that he was sitting comfortably behind his desk, which was huge. It was black in color and had a variety of different items on it, including several books, a stack of notes and a picture of both him and Esme. Again, it was neat.

He smiled warmly at me and in a flash was scooting a chair over to the other side of his desk. He gestured towards it.

"Please, sit down, make yourself comfortable," he said.

I smiled back at him. "Thank you," I replied before doing as he had suggested.

That was one of the many things I really liked about Carlisle. He never made me do anything I didn't want to. He never forced anyone to do anything. He was so kind and generous, a gentleman in every sense of the word.

"So, Bella, how are you doing?" he asked.

Yet another thing I liked about him: his thoughtfulness. He seemed like the type of person who always cared about you and was always interested in what you had to say. I felt good around him, but beyond anything I felt amazingly comfortable. Nothing was awkward around Carlisle.

"I'm doing alright. It's been a rough few days, but things have gotten a bit better," I replied.

Carlisle nodded thoughtfully. "Yes, I can imagine so. I do apologize for you being hurt yesterday." His eyes reflected pain and I realized that he hated seeing me get hurt. I felt touched and almost started crying from the genuine concern flowing from him. I held it in, though. He continued on. "I heard about what happened between you and Alice, as well."

I bit my lip and hung my head slightly. "I don't like thinking about it. It was an accident and I really don't want her to have to think about it either."

I felt a cool hand gently touch my shoulder and looked up to see Carlisle smiling again. "I know that, Bella. And I appreciate that you hold no ill will towards my daughter. I appreciate even more so that you have decided to give her a chance. It has been years since I've seen Alice as happy as she is with you around and I'm truly pleased that you two have come together. I only wish that you could have done so under better circumstances."

I thought about it for a moment before shaking my head. "I disagree. I mean, I've had it rough for a while, yeah, but I really think that things played out rather well. If I hadn't run into those two, I wouldn't have met Alice the way I did. I wouldn't have known about vampires, which would have caused a lot more issues for your family."

Carlisle seemed to reflect upon my words, nodding his head silently. "I see."

"But…" My face fell slightly as I remembered Rosalie's words from last night. "I kind of have to agree with what Rosalie said last night. I did sort of bring a lot of problems and-"

He cut me off by lifting a gentle hand. "Bella, please stop. I assure you that what Rosalie said was out of line and untrue. You are no burden on us and it is certainly not your fault concerning the events that have transpired for the last few days. She was out of line and both Esme and I made sure that she was aware of it. So I apologize for her behavior."

"I should apologize for mine, too," I murmured.

"Ah, yes. I admit I was rather curious regarding that," Carlisle mused.

"I-I didn't mean to snap at her, I swear. I just felt so angry and…like I was compelled to or something," I said.

"It's quite alright, Bella. You don't have to apologize. As Alice said, it is rather rare for someone to stand up to Rosalie. And considering the way you did it, Rosalie was quite astonished. I dare so you may be slowly winning over her respect, though because of her mood, I doubt she'll admit to that any time soon." He chuckled at the last part before his face grew thoughtful. "I understand that you've been experiencing some odd changes in your behavior?"

I nodded.

"Would you care to explain?" he inquired.

"Well, the whole snarling for one thing. I did it to Rosalie and I did it to James when they attacked. Not only that, but I got this overwhelming fury when Victoria was talking about touching Alice. My brain was screaming that she was mine over and over again and I sort of acted out on that too."

He nodded, taking my words in with intrigue. I frowned and remembered something else.

"You know, lately I've been noticing a lot of differences. For one thing, I can hear a lot better than I could before. Yesterday, when I was looking for Alice, I could hear running water like a mile away. It was there for a few seconds, then it disappeared, but it helped me figure out where she was. Then there was my first day here. I heard you guys talking about me and what you wanted to do, I even heard the door slamming shut when the others left. It's really weird."

Carlisle's eyes lit up with astonishment at my words. I could imagine the variety of thoughts going on in his head as he appraised me curiously.

"How interesting," he mused, rubbing his chin, clearly lost in thought. "How long have you been experiencing this?"

I thought about it for a moment. "For like a month or so."

"Have you had any other experiences that were strange to you?" he asked.

"Well, I noticed a while back that I was able to run a lot longer than I used to be able to. Before whenever I ran I couldn't get very far without falling. Recently, though, I've been able to run a lot more without falling, though I still do most of the time. And then there was what happened in the forest with James…" I stopped, thinking back on that.

James being flung through the air. It was so sudden and so strange. It was like an invisible force, careened into him and sent him backwards. It was weak, though. I knew it wasn't me. There was no way in hell it could've been. What was it, then?

"Would you care to explain?" Carlisle asked, clearly interested.

I reiterated my thoughts to him without hesitation. I watched as his eyes widened with surprise, then narrowed with confusion before taking on a neutral look.

"Fascinating," he mused. "I've never seen anything like it, that much if for certain. If you'll allow it, I'd like for you to inform me of any other changes in your actions or thoughts. Until then, I assure you there's nothing wrong with you. In fact, there may be something rather special going on inside you. There's no need to worry, though, I assure you."

I frowned, but sighed and nodded. "Alright, if you think that's what's best." He nodded.

"Actually, there is one more thing I'd like to speak with you about. It's of a different matter entirely, I assure you. It's concerning your adoption, you see."

I gasped.

I had completely forgotten about that. Shit! How stupid of me!

Carlisle noticed my expression and chuckled softly. "Please, Bella, there's no need for panic. I'm merely curious as to whether or not you have made a decision yet."

"Oh." I blushed slightly. "Well, um, I don't know yet…"

His face became gentle. "Is there something holding you back from choosing?"

"I…I don't know, really. I don't think so. I mean, I haven't thought too much on it." I paused, reflecting the idea of living here with the Cullens as a member of their family. "Do you really want me here?"

Carlisle seemed surprised by my question, but it quickly faded into a warm smile. "Of course we do, Bella. We already see you as a part of our family and Alice would love it if you stayed here with us."

"Wouldn't it be weird though? Having a human living with vampires?"

Carlisle chuckled. "It might feel odd to you, yes, but it makes no difference to us whether you're human or vampire."

"I guess so…I really don't know, though. It feels like I already do live here, honestly."

"I understand. And I'm in no way trying to rush you into deciding, Bella. You can take as much time as you'd like," he reassured me.

"How would this work, exactly?" I asked curiously.

"Well, first we would fill out an adoption form. You could choose to alter your name in some way or leave it as is. Usually in cases such as this, a birth certificate is required for the person being adopted. In that case, we'll most likely have it forged. It might sound wrong, but I assure you it will work the same regardless. Then we wait a short period of time and when the form returns, you are thus a part of our family."

I soaked his words in.

Did I want this? Did I want to have a family again?

Yes.

I wanted it. I wanted it more than anything. I didn't care how strange or new it was to me, I wanted it. I wanted to belong. I wanted to be loved. I wanted to have a mother and father that loved me and supported me always, to have siblings to spend time with and become close to.

And there was Alice.

Alice loved me. She was destined for me. I felt that love and I returned it, despite how odd it was. I didn't care.

I wanted this.

"Yes." One word, full of meaning, of longing and determination.

Carlisle smiled lovingly at me. "Fantastic. The others will be pleased, Esme and Alice especially. I'll begin taking care of things immediately."

"Actually…"

He paused and waited for me to continue.

I bit my lip. "Before you do, I think I'd like to speak to Charlie. Not because I want to go live with him, but because I want to be able to start a clean slate. I feel that, if you adopt me-"

"When we adopt you," Carlisle interjected gently.

I smiled warmly at him. "_When_ you adopt me, I see it as a new beginning for me. A new life. And I want to take care of everything from my past life. I owe Renee nothing and I sincerely doubt I'll ever see her again. Charlie, though, I know I'll run into at some point. I guess if anything I want to give him a small chance to see if maybe he can redeem himself. It's either that or I sever my relationship with him for good. If that's okay with you, of course."

"Of course it is. In fact, I'm happy you've decided to do that, Bella. I spoke to Charlie a few years back and he truly was remorseful for what happened to you. Truth be told, I believe it would mean a lot to him if he saw you again. I'm not saying you should outright forgive him, but giving him a second chance in some form would be a good choice. However, you deal with it whatever way you see fit. I will support your choice regardless."

"Thank you, Carlisle," I said, standing up.

He stood up as well and walked over to give me a gentle hug. "You're quite welcome, Bella."

I smiled at him before turning to walk out. As I did, I took note of the various portraits and pictures on his wall again. My curiosity got the better of me and I ended up walking around, looking at each one.

One of the largest pictures was of Carlisle and Esme on their wedding day. Esme was wearing a beautiful gown while Carlisle was decked out in a spiffy suit. I saw Edward was in the picture, obviously acting as best man at the time. It was older in appearance, obviously symbolizing the year the two of them had gotten married to each other, but it was nice.

The one next to it was Emmett and Rosalie's wedding. I was surprised by the genuine smile on Rosalie's face, since I was so used to seeing her frown or glare. She has a beautiful smile, I'll give her that. Emmett, of course, had his usual big grin. Carlisle, Esme and Edward were all present in the picture as well. It must've been before Jasper, Alice and Amara.

Then there was one of Jasper and Amara's wedding. I was amused to see Amara wearing a dress, since she seemed to flat out hate them judging by the clothes she wore. Of course, her dress was crimson red and had cutouts on the waist and back. Definitely her style. Jasper looked rather dashing with long hair, to my surprise. Everyone was in the picture, Alice including, wearing a slim black dress and holding flowers in her hands.

Other pictures included the family together and separate. One in particular that caught my eye was of Alice looking undeniably gorgeous in an aqua blue dress. I stared at it for a moment longer than the others before moving on.

I noticed Carlisle was standing next to me, gazing at the pictures fondly.

"Many memories," he said. "I hope to add your picture up there someday."

I smiled at that as I took in each and every painting and picture. One in particular caught my interest. It was a painting, yet it appeared to be much older than most of the others in the room. Not only that, but there was just something odd about it in general.

In the picture were seven people. I recognized Carlisle among them sporting a much different hairstyle and wearing a very fancy suit. The other six people, three men and three women, I did not recognize.

Carlisle noticed my curiosity as he eyed the painting in question. "That was many years ago," he stated. "The six people you see there are a part of an ancient group of vampires. They are considered royalty to many and embody our law in some ways. They're called the Volturi."

A part of me cringed upon hearing that word, for reasons I didn't understand. Carlisle made it sound so ominous, despite the fact that I knew he probably hadn't done so intentionally. Or had he? Either way, I felt a chill run up my spine as I took in the appearance of the six people aside from Carlisle.

I noticed right away that all six of them had blood red eyes. That meant that they fed on humans. Carlisle, however, did not. He had the same compassionate ocher eyes then that he did now, which actually delighted me. They all wore similar black attires, a strange necklace around each and every neck, including Carlisle's.

The women were all beautiful; I could say that without a doubt. They had an ethereal quality to them that struck me as odd. Their skin was chalky white, different in tone to the alabaster skin that the Cullens had. Whereas the Cullens, especially the four women, had smooth, flawless skin, these women had rougher looking skin. Yet they were still beautiful in a way I couldn't describe.

One of them had dark blonde hair, one had long black hair and the last had dark mahogany colored hair. Each of them looked fearsome, the raven haired woman in particular. The blonde haired woman had the gentlest face of the three while the mahogany haired woman seemed to have a mixture of the two. Her face was fierce, but her eyes were gentle.

The men were very different and the same at once. Two of them had black hair, though one looked far older than the other. The younger male's long black hair was slicked back in a way similar to how Carlisle's hair was, while the other one's hair was a bit more unkempt. The last male, by far the most fearsome one, had white hair. There was nothing gentle about the look on his face, his eyes screaming cruelty miles away.

I shuddered when I looked at the younger black haired male. Something about him scared me, caused chills to run up my spine. The other male, however, had a rather placid look on his face, one that didn't distress me as much as the other two. Of the six of them, he had the least threatening look on his face. His eyes seemed to relay something I couldn't put my finger on, while his posture seemed to say that he was bored. How confusing.

"Perhaps in the future I will tell you more about them. But I do believe Alice is waiting for you," he chuckled. "A word of warning, though. Try not to deny her too much. When she shops, she gets a little…into it. It's very difficult to rein her in." He laughed a bit as he finished that last part. I rolled my eyes playfully at him.

"So I've been told," I said, shaking my head. "Thank you for your time, again."

He nodded at me before returning to his desk. I opened and shut his door and made my way downstairs, eager to tell Alice the good news.

When I got downstairs I noticed Alice and Amara were deadlocked in an arm wrestling contest, the boys cheering the two of them on. I noticed Rosalie was there as well, but she didn't even acknowledge me, for which I was eternally grateful.

"Go shortie! Get her!" Emmett boomed.

Neither Alice nor Amara seemed to be winning their bout, their right arms battling furiously for dominance over one another. I noticed a slip of paper with their names written on it and several lines representing the victor of each previous bout.

It looked like Amara was winning.

I seated myself on the couch, noticing the knowing look that Edward was giving me.

"Shall I be the first to congratulate you or would you rather I wait?" he asked curiously. I noticed Alice and Amara turn their heads slightly incredulously. Emmett and Jasper did as well.

I shrugged. "It's not official yet, so there's no need."

He nodded. "As you wish."

"What's going on, now?" Emmett asked.

Edward smirked while I fidgeted with my fingers.

"Shall I inform them?" he asked. I shrugged.

"Tell us what?" Alice piped from where she was seated, still trying to force her sister's arm down.

"Bella's decided to join the family," Edward stated.

Rosalie scowled, Jasper and Emmett smiled and Alice looked like she was about to cry tears of joy. Amara, of course, used the distraction to her advantage and slammed her sister's arm down, smirking at me after the fact.

Alice glared at Amara for a moment before ricocheting herself at me, wrapping me into a tight, loving hug.

"That's terrific!" she squealed excitedly. She pulled back a little and kissed me full on the lips. I was startled at first, but I happily kissed back, enjoying that amazing sensation once again. We kissed for a minute or so until I remembered that we weren't alone.

We broke the kiss at the same time and glanced around at the others.

Rosalie looked disgusted, Edward looked amused, Emmett was wearing a large grin, Amara licked her lips and Jasper merely snickered.

"That is _hot_!" Emmett crooned, earning a smack on the back of the head from Rosalie. He grimaced for a few seconds, but the grin returned, naturally.

Alice rolled her eyes while I blushed embarrassedly.

Within seconds I was wrapped into another hug, this one from Esme who was brimming with love and joy. I hadn't even seen her come into the room, but I relaxed quickly into the hug and hugged her back.

"I'm so glad you decided to become a part of the family, Bella," she stated happily. I couldn't help smiling back, feeling the love radiating off of her.

"Thanks, Esme," I replied.

"It's wonderful to have another member of the family," Esme said softly, looking like she was about to cry.

I heard Rosalie snort to my side and noticed Alice was glaring in her direction.

"Do you have a problem, Rosalie?" Alice asked.

Rosalie ignored her sister and continued staring off into space. I saw the worried look on Emmett, Jasper and Edward's faces, the reproving look on Esme's and the annoyed look on Amara's. Alice looked thoroughly irritated herself.

I placed my hands on Alice's shoulders. She glanced at me, her eyes dark with anger. I gave her a pleading look, hoping she would get the point and calm down. Alice frowned for a moment before she sighed and the anger faded away. I smiled and pulled her into my arms, rubbing her back as I hugged her tightly. Well, as tightly as I could, which I doubt she even felt.

"Hey Alice, can I talk to you for a moment?" I asked.

She sheepishly nodded. We both stood up and walked outside, though I noticed Alice shooting another glare at Rosalie, who didn't even look up at her. We walked at a human pace for about two minutes until we reached the trees, at which point I turned to face her.

Alice was looking down at her feet, an incredibly adorable expression on her face.

"I'm sorry, I-"

I cut her off by pulling her lips to mine. She seemed surprised, but happily kissed back. After a good minute we broke apart again, grinning at each other.

"So you just brought me out here to kiss me?" she asked, quirking an eyebrow.

I giggled. "Yes and no. I also wanted to talk to you about the whole adoption thing."

"You're not changing your mind because of Rosalie, are you?" she asked, clearly worried.

"No, no, no! Not at all, Alice. I just wanted to make sure that, you know, this is what you want and all…"

She stared at me, dumbstruck. "Bella, are you insane? Why wouldn't I want you? Have we not had this discussion before?" she asked, taking a step towards me.

"I just wanted to-"

"Isabella, I don't give a damn what that voice in the back of your head tells you. I love you. Okay? I. Love. You. And I want you to be a part of my life, and yes that means being a part of my family. Do you understand that? You've been through a lot in your life, Bella. You deserve some happiness and I want to be the one to give you that happiness. I promise you I will love you and care for you and my family will do that same. You're a part of me now, Bella. Do you understand?" she asked. She was right in front of me, pressing our foreheads together and burning into me with her honey colored eyes.

I pursed my lips momentarily before nodding. "Yes."

She smiled and kissed me softly. "Good. Because I'm going to do my damndest to make sure you're treated the right way. I don't care if it's just us holding hands, or me buying you gifts or just staring into your eyes, I want to show you how much you mean to me. I want our love to grow, our friendship to become stronger. I'll do whatever it takes. And you Rosalie or anyone else has a problem with it, they can go to hell."

She pulled me into another loving hug, which I happily accepted. We stayed that way for a few minutes, holding one another and enjoying each other's presence. I breathed in her lovely scent as she did mine, though I noticed she was more hesitant and slower then I was.

"Now, was there anything else you wanted to talk about?"

"Yeah, there is. I, um, I was wondering if you would take me to see Charlie."

She pulled away, surprised by my words. "You want to see _him_? Why?"

I sighed. "I want to see if what Carlisle said was right. I want to see if he's remorseful for the way he treated me. That doesn't mean I'm going to forgive him, of course. It's too little too late for forgiveness. But I am willing to, maybe, start over with him. If he's open to accepting the fact that I am no longer his child, that is. If he's not, then I'll sever my ties to him for good."

Alice's forehead creased as she frowned, obviously not liking my idea. I could see the disdain in her eyes. She really must hate Charlie.

As if reading my mind, she nodded her head. "Yes, I do. Charlie doesn't deserve you, Bella. He doesn't deserve to see you, let alone speak to you. If you decide to go, then I'm going with you too. And no, it's not open for discussion."

"If that's what you want."

"Yes, it is," she replied.

"Can you just promise me you won't go vampire ballistic on him?" I asked.

She smirked at me. "Now why would I do that?"

I rolled my eyes. "You know why, Alice. It's not that I care too much, but I don't want anyone getting hurt and I sure as hell don't want anything affecting your conscience."

She giggled and kissed me on the cheek. I had forgotten how beautiful her wind-chime laughter had sounded until now.

"Don't worry, silly. I'll behave, I promise. But we're going shopping afterwards, deal?"

"Deal," I said. We both started back towards the house. "So I'm guessing Amara isn't coming with us?"

"Oh, she is. We're going to come back and grab her and Rosalie."

I flinched. "R-R-Rosalie?"

"Don't worry, Bella. She'll be on her best behavior." Alice's face darkened for a moment. "She better damn well be, that's for sure."

I gulped and started wondering if my days were numbered as we neared the door.

"You go on and stay here, I'll go grab the car."

"Wait, what?"

She turned towards me, cocking her head to the side. "You wanted to do this now, right?"

"Oh. _Oh_! Yes, yes, of course."

"Well, then wait right here and I'll be back." She danced off into the house without another word.

I sighed to myself and started walking slowly to the garage.

This was it.

After all these years, I was going to speak to Charlie.

My father.

The man who didn't bother to stop my uncaring mother from taking me away. The coward.

I still hated him. I still regretted ever being born as his child.

However, there was one saving grace.

I had met Alice in part due to him. Had he not been a coward, I would've never ended up being abandoned by Renee. That meant that I would've never been thrown into a foster family, which I wouldn't have run away from and ended up being chased by Victoria and James.

So, in some way, I was grateful for how things turned out.

I had Alice. I had the Cullens. I had a real family, now. A family of vampires, yes, but a family no less. And that was what mattered most to me right now.

The garage doors opened abruptly and Alice slowly moved her car out, allowing me to get inside. In a flash she was opening my door for me, which I smiled at.

"Well, aren't you the fine gentleman," I teased.

She crinkled her nose and stuck her tongue out at me. "That's gentlewoman to you, punk,"

I snickered as I sat down and buckled up. Alice as in the driver's seat seconds later, tapping the wheel until I was done.

"Are you ready?" she asked. Her voice was gentle and I could tell that she was giving me a chance to back out if I wanted to.

I thought about it for moment, and then nodded.

"I want to get this out of the way. I want to start my new life."

She smiled at that and leaned over to kiss me, adding a bit of extra oomph that made me feel tingly all over. I smiled giddily afterwards and leaned into my seat as she revved the engine and sped off.

I knew this was what I wanted. Deep down, I knew.

There was a part of me, though, that hoped I was making the right decision.

I suddenly remembered that they had probably discussed what they intended to do regarding James and Victoria. A part of me wanted badly to know, but I held my tongue.

One hurdle at a time.

**A/N: Things are moving right along rather nicely, I'd say.**

**This was more of a filler chapter, if anything. Sometimes filler chapters are nice, though. I feel they keep the pace even and they help expand on things from time to time.**

**I intend to build on Alice and Bella's relationship, don't worry. It'll take some time, though. Patience.**

**No story is complete without it's fans. And I have quite a handful of you, it seems. So to all of you, thank you for favoriting this story, reviewing it and heck, adding me to your favorite authors list (that flatters me greatly). Truly, I appreciate you all. **


	17. Father

**Disclaimer: I take no credit for any of Stephanie Meyer's Twilight. I'm merely having some fun with the characters and trying to make the story, well, better. Any OC is mine, though.**

**Father**

The drive to Charlie's house—my old house—was a silent one. Alice asked me several times if I was okay and if I was still up to this, which I answered to the affirmative. I was, but at the same time, I wasn't.

I was scared.

I wasn't scared of Charlie, per say. I was just scared of how I was going to go about doing this. Somehow I didn't think going up to him and saying something like "Hi Charlie, it's me, Bella, the daughter that you let get taken away by your ex-wife. Remember me?" to him didn't sound like a good idea.

Then again, I wasn't sure if this in itself was a good idea.

I was having some doubts.

I sighed quietly and leaned back into the seat, letting the wind blow against my face. Alice glanced at me concernedly, but I gave her a reassuring smile. I didn't want her worrying about me, after all.

If anything, there was one moment when Charlie had shown me any kind of love. One.

I was four years old at the time, I remember. He actually complimented me when I drew him a picture, smiling and hanging it on the fridge. It ended up getting thrown away a few months later, but it was still the kindest thing he'd ever done for me.

The more I thought about it, the more I started questioning how this was going to work. What would I say? How would he react? What will end up happening?

"Bella."

Alice's harmonic voice interrupted my thoughts. I glanced over to see her ocher eyes staring back at me, smoldering with gentleness. "Please stop worrying about what's going to happen. I may not have seen the outcome, but I can say that it will be fine. I'll be there too, don't forget that. I promise I won't let anything bad happen."

I knew she was sincere. I could see it in her eyes and hear it in her voice.

It comforted me that she was going to be there. I only hoped she could control herself.

As if reading my mind, she let out a soft sigh. "I'll be on my best behavior, yes. But that doesn't mean I won't have a few words for him, no matter how sincere he is."

I nodded. "That's fine. I will too. There is one thing, though."

She raised an eyebrow incredulously. "What is it?"

"I, um…" I blushed slightly and looked down at my hands. "I want to introduce you as my girlfriend. If it's okay with you and all…"

I felt her lips lightly press against my cheek, letting loose the butterflies in my stomach.

"I'd love that." She said, smiling wide at me.

"Okay," I replied, grinning like a fool. It was hard not to around Alice. Her cheerfulness was contagious, for crying out loud. Not that I minded or anything.

"We're here," she stated, abruptly causing my grin to fall.

I shifted uncomfortably and glanced out the window to look at the house. My old house.

Huh.

It hadn't changed a bit. It was decent sized for a normal house—I say normal considering how humongous the Cullen's house is—and white in color with a dark brown roof. The house itself was relatively old; at least it looked old on the outside. The inside was a slightly different story, though I wasn't aware if it had changed since I had left.

In the driveway was a police cruiser, most likely his. It was strange knowing that he was the Chief of Police now. The Charlie _I_ knew had been a deadbeat. What the hell happened?

I felt my heart pounding against my chest when she stopped.

"Are you ready?" Alice asked.

I gulped. "No. Let's get this over with."

In a flash she was opening my door for me. "Thanks," I murmured. She smiled and nodded, offering me her hand to take. I gratefully took it as she closed my door. And then we slowly started walking up the driveway, heading towards the door.

My heart was pounding madly in my chest. I could feel sweat starting to drip from my forehead too.

I felt Alice tense up slightly and looked to see that her eyes were darker. She clenched her jaw and pursed her lips, obviously trying not to inhale my scent. Shit.

"Sorry…" I mumbled, trying hard to calm myself down. It wasn't working well.

I bit my lip and released her hand, hoping that would make it easier for her. She froze where she was, not moving or breathing, giving me the time I needed to calm myself. I took in several deep breaths and rubbed my temples. After a minute or so, my heartbeat finally wound down. I wiped the sweat from my brow with my arm and snuck a glance at Alice.

Her eyes were closed as she pinched the bridge of her nose, obviously trying to do the same. When she reopened her eyes, they were a dark butterscotch color, but I saw no thirst or hunger in them, merely mild pain.

"I'm sorry," I said, feeling ashamed.

Alice moved towards me and stroked my cheek with her hand.

"It's not your fault, Bella. I'm still not used to your smell yet. But God, you have no idea how good you smell…" She stopped for a moment and bit her lip. "Sorry. I'm in control, though, I swear. If I start to feel overwhelmed, I'll leave to get some air. I won't be gone long, if that's the case."

"Okay," I replied.

We were at the door now. I took another deep breath, looking at Alice for support. Her eyes were brimming with love and confidence, which seemed to help alleviate some of my fears. I swallowed my fear and extended my left hand to knock on the door.

Once. Twice. Three times.

I heard movement from inside, a groan and a chair creaking followed by footsteps.

This was it. I was going to be seeing Charlie again.

I braced myself and squeezed Alice's hand, which had wrapped around mine once more.

Then the door opened.

I was a little surprised, honestly, when I saw Charlie. He looked completely different. It was like he was a different person altogether. Was this Charlie, even?

"Hello there," he greeted. His voice was gruff, but by no means unfriendly. "There something I can do for you ladies?"

I crinkled my brows as I studied the man. It was Charlie alright, but older looking.

He had black hair that was both short and matted, the sheen that it had years ago long gone. I even noticed a few gray hairs, though I doubted he was aware of them. Then there were his large eyebrows, which had always sort of looked like small caterpillars to me, and the small mustache that he had grown out. His face was slightly wrinkled; probably from the stress and drinking he had done over the years. But then there were his eyes. His eyes were dark and weathered, showing that this man had indeed been through a lot over the years.

Too bad none of that mattered.

"Hello Chief Swan. I believe you know my father," Alice chirped. She may have looked happy, but something about her voice made her sound deceptively cheery.

He narrowed his eyes and looked her over. Part of me wanted to beat the living shit out of him right then and there. NO ONE fucking looks at MY Alice like that. I felt Alice squeeze my hand softly. I sighed and pushed the thoughts aside. Maybe later.

"Ah! You're on of Dr. Cullen's kids. Alice, right?"

"Yes sir, that's me!" I watched her eyes as she spoke. While her tone was cheery, I could hear the underlying anger in it. I could see it in her eyes, too, though she shielded it well. Charlie, on the other hand, seemed utterly oblivious.

He smiled a bit. "Well, it's nice to see you Alice. Been a while. How's your dad?"

"Oh, he's okay. Same as usual. Always busy with work," she replied.

"And who might this be?" he asked, glancing at me.

"This is my girlfriend," she answered, smiling warmly and proudly at me. I smiled back, taking in the love flowing from her eyes.

His brows furrowed as he struggled with the word. He may not have been smart enough to catch the deception in Alice's voice, but he was able to catch the different meaning to the word "girlfriend"? How typical.

"Girlfriend?" he repeated the word like a question that he didn't get. What, was it that much of a puzzle?

Alice frowned at his questioning tone and I narrowed my eyes in irritation.

"Yes, _girlfriend_. Is it so hard to believe that two people of the same sex can like each other?" I asked, raising an eyebrow. I felt Alice tense up next to me, much to my confusion. I looked at her to see her staring at her feet awkwardly. The fuck?

Charlie was startled by my tone at first, but after a moment he frowned before shaking his head.

"No, no. I've seen it before. No big deal to me. Is there something I can help you with?" he questioned, turning his eyes back towards Alice. I could tell that he still didn't get it. No, he did, but he refused to accept it. Bastard.

Alice looked up and nodded. "Yes, actually. I was wondering if we may speak to you inside?" she asked, coating her voice with that sugary sweetness that I had witnessed before. Charlie's eyes bulged a little, clearly unaccustomed to Alice's persuasive abilities. I admit, I was a little wowed myself. I hadn't heard her do that in a while.

"Um, sure. Come on in," he said, still in a daze. Alice gave my hand a soft squeeze and pulled me along inside the house.

I let go of her hand then and let out a quiet gasp as I surveyed the inside. It looked the same.

All of it. The walls were the same color, the couch was the same, he even had the same fucking television he had all those years ago. It was all the same. And yet, it was slightly different. Foreign, I guess, since I hadn't been in here for so long.

I looked around, remembering things.

My eyes first feel on the rusty brown colored couch, the slightly dusty television in front of it. There's a bulky chair to the right of the couch, the one that Charlie usually sits in whenever there's another person on the couch. He never did like to share too much space.

_Charlie sitting in his damn chair, sipping a can of beer. He's watching football, like he always does when Renee's gone. That was his daily life aside from working, which he rarely seemed to do. I forget what his job was. I don't think he ever told me._

_I was sitting on the couch, playing with my toys. I always had fun doing that when I was a kid, as well as doodling. But sometimes I got bored. And this was one of those times._

"_Daddy?" I asked, looking over at him. He didn't respond, he merely turned up the volume and took and guzzled down more of his beer._

_I pouted and went on with what I was doing. Five minutes later. _

"_Daddy?" I asked again. It was a commercial and his can was practically empty. He turned his head slightly, barely acknowledging me. "Will you play with me?"_

_He frowned a little bit and turned his eyes back towards the television. I could tell he was waiting for his fucking game to come back on. He didn't even give me an answer._

_I felt hurt. "Why won't you play with me?" I asked softly._

_Charlie closed his eyes and sighed. He turned towards me, giving me his full attention for once. I was excited, naturally, because I thought he was finally going to spend some time with me._

"_Daddy's busy right now, Bells," he said. My excitement died right there and I felt crushed._

_He frowned again, a look of something in his eyes that I didn't understand, then went back to watching the game._

I took several steps forward and glanced into the kitchen. I remembered well that Charlie couldn't cook to save his life. Renee couldn't either. They were both terrible, yet they both insisted they were good. But they both knew they weren't, so they always packed the refrigerator with TV dinners and quick start foods.

_I had just finished what I thought was a good picture. I smiled and walked over to Charlie, presenting it to him proudly._

"_Look what I drew!" I exclaimed cheerily. Charlie looked down from the newspaper he had been reading, glanced at it, then pulled his paper back up._

"_That's nice dear. Go put it in the fridge, now," he told me._

_I did just that. I stuck it on the fridge as best as I could and admired my work. Then I went back to drawing more. The next day, the picture was gone. Renee had thrown it away, saying it was "in the way" and that I could "draw better"._

I turned my head to the left, noting the empty walls. There were the stairs, leading up to the shower and where my room used to be. My old room. I wondered if it was still intact. A part of me wanted to go up and see for myself, but I didn't.

_I remember the nights I would wake up from nightmares I didn't understand, soaked with tears. I cried and cried, begging for one of them to come to me. Neither of them either did. I was always alone, always afraid. I couldn't go back to sleep afterwards. It often took a few hours for me to do so. I hated sleeping in that room._

_I hated the room, too._

_One day I was locked inside. I banged on the door, screaming and crying. No answer. It took most of the day for one of them to come and get me. And it wasn't even them. It was someone else, someone I didn't know. A friend of theirs, I guess._

By now, I was quivering with fury. I remembered everything from this house. Every time I fell and hurt myself, only to be ignored. Every harsh word my mother said to me, every time my father ignored me. I remembered everything.

I loathed it. I loathed Charlie. I loathed Renee.

I was close to ripping his head off. That's what I wanted to do. I wanted revenge for all the suffering he had caused me. He should die for it! He NEEDS to die!

I spun around and glared daggers at him. He was totally taken aback by my glare, confused and worried. He didn't know where my fury was coming from. How could he? He never cared about me. Never!

Son of a bitch!

I was ten seconds away from attacking him, only to feel a cold hand grip my shoulder.

Alice was staring into my eyes, her ocher orbs smoldering with worry. I grimaced slightly, feeling her concern wrap around me, quelling my anger. I felt my heart pounding in my chest and blinked three times.

I quietly gasped, realizing where my head had been. What I had been thinking. What I was about to do.

What the fuck?

What's happening to me?

I stared silently at the floor, barely hearing the throat clearing to my right.

"So how's school going?" Charlie asked, glancing warily at me before giving his full attention to Alice. She forcefully tore her gaze away from me and plastered on a fake smile. I could tell by her eyes that she seemed to understand my rage.

"Fine," she replied.

He nodded and looked back at me. "So what's your name, missy? I don't think I've seen you around here before. Are you new in town?"

I twitched a little before answering. "No. I'm not new. I haven't been here for a while," I responded, barely keeping my voice even.

He was surprised by that. "Oh? I don't seem to recall seeing you before-"

"How could you?" I asked, purposefully interrupting him.

"Well, I'm the Chief of Police. I'm surprised Alice didn't mention that to you."

"She did. I just didn't believe it," I retorted.

Charlie frowned, narrowing his eyes slightly. "Are you sure we haven't met before?"

"I don't know, _Charlie_, do you remember me?"

His frown deepened. "I don't recall introducing myself to-"

"Because I_ know_ who you are!" I snapped. "I can't believe you don't recognize me!"

"How would I-"

"Then again, what else can I expect from a drunk like you. You never paid attention to me all those years ago, so of course you wouldn't recognize your own child."

His eyes widened in shock. He looked me over and blinked. Then again. Then it finally dawned on him. I could practically hear the gears in his head moving, the light-bulb finally going off inside. He got it.

"Bella?" The word came out awkwardly, as if it was new to him entirely. I didn't respond. He took a step forward, mouth agape. "Bella?" he repeated. He looked like he was repeating it constantly inside his own head.

I felt like laughing in his face.

"My God. Bella, is that you?" he asked, blinking again.

I scoffed. "Yeah, it is."

His eyes widened again. There was something in them. Surprise, joy, pain, sorrow. I saw all of that flash about his weathered eyes as he appraised me.

"You…you came back? To see me?"

"Don't get too intimate, Charlie. I only bothered to speak to you because Carlisle told me that you regretted everything that happened all those years ago."

His face fell, pain and sorrow etching into his face. "I do, Bella, I really, truly do. What I did back then…it was unacceptable. I shouldn't have neglected you the way I did, Bells-"

"Don't you _dare _call me Bells again, do you hear me? You don't have the right to call me that!" I snarled.

He stopped immediately, and bowed his head shamefully. "I understand. You have every right to be upset with your mother and I."

"You're damn right I do, Charlie. But as far as I'm concerned, that bitch isn't my other anymore."

He was surprised by that. "What happened? Did you two get into a fight?"

I snorted. "No, she _abandoned_ me. She remarried and flat out fucking left me in foster care. She never wanted me, Charlie. You knew that. And yet you let her take me anyways, despite the fact that all she ever did was _abuse_ me! What kind of _father _does that?" I waved my arms in the air as I spoke, my anger boiling over.

"I'm sorry, Bella. I-"

"No! No excuses! You fucked up and you know it! You don't deserve to even speak to me!" I growled, balling my fists up.

Charlie looked like I had stabbed him in the heart. The pain on his face would've been enough to make someone cry. Not me, though. I wasn't shedding a tear for this man. Not now, not ever. He ran a hand through his hair, not bothering to argue with me. Apparently he had given in to my rage. Good! That's what he deserved!

Alice, who had yet to speak, calmly grasped my shoulder and pulled my closer to her. I refused to meet her eyes at first, but she cupped my cheeks and forced me to. She wasn't mad at me. I could tell she felt a similar way. Her eyes were gentle as she looked into mine, silently asking me to stop for reasons I didn't know. I felt like refusing. But I would hurt her feelings if I did.

I sighed and reluctantly nodded.

Alice turned to face Charlie herself. "Charlie, you damn well better listen up." His eyes snapped up to meet hers. "Bella has every right to be angry at you. She told me what happened and I agree with her. Her life has been hell for the past few years, Charlie. Her mother always ridiculed her and treated her poorly, and then she left her in the care of total strangers. That's not the kind of thing a real mother would do, nor is it the kind of thing a real father would do by allowing it. I agree with Bella on that too."

"Bella came here because she was running away from that life. She was a sad, broken person. She even tried to commit suicide." He gasped at that, utterly stunned. "That's when I found her, out in the woods about to jump off a cliff. I stopped her and convinced her to come back with me. She met my family and we took care of her. That's when we started developing a bond and when my family started growing to love her. You see, there's another reason why we're here Charlie. My family is going to adopt Bella, you see."

Charlie clenched his jaw tightly, scowling for a moment, before relaxing. He looked at me and…smiled?

"That's good news, at least. Dr. Cullen's a good man. He and his wife will make good parents for you."

I was speechless. "That's it?_ That's_ all you have to say to me?" I growled, feeling angry again.

I stepped towards him and struck him across the face with my left hand. It wasn't a slap, but it wasn't a punch either. Something in between, I guess. But it had enough force to convey my anger without earning myself a ticket. Not that I even cared at the moment.

His eyes widened, not with anger, though. He touched his cheek for a moment before dropping his hand, surrendering. He was begging me for another hit and I was close to doing it, too.

I heard something to my side and saw Alice, looking at me, again with gentle eyes. I ground my teeth together in irritation, practically asking her why I shouldn't just beat the shit out of this man in front of me.

"Because you would be hurting yourself," she said, so softly I barely heard her. I sighed and pulled my clenched fists to my side, glaring back at Charlie. Just because I wasn't going to hit him physically didn't mean I wasn't going to do it verbally.

"After all the shit I've gone through in my life, after all that, that's the best thing you can say to me? No explanations? No sincere apologies? Fucking seriously? What the hell is wrong with you, Charlie? Carlisle said you'd changed. I can't believe he was actually wrong about it, though I can't say I didn't have my doubts."

Charlie hung his head slightly, the pain resurfacing. He sighed quietly and rubbed the back of his head, lost in thought. He didn't know how to react. He obviously couldn't, since this was not something he was expecting.

Too fucking bad, asshole. I'm here and I'm not leaving yet. Deal with it.

He paced around for a moment, trying to decide on what to do or say. He looked utterly devastated as he did, and for a brief second I felt a tug on my heat. But it was brief and I pushed it aside instantly. I was not about to feel remorseful for hitting him. Not in the least bit.

He didn't deserve it, conscience be damned!

After deliberating for a minute and a half, Charlie stopped and took a deep breath. He turned to face me, smiling sadly at me.

"You're right, Bella. And you're right too, Alice. I was a horrible father and a terrible person back then. I'm sorry. I can't take back the things I did or didn't do and I know I can't make amends with you with just a few paltry words. I understand and deserve your anger at me, I really, truly do. And I'm sorry. I know it doesn't mean much, but I am sorry. I'm not sure if I can ever make it up to you, Bella or if you'll even allow me to. But if you're willing to give me some kind of chance, I'll do everything in my power to support you."

He looked me in the eyes as he spoke, the sincerity present. I bit my lip as he continued on.

"I apologize for not saying much, it just hadn't fully hit me that my own daughter, who I haven't seen in ages, was standing right in front of me. I remember the day your mother took you with her, Bella. I remember sitting there in the chair, remembering your face, the hurt and confusion in your eyes. I remember the pain that welled within me, the nightmares I had of you dying in a horrible accident and that it was my fault entirely. That woke me up to real life, so to speak. Night after night, I had nightmares. I hated myself. I hated what I was."

Charlie choked a little as he finished the last part. He sounded and looked remorseful, like a man who was about to start crying. But no tears fell. No, they never would. He was too stubborn and felt that tears were weak. One of his stupid morals. Still, he was trying.

"So I took to drinking more often. I'm sure you both heard how that turned out. Carlisle saved my life and told me that someday, I might see you again, Bella. I didn't believe him at first, but the sincerity in his eyes told me he was right. That helped change who I was. I applied to become a police officer and eventually I made my way up to becoming chief. I changed myself. I became a better man, a better person, vowing that I would try and do anything I could to make amends for my past actions."

He looked at me softly, pleadingly almost.

"I know you don't believe me, Bella. I deserve that. I deserve every harsh word you've given me and more. I'm sorry. I want you to be happy, though. If being adopted by the Cullens makes you happy, then who am I to stop you?"

I silently listened to his words, taking them in with a grain of salt.

I was still angry at him. I still hated him. There wasn't some part deep down inside that loved him as a father, since he had never been a father to me.

He was sincere, though. I could see that in his eyes. But I wasn't about to give in or accept his apologies. Hell no.

"I won't accept your apologies yet," I stated.

He nodded. "I understand that."

"You know, no matter how sad or sincere you may be, Charlie, I'm still pissed at you. I feel like hitting you, honestly. But that wouldn't do any good. It wouldn't change anything. I really don't know where to go from here, Charlie. I came here expecting to see Carlisle was wrong and that I would end up severing my relations to you for good. I guess he was right, but I'm still not sure."

Charlie thought about something for a moment, frowning as he did.

"I don't expect forgiveness any time soon or forever for that matter. If, though, you're willing to give me a second chance, Bella, maybe we could work on building some type of relationship…"

Alice spoke again. "Why should she? Why should she trust you? Why should she give you the time of day? After everything she's been through, Charlie, Bella doesn't need any more pain in her life. My family and I have been slowly trying to help her rebuild what was never there to begin with. And here you are, trying to make promises that you may not be able to keep. Can we trust you? Will you remain loyal to being a good person to Bella?"

I was a little surprised that Alice would stand up for me that way. I kicked myself for thinking that way, though. Of course she would stand up for me. Shit, how stupid am I?

Charlie's face fell again, knowing full well Alice was right.

"You're right. I shouldn't be making any promises I can't keep." His face became more confident, then, his eyes full of determination. "But I can and will promise you this. If you give me a second chance, Bella, then I will do my best to be there for you. I'll be there for you as the father I should've been all those years ago, even if I won't be your father any more. I'll do everything I can to make it up to you, Bella. All I'm asking for is a second chance."

I looked at Alice, who was looking at me uncertainly. I frowned and mulled it over.

"I don't know, Charlie. This…this is different. I don't know, yet. I'll think about it."

There was an awkward silence as Charlie acknowledged my words. His face betrayed his pain and hurt, but he swallowed it all and nodded.

"That's all I can ask for."

I gave him a half-nod before turning around and walking towards the door. Alice followed behind me. We didn't say a word to Charlie as we left, but he called after us just once.

"Have a nice day, girls. And thank you."

No sooner had the door shut behind us did Alice suddenly freeze in place. I looked at her curiously, wondering what the problem was.

"Alice?" I moved towards her and placed my hand on her shoulder. "Are you okay?"

She didn't respond. Her honeycomb eyes were staring straight ahead of us, the strangest expression on her face. I quirked and eyebrow and followed her gaze. Then I saw what she was staring at. Or rather, who she was staring at.

Parked in the driveway, slightly to the left of her Porsche, was an old, rusty red pickup truck. In it was two people, neither of whom I recognized. Both of them were males, one elderly looking with long hair, the other much, much younger. And both of them were staring back at her.

The younger male slowly stepped out of the car, a curious look in his eyes as he glanced at Alice. He wound around to the other side and opened the door for the older man. I was confused at first, but then I saw that the older man was in a wheelchair. His face was wrinkled slightly and his eyes were much darker as they stared at Alice. It was almost a glare. Almost.

The older man's eyes suddenly flickered to me, giving me an odd look. The younger one did too, a similar odd look, though more of it was curiosity then anything. It made me feel incredibly uncomfortable, that was for damn sure.

I lightly touched Alice's shoulder again.

"Alice," I whispered, fully aware that she could hear. She snapped out of her odd trance and glanced at me. I nodded my head towards her car.

She wrapped her left arm around my waist and led me down the driveway, towards the two strange, tan skinned men. I noticed the older man's eyes were wide as he stared at her arm around me, which irked me beyond all belief.

What the fuck? What's that dude's problem?

I was hoping we would be able to walk past them without any sort of communication. Again, or rather, as usual, I ended up being wrong.

"Hi there," greeted the younger male. He looked a few years younger than I was. His face was youthful, even more boyish then Edward's. I couldn't help but think there was something familiar about him.

Alice didn't answer. She didn't look at him either. Her eyes were solely focused on her car.

"Hi," I replied, keeping my voice nonchalant.

"Are you just now leaving?" the older man asked.

"Yes," replied Alice before I could. Out of my peripheral I noticed he was still watching her, even as we got into the car. She revved the engine and without a word drove off, turning around to head back towards the Cullen's house.

"What the fuck was that about?" I asked, slightly irritated.

Alice turned towards me, an expressionless look on her face. That scared me.

"Um, you okay?" My voice softened as concern was now my prominent emotion.

She blinked and bit her lip. "I'm fine." Her voice sounded tense.

"Alice…" I reached out towards her. She flinched at first, totally uncharacteristic of Alice, but gradually relaxed at my touch. "What's wrong? Did you see something? Did I say something to upset you? Was it those two guys?"

I saw the way she tensed when I mentioned them. I knew that was my answer.

"Did they do something to you? Did they hurt you? Alice, talk to-"

She cut me off by pressing her lips to mine, gently and lovingly. I was startled by the sudden kiss, but I accepted it. After a few slow, rhythmical kisses she pulled apart.

"Sorry about that. I didn't mean to worry you. Yes, I do know them, but it's…it's one of those things I can't talk with you about." I frowned. She quickly added on. "It's not that I don't trust you, Bella, it's just a rule that my family has. I'm sorry."

"I'm family now, remember?" I pointed out. She bit her lip and hung her head shamefaced.

"I'm so sorry. I didn't mean it that way, I swear," she said, looking up at me with her innocent, remorseful eyes. I softened my frown up. "I promise I'll explain to you later, okay?"

"Fine," I replied with a sigh. "So how do you think that went?"

"Better then I'd expected, I suppose. I was surprised that you struck him, though. Not that I'm complaining."

"You calmed down pretty quickly," I noted. "Before I could hear the anger in your voice, but as he went on, you didn't seem as upset."

She shook her head. "I still was, believe me, Bella. I didn't want to do anything drastic, though, so I focused on keeping calm. It was a little hard to do with you being so angry, but I understand why you felt that way."

"Sorry about all that," I murmured sheepishly. "I, uh, wasn't feeling like myself."

She raised an eyebrow. "Like when you snarled at Rosalie?" she asked.

I bit my lip and nodded.

She frowned, her forehead creasing slightly as she thought of something. As always, she looked downright adorable. I had to resist any urges to say or do anything, since now was not the time given the serious expression on her face.

"I'm not sure what to think of it, but it is strange. What did Carlisle say?"

I fidgeted with my fingers as I answered. "Um, he said to come back and speak with him if it happens more often. He doesn't know either, but he'll do what he can."

Alice's frown deepened. I could see the worry in her eyes. "I don't like it. I don't like not knowing what the problem is and not being able to help you. But Carlisle knows best. If you ever need my help, though, Bella, you know you just have to ask." She looked into my eyes at the last part, making sure I was aware of how serious she was.

I nodded. "Thanks Alice."

She smiled a little, but it didn't reach her eyes. Now I was the one frowning, trying to figure out what was wrong with the usually cheerful girl.

"Is there something still bothering you?"

Alice sighed. "Well, earlier you said something that just kind of stuck with me. You said two people who "like each other"." She looked at me with soft eyes, a small bit of confusion and hurt in them.

I gasped, damning myself for my poor word choice. "Oh Alice, I'm sorry. I didn't mean it that way, I swear-" Again she stopped me, this time with a finger to my lips.

"Bella, relax. I understand, I do. You aren't used to being in a relationship yet and I can't force you to feel the same way that I do. It's a work in progress, I get that. That's why you wanted to take it slow. I realize the kissing might be a bit too much, but I know that you and I both enjoy it too much to stop. In all seriousness though, please don't worry. I'm not upset with you or hurt, I'm just a little frazzled that you don't feel the same way for me yet."

I started to talk, but she raised both hands up. "Bella, let me finish. Like I said, I'm not mad. I do understand that this is new to you, so I'm going to swallow my more…shall we say, vampiric feelings, and deal with this at a slow, even pace. I don't want to rush things or make you feel uncomfortable about it, okay? I love you, Bella. I hope you know that. If anything, that's the one honest truth about this that I can say to you."

She leaned in and softly kissed me on the cheek to prove her point before leaning back and refocusing her eyes on the road.

"O-okay," I answered.

A playful smile suddenly came across her features as we neared the Cullen's mansion. I was delighted to see her smile again and instantly felt better.

"Now then, I believe we have some business to attend to," she said, grinning wider with each word. I could see the fire in her eyes.

I cocked my head to the side, puzzled, but then remembered.

"Shopping?" I asked.

She grinned wildly at me. "Shopping!"

**A/N: I'm not sure, I feel this came out well. I'm really kind of iffy on it, though. My own reasons. Meh. It ain't too bad.**

**I'll be sure to include more Charlie in the future, since I aim to have his bond with his daughter grow a bit.**

**Hope you all enjoyed this chapter. Please comment and review (if you want)! I love when you all do. Seriously, you people rock for commenting. **


	18. Shopping

**Disclaimer: I don't own or take credit for Twilight or its characters. I do take credit for any OC, however. No stealing, now.**

**Shopping**

Alice was bouncing. Like, she was literally fucking bouncing in the car. And I'll be damned if that wasn't the cutest thing I'd seen all day. She looked like a little kid about to be taken to Disneyland or a fat guy at an all-you-can-eat buffet. Well, maybe not the latter, since she was far from being fat.

The excited pixie stopped the car outside the garage of the Cullen house, shot me a giant grin, and then bolted into the house, likely to grab both Amara and Rosalie.

I felt my heart do a cartwheel out of fear. Rosalie.

I hadn't seen much of her since the other night when I'd snapped at her. I was terrified of her—no, terrified for myself. I did NOT want to die any time soon, and considering how Rosalie's mood worked, that might be the likely case.

I couldn't help fidgeting with my hands, nervous and afraid.

Dear God, please don't let Rosalie kill me today. Please, please, please.

My thoughts were broken when the door opened and out trotted the three beautiful women that I would be spending my day with. I couldn't help the slight gasp that escaped my mouth, nor could I control my eyes from bulging.

Hot damn. Every time I saw one of them, I was reminded of how gorgeous they were. And in return, of how inferior I was to them in practically every way possible. I can't help that I feel self-conscious when I'm with Alice alone. Now I'm with all three of them. Fuck.

Amara looked the least happiest to be going. She had a frown on her face, and a slight glare in Alice's direction, likely because she had given in to Alice about going. Her hair, usually a total mess, was actually straightened a bit. Now, despite having had issues with a redhead in the past, I couldn't deny how much I loved Amara's hair—I still loved Alice's more, of course, but Amara's was my second favorite. Her outfit of choice was of course…well, Amara-y. Midriff exposing attires seemed to be a favorite of hers. Not that I was complaining.

Rosalie looked amazing as she always did. Frightening, yes, but amazing none the less. I was a little surprised that she was wearing her hair in a ponytail, especially considering that the ponytail look was not something I thought I'd see with Rosalie. Still she looked hot with her hip hugger designer jeans, the fancy designer shirt and the very expensive looking coat over it. Plus there were her shoes, also designer in appearance. Everything about her was flawless save for the scowl that seemed permanent on her face, a scowl that deepened when she and I had eye contact.

I gulped as the three of them entered the car, Amara thankfully sitting behind me and Alice of course in the driver's seat. I gulped, trying hard not to look at Rosalie, fearing that her glare would burn my eyes out or some shit like that.

What? It's fucking Rosalie!

"You girls ready?" Alice asked, unable to contain her enthusiasm.

"Whatever," Rosalie snorted.

"Let's just get this over with," grumbled Amara.

I just nodded my head, to afraid to speak. Alice noticed this and looked at me concernedly. I darted my eyes in Rosalie's direction and bit my lip. Alice understood and smiled softly at me before revving her car up again and driving off.

Honestly, one thing that amazed me was how adjusted I was to the fact that Alice drove at superhuman speeds. In fact, I was comfortable with it. I loved the feeling of the wind blowing my hair for some reason. I guess it was because I'd never experienced it before, given that I didn't have my license or anything.

I knew how to drive, though. I taught myself how to hotwire cars and I was pretty damn good at driving, no license aside.

"So how was the meeting with the father?" Amara asked. I could see her looking intently at me, curiosity in her eyes. Rosalie of course, wasn't bothering to pay attention.

I rolled my eyes. "It wasn't good, but it wasn't bad either. I dunno, I guess we're okay. For now, at least."

"I don't think you should've given him the time of day," Amara grunted. "Personally, I would've melted his tires or broken something just to get back at him for the way he treated you and all that. You're better off with Carlisle as a father."

Alice nodded in agreement before an impish grin came onto her face. "You forgot to mention how you punched him in the face," she giggled.

Amara looked impressed and smiled at me. Even Rosalie seemed impressed, though she quickly turned her attention elsewhere. Weird.

The rest of the drive was silent, save for a bit of bickering between the three sisters that I wasn't involved in. I closed my eyes and merely thought about how my life had changed so quickly in such a short amount of time.

I had a girlfriend. I had a family. Two things I'd never experienced before in my life.

Was I content with how things were? I guess so. I don't know, something just felt out of place.

Then again, I was happy. I had people who cared about me, an entire family, sans Rosalie, who actually wanted me to be with them. Knowing that and knowing that Alice actually loved me made me feel good. Not just good, but terrific.

I couldn't describe how I felt. But I liked it. I really, really did.

"We're here!" Alice sang.

I blinked and saw that we indeed were. It didn't look like Forks, though.

"Where are we?" I asked, confused.

"This is Port Angeles," Alice replied. In seconds all three of them were out of the car. Alice was already opening my door for me by the time I registered this fact.

I smiled at her and got out, though I tripped and nearly fell face first to the ground. Alice caught me like it was nothing and helped me steady myself. She pulled me into a hug seconds later, which I enjoyed.

We stayed that way for a minute or so, enjoying one another's presence.

"Um, guys? Can we please just get in and get out?" Amara asked, interrupting our moment. Both Alice and I glared at her in annoyance. She merely ran a hand through her hair and shrugged it off before walking away.

I sighed and let go of Alice, who did the same. "She's right, I guess. Let's go."

We walked inside the freakishly huge mall in front of us, holding hands as we did. Right away I noticed people gawking at Alice and I, not to mention Rosalie. Especially Amara, given the outfit she wore. Rosalie and Amara seemed totally oblivious to the wide variety of stares directed their way, some of lust, some of annoyance and some of disdain.

Alice was the same way, totally oblivious. She was smiled happily as we walked together with our hands entwined. A lot more stares were directed at the two of us as, of course. Most of them were incredibly creepy or just plain annoying, especially the disgusted looks we got from older women and some older men.

"Ignore them, Bella," Alice said to my side. "They don't matter to us. They're jealous of what they don't understand."

"She's right," Amara agreed, now walking next to me. "Most humans in this generation are ignorant and close-minded. It's best just to ignore them. Or if anything, enjoy the stares. It's better to be proud of who you are then to let the judgments of others get you down."

I was a little surprised to be hearing Amara say something so…well, meaningful like that. It was odd, but I liked it.

As we walked around, I marveled at the size of the mall. It was huge! I'd never seen anything this big in my entire life. I noticed Alice getting giddy as she surveyed the mall as well. Rosalie only looked half interested while Amara looked like she dreaded the place.

"Well if it isn't the three sexiest girls in all of Washington," shouted a female voice.

A smile broke onto Amara's face. In seconds a girl I didn't know came into view, a smirk on her face. She walked straight up to Amara and planted a brief kiss on her lips, which Amara happily returned. Rosalie rolled her eyes and Alice giggled. I was stunned.

The girl was about Rosalie's height, perhaps an inch shorter. She had short, unruly dirty blonde hair and wore an outfit similar to Amara's. I noticed rather quickly that she had the same pale colored skin and golden eyes as the three girls surrounding her. Another vampire.

"Hey sexy lady," crooned Amara, grinning. "What're you doing here?"

"Getting some new clothes, of course," she replied. "I see you're looking well as ever. How's the husband?"

"Same old, same old. What about Arthur? Where's he at?"

The girl rolled her eyes. "He's out sight-seeing like he always does. You know, always snapping photos of things, etcetera."

Amara chuckled. "Aw, I was hoping to say hi to him too. Ah well, maybe later."

She smiled and nodded her head before turning towards Rosalie. "I see you're still the same bitch, Rosalie."

Rosalie smirked and nodded. "And I see you still dress like a slut, Sophie."

"Oh please, this is nothing compared to the shit I've seen," Sophie scoffed. She glanced at Alice. "I'm guessing you're the conspirator behind dragging these two with you to go shopping with you, hm?"

Alice giggled again. "As always!" she chirped. Sophie rolled her eyes amusedly before noticing me for the first time.

"And who might this be?" she asked, cocking her head to the side curiously.

"This is Bella," Alice introduced.

Sophie blinked several times. "Oh. So this is the girl that you've been waiting for, huh?" Alice nodded. Sophie grinned and stepped towards me, extending her hand. "Well then, Bella, I'm Sophie. I'm an old friend of Amara's, though I doubt she's mentioned me."

I took her hand and shook it, smiling at her. "It's nice to meet you, Sophie. And no, Amara hasn't mentioned you."

Sophie scoffed and shook her head at the ginger. "So typical of you, always forgetting about me."

"Oh, don't give me that crap, Soph. I've had a lot on my mind lately, sheesh."

"Yeah, yeah, whatever. Anyways, I gotta run. It was nice meeting you, Bella. Maybe we'll have a chance to talk some other time. I'm sure you'll love Arthur. Later girls." With that she bolted out of the building at a human pace, grinning as she did.

I stared after her, completely confused.

"Don't mind her," Amara said. "She's a bit odd."

"Aren't we all?" Alice asked. She turned to me and planted a kiss on my cheek out of nowhere, though I doubted it was to prove her point. "Now then, we have some shopping to do. I'm going to go with Rosalie. You two can stay together, if you'd like. But when I get back, Bella, you're going to be trying some outfits on. Okay?"

"Alright," I replied. "Wait, why don't you want me going with you?"

"So I can surprise you of course!" she squealed. Before I could respond, she danced away, barely keeping it at a human pace. Rosalie sighed and walked after her, leaving just Amara and I alone, standing awkwardly and not knowing what to do.

Amara started to slowly walk and motioned for me to follow her, which I did.

"What's the story between you and Sophie?" I asked. I was eager to start a discussion.

She let out a brisk chuckle. "Sophie and I met each other years ago, long before I joined the Cullens. I was a wanderer at the time when I met her. Well, I guess I shouldn't say "met" since we tried to kill each other."

I was surprised at that. "You guys tried to _kill_ each other?" I whispered.

"Yup," she replied, completely nonchalant about the whole thing. She noticed my confused expression and laughed again, softly patting my head. "Don't worry; we obviously didn't succeed in doing so. Hell, we ended up becoming friend because of it."

I furrowed my brow. "I just don't get why she would try to _kill_ you is all. I mean, you seem too cool for anyone to want to kill…" I trailed off, still confused.

She laughed again. "Oh, yes, I suppose I should explain. Like I said, this was before I was a Cullen, so naturally it was before I became a vegetarian, the same for her. We were both stalking the same human at the time, which caused us to get into a fight with one another to see who would get the prey. You didn't see it because she was wearing makeup, but she actually has a bite mark around her right eye that I gave her."

I flinched at the thought of having vampire teeth near my eye of all places. Amara continued.

"Ah, I remember her screaming and cursing me for blinding her. I gotta say, even with one eye she managed to do pretty well. She got me in the neck too," she said, pointing towards a bite mark on right side of her neck. She was about to go on, but I stopped and cut her off.

"Whoa, hold on a second. You blinded her?"

Amara nodded. "Yeah, that's what venom does when it gets in your eyes. It's only temporary, of course, but it's a bitch to deal with when you're trying to fight someone or do anything for that matter. It's also very painful, too. Anyways, back to the story. We fought for so long we both forgot about the human we had been hunting. Eventually we just fought because we were having so much fun with each other. That, in turn, sparked a sort of rivalry between us that lasted a year or so. But then we became really good friends, sometimes a bit more, as you may have noticed a bit earlier." She winked as she finished, causing me to blush slightly.

"You…you mean you were?"

"Friends with benefits, I believe is the term you humans use. And yes, we were and from time to time, we still are."

I stopped dead in my tracks, staring at her with my eyes agape. "You do?" I was a little taken aback, for lack of a better term. Amara nodded. "What about Jasper though?"

Amara stopped and turned to face me, sighing. "Alice hasn't given you much of an explanation about this topic yet, has she?" she asked.

I frowned. "Um, what do you-?"

"Sex," she answered. I blushed again and shook my head. Another sigh. "Alright, look. I'll make this as unembarrassing as I can manage, though with me, that's a bit hard to do. Just try and look like you're looking at clothes, for Alice's sake in case she tries to check on us, okay?" I nodded and began thumbing through some jeans, listening intently to Amara.

"For starters, when you're a vampire, there are two basic needs that you have, two types of lust that must be fulfilled in one way or another. Blood and sex. I get that that sounds a bit weird to you, yes, and I can't fully explain it myself, but its there. It starts out small at first, something that can be pushed aside unlike our bloodlust. But the, shall I say, lust drive isn't something that can be ignored forever. The longer you ignore it, the more of a painful need it becomes. It has to be fulfilled one way or the other in order to satiate the body."

"And if there's one thing you need to know about us Cullens, it's that our sex lives are anything but private. Emmett and Rosalie would be the first to tell you that, since they go at it the most out of any of us. I guess in some ways it's a smart thing, since it eliminates the lustful needs, but my God is it a pain in the ass. I've heard stories about how bad it used to be. Esme even kicked them out of the house for a while. Luckily, the rest of us aren't as…active as those two."

"Now, Jasper is a lot like Carlisle in a myriad of ways. He's a gentleman, for one thing, and he never tries to push me into doing anything I don't want. We've had some good experiences before, especially thanks to his gift and all, but our relationship has never really been a physical one. It's more platonic, I suppose, much like Carlisle and Esme's. However, because of Jasper's gift, his more lustful desires are easily kept in check. And since we prefer a more platonic relationship, it sort of leaves me in the dark when it comes to quenching my desires."

"That's where Sophie comes in, I suppose you could say. It might sound wrong to you, perhaps, but Jasper is very understanding about it. Besides, It's not like I'm deliberately cheating on him or anything. It's not always Sophie, though." She seemed hesitant on the last part, which I quickly picked up on.

"You and Alice?"

"From time to time, yes. We started before you were around, mind you. Hell, we were actually in a relationship for a brief period of time. But then she pushed me towards Jasper so we would be together and all. We still had some fun from time to time and we still do, though she put a stop to it a few months ago because she knew you were getting closer to getting here. I hope it doesn't bother you too much, Bella."

I thought about it for a moment. Did it bother me?

Hmm. No, not really.

Actually, I thought it was pretty damn hot.

"It doesn't, really," I murmured shyly.

I heard Amara snicker and looked up to see an odd glint in her eyes. "Oh? Well now, how interesting indeed. I can see it in your eyes, Bella. The lust. You think it's pretty hot, don't you?"

My face turned five shades of red as I dropped the shirt I had in my hands, fumbling around with it on the ground. I felt Amara's cool hand lightly touch my shoulder and saw that she was grinning widely at me.

"Good. Because Bella, Alice told me she was down for a three way in the future…" She trailed off as my face became five-hundred shades of red, my heart beating madly. Amara froze and took several steps back, but kept the smile on her face. After I calmed down, she laughed.

"T-that's not f-funny!" I groaned.

"Ha! No, it's hilarious!" she laughed. "But seriously, Bella. I'm only joking with you. I'm sure that if you wanted to experiment, though, Alice wouldn't mind. And if she did, I'd just remind her of all the times we shared together. It's no big deal and I'm not about to try and make a pass at you, believe me. I'm quite content with Jasper. I'm just saying, though. If you're ever curious, I'm definitely game for some fun. Hell, Alice probably would agree to the three of us, knowing her. You may not know this, but she's a little minx when she needs to be."

I flushed again, feeling incredibly weird now.

"Stop blushing so damn much. Geez! What is it with you humans and your inability to talk about sex? Some of you throw your minds in the gutter, the rest of you are too damn embarrassed to say anything. I mean shit."

I didn't respond, I just fumbled over some random clothes, not even looking at them.

I felt Amara's hand touch my shoulder gently and looked up to see her giving me a placid look.

"Do you love her?" she asked.

I was thrown off guard by the question and seriousness of it, instead staring dumbly at her with my mouth hung open.

"I-uh, what-"

"Look, this isn't some interrogation or anything like that. I just want to know if you love her. Or at the very least if you care for her. Alice has been alone since I met her and I love the little pixie, as we all do. We don't want to see her hurt, not that I think you would ever purposefully hurt you. I see the hesitation in your eyes, the confusion and uncertainty. I just want to know if you care for her is all," Amara explained.

"I do care about her. A lot. She's the first friend I've had in years and I do feel a connection to your. And, I mean, I do love her, but I don't think I've fully realized it yet. I want to take our relationship slow so I can get more used to being in love. I want to get to know her as a person and I want to understand her in every way. Yeah, it's a little awkward for me, but this is all new to me, Amara. If I say or do something that upsets her, I wouldn't do it on purpose."

Her golden eyes appraised me with understanding.

"Alright, I was just making sure. Now then, I'm going to go off and get myself a few shirts or something, since I don't want Alice or Rosalie to buy me a shitload of clothes. Then again, this was mostly a shopping trip for you, so I guess I don't have much to worry about. Try not to get into too much trouble, alright?"

I nodded sheepishly as she smirked and walked off.

I sighed and mulled over what she had said. Hell, I mulled over what I had said.

I did love Alice, I really did. I just wasn't fully _in _love with her yet.

Yet.

It was strange how I was going to fall in love with her and I somehow knew it. I knew what was going to end up happening. I was okay with it, though. I could see myself spending my life with Alice as a lover.

Wait. My life.

I just realized something. She's immortal. She'll never die. Me, though, I'll grow old and wither away while she remains young and beautiful forever.

Fuck!

No! No, no, no. That is bullshit! How am I supposed to be her soulmate if I end up dying from fucking old age like all the other people…in the…oh. Wait a minute. Wait. There's one thing that I almost forgot about. Something I tossed aside before.

Me becoming a vampire. It was possible. It was weird to think about, but I could become a vampire like Alice and the others. I would be able to live for all eternity alongside Alice, never growing old and never having to fear dying.

I wonder…

Before I could really think about it, I bumped into somebody and fell to the floor. I grimaced at the impact and rubbed my back. I quickly realized that I had run into somebody though, so I scrambled to my feet to see who it was and apologize.

It was a girl.

Not just any girl, though. She was undeniably beautiful. She had shoulder length black hair and tan colored skin, like the two people I had seen leaving Charlie's place. It was like a mocha colored tan, luscious and exotic in the same. Her eyes were a nice shade of hazel that went well with her skin tone. The girl was relatively tall too, at least the same height as Rosalie. And her outfit. God. Her outfit was similar to Amara's, a sleeveless tank top that exposed her smooth, flat stomach that my skin was crawling to touch. Add that in with her hip-hugger jeans and _damn_.

Whoa. Hold the fuck on.

I have Alice. This chick is hot, yeah, but she's nothing compared to Alice. Nuh-uh. Nothing at all.

Yes. Alice is more superior to her. She's far more beautiful, too.

Alice is mine. I am Alice's. Not this girl. No. No, no, no, no, no.

"Sorry about that," she said, suddenly snapping me away from my thoughts. "Are you okay?"

"Er, um, y-yeah," I stammered feebly, trying to hide my embarrassment. As usual, I failed miserably. "I'm sorry; I wasn't watching where I was going…"

She smiled amusedly at me. "Don't sweat it, neither was I," she replied, grinning.

"Okay," I murmured. Now what was I supposed to do? Usually whenever I ran into someone they yelled at me and walked off. Whoever she was, she didn't.

"I'm Leah by the way. I don't think we've met before," she said, extending her hand out to me. I hesitated for a moment before grasping it. Her hand was incredibly warm. Like the really comfortable kind of warm, not the icky, sweat inducing warm. She frowned at something, her nostrils flaring slightly.

"I'm Bella. It's, um, nice to meet you."

Her odd expression became a smirk. "That'd be short for Isabella, right?" I nodded. "My, my, how fitting a name." I flushed embarrassedly as I retracted my hand, stuffing it along with my other one into my pocket. She laughed. "Truth be told, this is the first time I've been to Port Angeles. Usually I'm cooped up in the same area all damn day. It stinks, I tell you."

"Where's that at?" I asked.

"Oh. La Push. It's a reservation and a beach down in Forks. You should stop by sometime."

"Um, thanks," I mumbled.

Leah suddenly froze, her nostrils flaring again. An uncomfortable grimace formed on her face, but she quickly masked it. "Well, it was nice meeting you, Bella. Hope to see you around some day." She winked at me before strutting off at a relatively brisk pace.

I frowned in confusion as I stared after her. I am not staring at her ass. Okay, a little bit. Damn it.

After she was gone, I felt a very strange sensation. I felt like someone was burning holes in the back of my head. I flinched and turned slowly to see a very angry Rosalie, glaring at me.

Oh fuck. What'd I do now?

Shit. She was probably still pissed over me snapping at her. Great. I'm dead now.

I opened my mouth for whatever reason, maybe hoping I could try and reason with her, but no sooner had I tried did I feel her hand roughly grab my shoulder. Then everything became a blur as she took me to Lord knows where.

Once everything in my vision was stable I found myself being slammed into a wall. We were in the storage area, no witnesses in sight. Her left hand gripped at my throat, a venomous glare engraved into her otherwise flawless face. Her dark gold orbs burned into mine, the fear of my eyes burning away prominent in the back of my head.

"You bitch," she hissed. "I saw that."

"W-what d-did I do?" I wheezed.

"Don't play stupid with me, Swan. I saw you ogling that bitch," she growled. Rosalie sniffed the air around me, her nose crinkling in disgust. "You stink like her too."

I tried to loosen the grip she had on my throat, but failed in doing so. Her grip tightened, not enough to prevent me from breathing, but enough to be causing a massive amount of pain and making it near impossible for me to move or speak. Still, I tried.

"R-Rosalie…I wasn't…I was just a-apologizing…I s-swear," I choked out.

She clearly didn't believe me.

"Oh please, I saw how you stared at her. Don't lie, Swan. You were practically fucking her with your eyes for shit's sake. How dare you, you little slut. I _knew_ you would do that, I _knew_ you couldn't be trusted!"

I felt tears starting to trickle down my cheeks. Rosalie scoffed at them, rolling her eyes angrily.

"You'd better get your shit together, girl. Because I swear to you, if you break Alice's heart or hurt her in any way, I will kill you. I don't care about the consequences; no one fucks with my family. Do you understand me?" she growled. Her face was inches from mine, the rage seeping off of her and chilling my bones.

I was terrified of her. I was more terrified now then I had been when Alice nearly attacked me, when James and Victoria _had_ attacked me.

They didn't hold a candle to Rosalie.

I quivered and trembled under her glare and grasp, tears streaming down my face. I couldn't respond to her question. I was too afraid.

"I said _do you understand_?" she snarled, her tone dripping with rage and increasing in volume.

Before I could attempt to respond, a hand shot out and grabbed Rosalie's arm, throwing it backwards. I blinked, thinking it was Alice, but was surprised to see it was Amara who had saved me. Amara stood in front of me, glaring down her blonde sibling.

"What the fuck is _wrong_ with you, Rosalie?" snapped Amara.

Rosalie growled at her. "This doesn't concern you, Amara."

"The _fuck_ it doesn't! You're choking my soon-to-be sister to death. That concerns me."

"Shut up! She is _not_ our sister! She is a human and a menace to our family!" Rosalie seethed, pointing an accusatory finger at me. "I caught her checking out one of _them_! Smell her, she _stinks_ like it!"

Amara frowned and glanced at me, inhaling my scent for a brief moment. "It's not her fault, Rose. She doesn't know about that yet, remember? Besides, that doesn't give you the right to strangle the poor thing to death."

"You should've seen how she looked at the bitch, Amara! She was practically-"

Amara cut her off. "I don't give a shit if she was checking her out. She checks us out all the damn time and you don't complain then. Stop being such a bitch, why don't you? Shit." Amara turned towards me, studying me slightly. "You okay?"

I gasped several times, rubbing my sore throat as I took in as much air as I could. I gave her a shaky nod, refusing to look up for fear of being forced to look at Rosalie's glare again.

"Alice is gonna fucking kill you, you know," Amara warned. I grimaced, thinking she was speaking to me, only to find her eyes set on Rosalie.

Rosalie was about to answer when a very loud, angry snarl tore through the area we were in.

"Told you so," snorted Amara.

A very livid Alice was suddenly on top of Rosalie, slamming her left fist into the blonde's face, smashing the back of her head into the floor. The sound was like an explosion, the shockwave pushing my back further into the wall. Amara gently steadied me, holding me up with her left hand while the right was used to help block out some of the impact.

I caught a glimpse of Alice's face.

I stand corrected when I said that an angry Rosalie was the scariest thing on God's green-and-blue Earth. Oh yes.

An angry Alice was indeed the most terrifying, bone chilling, heart stopping sight I had ever seen before. I remember seeing her livid in the forest when she fought off James and Victoria, but I hadn't exactly caught sight of her facial expressions until she had calmed down a bit. And even then she was furious. This was lividness though. It was beyond that point, as if Alice was the fire of Hell itself, come to swallow her sister whole.

Because Rosalie didn't look smug or upset. She was scared. No, not scared.

My mouth dropped at the genuine look of terror etched into Rosalie's beautiful features, her eyes wide with fright as if she had never been scared of anything more in her entire existence. Even Amara looked rather afraid, though her irritation with Rosalie seemed to be present too.

Alice let out another guttural roar and began pounding the shit out of Rosalie.

Left, right, left, right, left, right.

Each blow was like lightning striking down, causing the floor to tremble with the impact. Rosalie's body was being pummeled deeper into the floor, creating a crater that was steadfastly growing with each strike.

"Alice," Amara called, trying to grab the shorter girl's attention.

Nothing.

Rosalie was now attempting to fight back, but because of the position she was in, she wasn't able to do much aside from squirm about, her growls muffled by the vicious whirlwind of strikes.

"Alice!" Amara shouted, her tone growing.

Still nothing.

"ALICE!" Amara roared, raising her voice louder then I'd ever heard before. I would have jumped ten feet into the air were her arm not around me, preventing me from budging.

Alice slowly ceased attacking Rosalie and begrudgingly forced her head to turn back. I shivered when I saw the look in her eyes. It was the same feral look I'd seen in the forest. Her eyes were pitch black slits, burning with venom and fury.

Amara inclined her head at me, silently telling her sister to look.

Alice's gaze flickered to mine and instantly started softening. She slowly stood off of Rosalie, giving off another warning growl when Rosalie twitched ever so slightly. Cautiously Alice approached me, her eyes softening with each movement. First the slits became circular, and then they began to lighten. By the time she reached me, her eyes were a dark butterscotch color.

Alice slowly extended her left hand towards my face until her fingers were brushing against my cheek. The touch was gentle and somewhat questioning. At last Alice's eyes were gold again as it dawned on her what had just happened.

"Bella?" she whispered. I didn't respond, I merely flung myself at her.

I sobbed quietly into her granite shoulder as she wrapped her arms around me, rubbing my back slowly and tenderly.

"I'm sorry," she cooed in my ear, pulling my head under her chin. "I didn't mean to frighten you, Bella. I was just angry. I'm sorry…"

I nuzzled into her, breathing her rich scent in, enjoying the sweetness of it. Like always, it helped calm me down a bit, as did her holding me. Oh how I loved to be held by her.

I pulled apart from her only a little, keeping my arms around her as hers stayed wrapped around me. She leaned in and gently pressed her lips to mine, which I welcomed. We held the kiss for a moment, enjoying the tingling sensations and the taste that came with it, before breaking away. I noticed Rosalie was staggering to her feet and gasped when I saw her face.

Her face…or rather, what had once been her face, had a multitude of cracks in it. It was like her face was made of out rock and that rock had been broken. Small holes were located on both cheeks and her forehead, and it looked as though even the slightest movement would cause her face to shatter into thousands of pieces. Her face was blank. Emotionless.

"You," Alice breathed, turning towards Rosalie. Her eyes smoldered with hurt, pain and fury. "How dare you. How fucking _dare _you lay a hand on my mate, Rosalie? What gives you the right to touch my Bella that way? Nothing. I don't give a _damn_ what your pitiful excuse is, _sister_. If you ever, _ever_ touch my mate like that again, I swear to you I will do more than just pummel your pretty little face. I_ will_ kill you, Rosalie, mark my words."

Alice's voice remained neutral, but the underlying threat and anger in her words was easily noticeable. I shuddered a little, which Alice abruptly noticed. She looked at me apologetically and pulled me back into a hug.

I glanced over her shoulder back at Rosalie and watched in amazement as Rosalie's face was slowly healing. The cracks dissipated inch by inch, while the tiny holes began patching themselves up. Within minutes Rosalie's face was the way it had been before Alice had attacked her. She blinked several times before frowning. The frown dissipated, though and she opened her mouth to speak.

"Ali-"

"Don't speak to me right now," Alice hissed. "I'll deal with you later."

Rosalie huffed, but didn't argue. I guess getting her face pounded into the ground—literally—was enough to shut her up for now. I was grateful, at the very least, because I didn't want them to fight, especially over me of all things. I didn't think I was worth it.

There was an odd silence for a moment. Rosalie stood where she was, glaring at nothing in particular. Amara was leaning against the wall with her arms crossed, looking bored and curious in the same. And Alice still looked miffed. She was nowhere near as upset as before, granted, but she wasn't happy right now either. I was stuck somewhere in between thankfulness and uncertainty, since I had no idea what to do now.

"Um, shopping?" I murmured quietly.

That snapped Alice out of her stupor, a cheeky grin forming on her face.

"Yes! I've already bought you thirty two outfits and-"

"THIRTY TWO OUTFITS?" I exclaimed, stunned. "Holy shit, Alice! I didn't expect you to spend that much money on me!"

Alice looked at me awkwardly. "Bella, this entire shopping trip was for you. And don't be so worrisome about the money, we're richer then everyone in Forks combined. Now let's go and try some of them on. I don't think we're allowed back here." At that, she danced out of the room with me in tote, Amara and Rosalie following behind, though Rosalie kept her distance from us.

When we exited the storage room, I was astonished to see that Alice had only told me part of the truth concerning the amount of clothes she had bought me. Fourteen bags, all full of clothes, were stretched out in front of us. I gaped at them, my mouth wide in the shape of an "O".

Alice giggled next to me. "You didn't let me finish before, silly. I bought you thirty two outfits, five dresses and several miscellaneous shirts that I'm certain you'll like. I was planning on getting a few more, but, well, I had a vision of _this_." Again she let out a brisk hiss in Rosalie's direction. She apparently wasn't about to drop this any time soon.

I couldn't stop gawking at all the bags in front of me, wondering what sorts of outfits Alice had bought me.

"You think this is bad, you ain't seen nothing yet. Trust me, you'll be spending days playing dress up with her once you're done shopping," Amara grunted.

I thought about that for a moment, and then shrugged. "It gives me something to do for a few days, at least." Amara stared at me wide-eyed as if I was insane. Well, I am, and I guess doing this was going to make me even more so. I didn't mind it so much, though.

I felt Alice tense up next to me suddenly and looked to see that her eyes were glazed over.

A vision.

After a moment, her eyes returned to normal. But her face was far from happy. "Amara, Rosalie, get these to the car, now," she ordered, her voice completely serious and un-Alice like. Rosalie didn't respond, she grabbed several bags and walked off as fast as she could at a human pace. Amara grabbed the remaining bags, but shot her sister a concerned look.

"What's wrong?" she asked.

Alice wrapped an arm around my waist. "I'll explain in the car. We need to leave and _now_."

**A/N: Well, that was a mildly entertaining chapter. By the way, the OC I introduced here will become more important as time passes on. As will her mate, Arthur.**

**Hope you all enjoyed.**

**By the way, for those of you who are concerned, the relationship between Rosalie and Bella will become better. It just takes time, is all. Besides, bitchy Rosalie is fun to write.**

**All comments appreciated. You guys rock either way for reading!**


	19. Doubt

**Disclaimer: You know the drill. I take no credit for any of Meyer's characters, only for my own characters. Zing.**

**Doubt**

Alice and I quickly moved past the swarms of people moving throughout the mall. Rosalie and Amara were way ahead of us, already outside by the time I could see the door through the masses of people.

I was worried.

Alice was tense, her eyes darting everywhere at once.

"What's wrong?" I asked.

She shook her head briskly. "I'll explain it in the car, I promise."

I frowned, but I didn't bother her about it anymore. We eventually managed to bypass more ogling strangers and got out of the mall. Waiting in front was an already started car, Rosalie exiting the driver's seat and getting into the backseat.

Alice opened my door fast and shut it just as fast, then sped over to her side and pressed her foot on the gas. We were gone in ten seconds flat, speeding down the roadway out of Port Angeles.

"So what the hell's going on, Alice? What did you see that was so bad that we had to leave, anyways?" Amara asked, mirroring the same thing going through my head and probably Rosalie's too.

Alice bit her lip before responding. "I saw that there's another vampire in the area. It was a woman, I know that. I didn't get a good look at her, but I didn't recognize her from what I saw."

Rosalie frowned while Amara scoffed.

"That's it? So there's another vampire, what's the big deal?" Amara asked.

"Amara, it's a very big deal!" Alice shouted.

Amara raised an eyebrow at her. "What do you mean?"

"Is this vampire with those other two?" Rosalie asked.

"I don't know," Alice responded. She glanced at me curiously, silently asking me if I knew.

I sighed. "I'm not sure. I never heard of or saw another one with them. I always figured they traveled together. I really don't know, though."

"So what if she is? There are eight of us. We could take her, no problem," Amara stated. "Plus Sophie and Arthur are in the area and it's not like they can't handle one vampire, right?"

Alice shook her head. "I think this one's a newborn."

Rosalie's scowl deepened. "A newborn? How do you know?"

"My vision was barely clear. It was hectic, just like the vampire. I saw her hunting, but she couldn't decide on where to hunt or what to do. I did, however, see that she was near Seattle and heading in this direction. I thought it best that we left as soon as possible, since hopefully our scents will be weaker by then and she won't try and track us."

I was totally confused now. "Um, Alice? What's a newborn, exactly?"

Alice bit her lip again. "Well-"

Amara cut her off. "A newborn is what we refer to vampires that were just created. It fits because they've just been born into their new life and everything is new to them. Newborns are considerably dangerous for a lot of reasons. For one thing, they're stronger than the average vampire, even stronger then Emmett. And he's powerful enough to shatter an entire tree with barely any effort. A newborn has twice that strength, so you can see why Alice would be worried, though I still think that, with the three of us, we could take one on."

Alice shook her head.

"You're forgetting some of the more important facts, Amara, like the fact that newborns are extremely volatile. Even worse, their bloodlust is much stronger, as are their senses. And you forgot to mention that one newborn is strong enough to _take out_ three vampires," Alice stated, chiding her sister. "It wouldn't matter if I could predict her movements or not, nor would it matter how much your past training has done for you."

She turned towards me. "You see, Bella, when you're a newborn, you're experiencing the world for the first time. Everything is new to you and as such, you don't have control over yourself, your emotions especially. Newborns are erratic and tough to control, and I didn't want to risk her catching our scent and coming to find us. She'd attack you on sight and I can't have that."

"And if she is with those…_other_ two, then that's not a good sign. That could mean any number of things, none of them being good."

I furrowed my brow in confusion. "What sorts of things?" I asked.

She sighed. "It could mean that they created this newborn as a means for tracking you down. If that's the case, then they might do so again. And that spells disaster, not just for us, but for every human living in Washington. Newborns are_ that_ deadly. However, I think that we're safe for now. When I was hit with the vision she was farther away from the city, more towards the countryside. Still, it worries me."

I nodded, taking in what she'd said. So newborns were more dangerous, then.

Could this vampire be with James and Victoria?

Could they have turned someone just to come after me?

I cringed at the idea of them taking the normal lives of innocent people away for their own twisted goals, especially if it was to find me. That would mean hurting the Cullens, my family. And worst of all, that would mean hurting Alice. The very thought of that was a painful one that made my heart ache. I couldn't think about Alice being hurt because that caused _me_ pain.

"Relax, Bella," Amara said from behind me. "If they tried to attack us again, Alice would see it and we'd know ahead of time. Right Alice?"

Alice pursed her lips, frowning slightly. "Well, I've been keeping tabs on them since yesterday, but so far I haven't seen anything concrete. It looks like they're leaving Forks for now, likely to regroup and plan out some type of strategy. That gives us some time to do so ourselves."

That reminded me. "What did you guys decide to do about them?"

"Carlisle and Esme both agreed that it was best that we just go about our daily lives. Since I'm keeping tabs on their movements, I'll likely know if and when they intend to attack again, so I suppose its better that we just ignore them for the time being. However, we are to keep an eye on you at all times. Esme said that there should be at least two of us with you at all times, one of the reasons why I invited Rosalie and Amara to go shopping with us. You can see how _that _turned out, obviously." Alice's face contorted into a frightening grimace as she eyed her blonde sister.

"How long are you going to keep doing this?" Rosalie asked. "If you'd let me explain, I'd tell you why I got pissed off in the first place."

"And completely overreacted," Amara grunted. "Just because Bella was talking to another person doesn't mean you have to strangle the poor girl."

"I wasn't strangling her," Rosalie groaned. "I was-"

"Save it, Rosalie," Alice snapped. "I don't have the patience to listen to your bullshit right now. If you want to try and explain your actions to me, you can do it later. You damn well bet that I'm going to be telling Carlisle and Esme about this. And I'll be damned if I'll ever leave Bella alone with you again, Rosalie. I can't believe that you would try and harm my mate, of all things-"

"She is not your mate!" Rosalie shouted. "She's a human, for crying out loud! How can she be your mate, Alice? Because you saw that she was coming into your life? Tell me something, did you see the two of you falling in love? Did you see that she was your mate? No! You didn't see that, all you saw was her. For all we know, you seeing her coming was a warning of the trouble she would bring with her-"

"ENOUGH!" Alice roared, slamming on the brakes roughly. I nearly slammed my face into the front, but lucky for me, Alice's right arm shot out and prevented me from doing so.

I leaned back into the seat, that same pain back in my chest. Rosalie's words hurt. They felt like daggers piercing my flesh over and over again.

But…

Maybe she's right.

Maybe I'm _not_ meant to be with Alice. Maybe her visions _were_ trying to warn her about all the problems I would start, not because we were going to fall in love. Maybe that's the reason she saw me all those years ago.

Could that be true?

I felt the stinging pain grow worse as tears started trickling down my cheeks.

What if Rosalie was right? What if-

A loud growl made me flinch, my thoughts gone in an instant. I turned to see Alice glaring at Rosalie, baring her teeth in another snarl. Oh shit, not this again. Alice suddenly blinked and looked at me, her eyes widening at the sight of my tears.

"ROSALIE!" she seethed. Before I could react both her and Rosalie were out of the car, colliding into one another. I blinked and suddenly found myself out of the car being carried by someone. I looked up. Amara. She gently set me down before blurring away and literally picking the car up and moving it aside like it was a feather.

I watched the two violent blurs smashing into one another, snarls, growls and hisses accompanying them. That was when I realized that we were back at the Cullen's house, which surprised me a bit. I wonder where…

As if on cue, the other Cullens, save for Carlisle, whom I'm guessing was at work, were outside.

"What's going on? What happened?" Esme asked concernedly. Jasper, Edward and Emmett watched on amusedly as the two girls battled it out. I tried to watch myself, but the pain from Rosalie's earlier statement had caused tears that clouded most of my vision.

Amara sighed. "Rosalie said some harsh things about Bella and now Alice is pissed off. Plus, she kind of got upset at Bella over something stupid at the mall and, well, let's just say Alice isn't very pleased with her sister right now."

Esme noticed my tear stained face and was by me in an instant, wrapping me into a warm hug and stroking the back of my head. "It's okay, honey. It's okay," she cooed. Esme's love and warmth washed over me and only made me cry harder into her marble shoulder. After a moment, though, the fighting became more intense. I heard trees shattering and falling as the growling and snarling picked up in volume.

The amusement in the boys' faces was gone now, replaced by worry. Emmett naturally wanted to step in to help his mate, but he clearly wanted to help his sister as well. Esme gently removed herself from my arms, kissed me on the cheek and turned towards her warring daughter's, a stern look on her beautiful face.

"Stop them," she ordered, taking a motherly tone I'd never heard before.

The boys and Amara nodded and in a flash they were pulling Alice and Rosalie apart. Emmett and Edward gripped at a snarling Rosalie while Jasper and Amara held onto Alice, who writhed viciously in their arms, kicking and hissing. Esme appeared between the two of them, irritation and sorrow in her eyes.

"Girls, please, stop this," she pleaded, her hurt voice breaking my heart.

Neither of her daughters listened, however, and instead tried even harder to break free from the arms holding them back. I was astounded by the sheer difficulty in which it was taking to keep them in place, especially considering Emmett's superior strength and Jasper's ability to influence emotions. Jasper's face was strained as he tried desperately to calm Alice down, Emmett doing everything in his power to keep his mate held down.

I guess Alice and Rosalie were far stronger then I'd given them credit for. Shows how much I know.

"Girls, please!" Esme begged, raising her voice slightly.

They didn't listen. They wouldn't listen.

Esme closed her eyes, the irritation seeping through. "ENOUGH OF THIS! BOTH OF YOU STOP THIS INSTANT!" Esme snarled.

Everyone stopped. I think my heart stopped too.

Holy shit. Did _Esme_ just snarl?

I'm certain my eyes were the size of fishbowls. The others all had the exact same look on their faces, even Rosalie and Alice, who had stopped and gaped at their mother. Esme's face was like nothing I'd ever seen before. Her lips were curled back and her eyes narrowed, forming a horrific grimace that terrified me, mind, body and soul.

I had been wrong a lot today.

First I'd thought an angry Rosalie was the scariest thing in the universe. Then an angry Alice proved to be scarier. But an angry Esme? Neither Alice nor Rosalie held a candle to Esme's wrath, which I never thought could exist. How a sweet, loving person like Esme could ever be so frightening was beyond my scope of understanding.

I did understand, however, how fucking scared I was. I felt like a baby rabbit surrounded by vicious wolves. I was on the ground, cowering and quivering in fear, tears still dripping down my face like a leaking faucet.

Esme noticed this. Her jet black eyes fell on me and instantly began softening, the pain of scaring me evident on her face. She shook her head sadly and looked at Alice and Rosalie.

"Rosalie, Alice, you two have disappointed me. This behavior is unacceptable and I won't tolerate it in this family. If you have a problem, you will sort it out in a civilized manner, not barbaric like the fiends responsible for harming our newest family member. Now I want you two to stay right here and not move a muscle. I'm going to attend to Bella first. Then I will be out here and we will get to the bottom of this. Do you understand?" she asked.

Both girls nodded. Alice looked at me and hung her head ashamedly. I could tell by the look in her eyes that she wanted desperately to come over and comfort me. She couldn't, though, nor did she try, though I could see it pained her not to.

Esme turned her eyes back to me and slowly began walking towards me, her eyes returning to their normal self as her face softened all the way. Her steps were slow and measured, obviously not wanting to scare me anymore then I already was. Eventually she stopped inches away from me and knelt down, looking at me sorrowfully.

"I'm sorry, Bella," she murmured, gently reaching her hand out to stroke my head. "I'm sorry you had to see that, dear. I know you must think it terribly monstrous for me to do such a thing, but I didn't want them fighting. Will you allow me to carry you inside?"

I nodded silently.

She smiled softly and extended her hand out to me, which I took. Before I knew it, I was in her arms as she slowly walked me into the house. She set me down on the couch and blurred into the kitchen. A minute later she was back out with a sandwich and a glass of water, which she placed in front of me tentatively.

"I'm sorry," she repeated, her voice smoldering with warmth and sincerity. "I do so dislike having to raise my voice like that, but in a family of vampires, sometimes it's necessary to. I'm certain you'd like a moment to gather your thoughts. I'll be outside for a bit, okay? Feel free to watch some TV, dear. And again, I'm sorry."

"It's okay," I managed to say. "It just took me b-by surprise. I've never seen you that way."

She chuckled softly. "Yes, I'd imagine so. It comes from being the Alpha female of the family, I suppose. I do hope you don't think badly of me, Bella."

"I don't," I told her, smiling a little. "I'm fine, Esme. Just…a little overwhelmed from today."

She nodded in understanding before leaning in to kiss my forehead. "I'll have a word with my daughter, you can bet on that. I'm terribly sorry for her if she said anything that hurt your feelings, honey. She has a habit of speaking without thinking. Now then, I'll leave you be."

I nodded at her. Esme walked towards the door and opened it, but before she went outside, she gave me an apologetic smile. Then she was gone.

I slumped into the couch and started eating the sandwich. I grabbed the remote to the television and set it near me, but I didn't turn the TV on just yet. I was…curious about something. I swallowed the food in my mouth and quietly waited.

I could hear their voices outside. At first, they were like whispers. But if I concentrated, I was able to pick some of their conversation up, to my surprise. Esme was the one speaking, naturally, less then pleased by their display.

"I cannot believe you two! I raised you better than this!" she exclaimed disdainfully.

"I'm sorry, Esme," Alice replied, her tone drenched with remorse. "Is Bella okay?"

Esme sighed. "She's a little taken aback by my outburst, which I apologized for, but otherwise she seems upset. Rosalie Lillian Cullen, you'd best explain yourself right this instant."

Rosalie didn't respond, of course. I heard her grumble something that I didn't catch.

"Rosalie!" Alice hissed.

"Alice, stop," Jasper said, calmly.

"C'mon Rose, what happened?" Emmett urged.

"I…said some things…"

"I caught her with Bella pinned against a wall in the mall! She was choking her and threatening her!" Alice snarled.

"Rosalie!" Esme shouted, appalled.

"She was flirting with one of the damn mongrels!" Rosalie snapped. "You should've seen the way she was looking at her! I was doing Alice a favor!"

"No, you were getting back at her for snapping at you that one time and you were upset that she was going to join the family," Edward growled.

"Get out of my fucking head!" Rosalie growled back.

A very sudden thunderous boom was heard, followed by several gasps.

"Rosalie, I did NOT raise you to be this way. I am not going to tolerate this nonsense…"

I droned the rest of it out as I continued eating my sandwich. Call me a bad person, but I felt a bit smug that Rosalie had just been smacked by Esme. She deserved it for treating me the way she did. I never did a damn thing to her. Well, okay I did snarl at her, but I didn't mean to.

I sighed and finished my sandwich and water before flicking the TV on. I flipped through the channels looking for something to watch. Something caught my eye as I passed it, so I turned it back. It was the news. Huh. Go figure.

They were showing images of what looked like a destroyed building, several images of people being shown. I turned the volume up a bit so I could hear well. How weird. Moments ago I could hear outside, but then it went away. Strange.

"…the family's home was demolished and their bodies found, all dead with severe cuts and bruises. No word yet on what caused the damage, but it is speculated to be the same culprit responsible for the deaths of the two hikers found two days ago. Some believe it to be a wild animal on the loose, but no word yet on whether or not those claims are true. Stay tuned for more updates on these mysterious attacks…"

I bit my lip as I listened, knowing full well who was likely responsible. James and Victoria.

They were still out there. Waiting. Waiting for the right time to try and take me, no doubt. Or kill me.

I didn't like that. It was unnerving, knowing that the two of them were just biding their time, planning out their next attack. Even more worrisome was the new vampire that Alice had seen, the one that was somewhere near here. I could tell by the look in her eyes that a newborn vampire was dangerous, I got that much.

But why would one be here? That, of course, could only mean that either James or Victoria was responsible for its creation. And that worried me even more. I remembered what I had heard in the car, how a newborn was stronger than Emmett. Combine that with James and Victoria's ruthlessness and…

Shit. That wasn't good. What if they attacked and Alice didn't see, like the last time?

What if Alice got hurt? What if the others got hurt? What if-

A wave of calm was suddenly enveloping me, startling me slightly. I glanced over to see Jasper with a concerned look in his eyes, leaning against the wall.

"You're worried about something," he murmured. "What are you worried about?"

"She's worried about us getting harmed by the two from before," Edward answered, stepping through the door. "Honestly, Bella. You shouldn't worry so much. We have everything under control, I promise. Besides, with our combined skill and gifts, we would be able to handle them."

"You don't sound very reassured," I stated flatly. Edward frowned, but didn't respond. "Where are the others?"

"I'm sending them hunting," Esme stated, poking her head through the door. "Jasper, Edward, would you please go with your sisters? I'm going to go talk with Carlisle. Emmett will stay here with you, Bella." She gave me a gentle smile before departing. Edward and Jasper did the same before following out after her.

A moment later, Emmett walked in, grinning. "Hey short stuff," he greeted. "You wanna play a few rounds?"

"Sure," I replied, smiling a little. I had been hoping for the chance to play some games.

He grinned wider and plopped down on the couch and set his game station up. He handed me a control and soon we were both hammering away at the buttons. We played several rounds of the game in the system, a badass shooter game, each of us pulling out several wins. Emmett was impressed, so he plugged in his favorite fighting game. He beat me more times then I beat him, but I still did well despite being a "noob" as he called it.

We continued playing games for about an hour. I noticed that none of the others had returned yet, but I pushed the thought aside.

"Ho ho! Not too shabby, Bells," Emmett chortled.

I smiled a little. "Thanks, but I need some more practice."

He chuckled merrily. "We should all play together in a group later. I'm sure you'd fare pretty damn well for yourself."

Another five minutes and we both called it quits. Emmett took my control and shut the system off. I turned off the TV as well, though I wasn't really sure what to do with myself now.

"So…" Emmett spoke up after a moment of silence. "Rose said some pretty harsh things to you."

I nodded sheepishly.

Emmett sighed. "I'm sorry about that."

I frowned. "You don't have to apologize, Emmett. You didn't do anything."

He shook his head in disagreement. "No, I do. If anything, I'm apologizing for Rose's sake."

"Why?" I asked.

"Look, I know Rosalie comes off as a bitch and all. And yeah, she was totally out of line with how she acted towards you, that much I agree with. But she didn't mean to be so harsh. I know Rosalie a lot better then you, and I know that she'll probably feel bad about what she did later on. She's just the kind of person that tends to act without thinking things through first and the consequences have a habit of kicking her in the ass. She's been trying to change that lately, you know, trying to be better at making decisions, smarter about her choices. I guess it hasn't worked out too well yet, but she has been improving."

I was a little surprised. Emmett was usually the goofy, comedic member of the family. Yet here he was with a serious and somber look on his face as he talked with me. I'm guessing this was a rarity for Emmett, since he seemed to be struggling with something.

"Why does she have to be damn mean though? I mean, I've barely said much to her. I know I blew up at her that one night and I was going to apologize, but still," I sniffled. "I mean, now I'm actually starting to think she may be right about Alice's visions of me being wrong-"

I felt a large hand gently touch my shoulder. "Hey, whoa there, slow down a bit."

I glanced up at him, realizing that again I had started to cry. I wiped my face, grumbling to myself as I did. I hated crying in front of people. I always felt so damn pathetic. Stupid, stupid emotions. Ugh!

"Bella, what Rosalie said was untrue," Emmett said gently.

"But what if it is? What if-"

He stopped me by placing a hand under my chin and gently turning my head to make me look at him. Ocher orbs were pouring out with an emotion I never thought I'd see coming from Emmett as he appraised me.

"Listen, Bella. I know you probably don't see it because you haven't known Alice for very long, but ever since you've been here, she's changed. Before you came along she was a happy, bubbly little shopaholic who enjoyed dancing around and being weird. Now though, with you here, there's a spark in her eyes that I've never seen before. We've all noticed it, really. You've changed Alice in a bunch of ways in a short amount of time. She's happier, for one thing. With you, she feels complete, I guess you could say."

I was surprised by the seriousness in his voice as he spoke. He was really trying to get me to believe his words.

"When she looks at you, when she's around you, her face and eyes light up in ways that we've never witnessed in all the years she's been with us. Jasper said that she feels more joy and love then she's felt in decades. You bring out the best in her, Bella, whether you see it or not."

"Then why did…?"

Emmett removed his hands and rubbed the back of his neck. "Rosalie's afraid, Bella. I know it doesn't seem like it, but she's actually afraid for _you_."

I gawked at him. "Say what?"

He nodded. "Yeah, I know. I'm serious, though. She's actually more worried about you then she lets on."

"Why though? Why does she worry about _me_? And if she's so worried, why the hell does she treat me like shit?"

Emmett sighed again. "Look, Rosalie has…issues when it comes to new people coming into the family. She's very protective of all of us because she's sort of the big sister of the group. Or I guess you could say that she has the big sister mentality. Not that Amara and Alice don't do their fair share; it's just that Rose is more family oriented then them. I dunno how to explain it, really, but that's how it is. And, well, the fact that you're human bothers her…"

"Yeah, Amara told me a bit about that," I stated.

"Then you kind of get the idea behind it. She does have a bit of a temper, though. And her attitude isn't always the best. But she didn't really ask for this lifestyle, so it's taken its toll on her. Then again, I guess none of us do, but we all sort of adjusted differently. Rosalie and Edward are the two who dislike it the most. Me, I've gotten comfortable with it. I'd imagine it'd be the same for the others. Plus, it has a lot to do with how she was raised and all, back when she was a human," he said, leaning an arm on the top of the couch.

I cocked my head to the side curiously. "What do you mean?"

"We all grew up with different lifestyles. And the way we were raised does have a bit of standpoint for us now." He paused for a moment and chuckled. "Okay, that made no sense. Let me put it like this. Rosalie grew up being pampered and given everything she wanted. She's not used to being refused something and she sure as hell isn't used to being stood up to. And yet here you are a human, something she wishes she were and you've stood up to her. While I give you points for it, it irks her because you're a blatant display of something she can't have."

I nodded, slowly beginning to understand his point.

"Me, on the other hand, I grew up working for everything. I had a big family, but we were on the poorer side, so we all had to work for what we got. So it is a bit odd at times being able to get things without having to work for them. Hell, sometimes I'm still amazed by how strong I am or how easy it is to do the things I struggled with as a human." He chuckled as he finished.

"Tell me a bit about your human life," I said. "I mean, if you want to, that is."

He rolled his eyes. "Nah, don't worry about it. I'm happy to share. So basically, I was born in Kentucky back in 1915 as Emmett Dale McCarty. I had two older brothers, one younger brother, three older sisters and one younger sister. We were a pretty good sized family, let me tell ya. My dad, Robert McCarty, was a railroad worker. So when I got old enough, he signed me up and had me start working on the railroad with my brothers. Hell, my sisters worked with us too. We all worked, even my mom. She was a tough old gal, that one." He smiled as he fondly remembered his human life and family.

There was something else in his eyes. I saw it for only a moment, but I knew it the same.

He missed them.

"We lead a pretty simplistic life, I'd say. Work day all day, play all evening, then sleep the night away. It was actually pretty fun, I'd say. I enjoyed working with my family. We always had fun cracking jokes or pulling pranks. My older sisters were the ones who taught me all about pranks, surprisingly. They were damn good at pranking my brothers, let me tell you. I got almost as good as they did, actually. Anyways, we all lived pretty normal lives. Well, they did. My life changed when I was twenty years old. It ended then too, I suppose you can say."

"What happened?" I asked. I was growing more and more interested. Every time one of the Cullens talked about their past lives, it was like being a little kid having a story read. It had like a mystical quality to it, one that I couldn't get enough of.

Emmett grinned at my wide-eyed appearance. "Well, I was out hiking on my own one day, out grabbing wood for our house. I chopped down a few trees and went hacking away at them for a few hours. By the time I was done, I had gotten all we needed, even a bit more. But me, being who I am, I decided to get a bit more so we would have some extra. So I went to work on this nice, big tree. I cut it down, shouted "timber" and watched it fall. When it fell, though, I heard a noise I didn't recognize. I was curious, so I decided to investigate. That's when I saw what had made that noise. A bear. The tree had almost crushed it."

I was fully drawn in to his story now.

"A bear?" I gasped. He nodded. "What did you do?"

He laughed. "I did the first thing that came to mind. I chucked the axe at it. Not very smart, I know. I hit it at least. Well, kinda. I mean, it sort of scraped the bear's shoulder and pissed it off even more than it already was. So naturally, knowing that I was probably gonna die and all, I charged the damn thing, screaming at it. I managed to get a few good punches in, but that sucker was tough. I nearly died when it attacked me. That's when Rosalie came into the picture. She killed the bear, fed off of it, picked me up and carried me away."

He leaned back into the couch, smiling fondly once again at his memory. "I thought she was an angel sent by God himself to save me. I don't remember much after that since I passed out from blood loss. I do, however, remember being bitten and having the venom seep through me. Gotta say, it was the worst pain I'd ever felt in my entire life. It was torture, but in the end, it was all worth it, because here I am, a loving wife and a kickass family to spend eternity with. I couldn't be happier, honestly. Rose, though, she could be. And it kind of hurts to see her sad, just like it hurt seeing Alice sad and seeing Edward sad all the damn time."

"You like it when everyone feels the same way you do," I mused.

He nodded. "Yeah, pretty much. With Alice, it's pretty easy to get her happy, especially now that you're here. Edward is a work in progress, let me tell you. Rosalie, though, it's hard. She's never really been fully happy. I don't think she ever will be since she can't get out of this life without dying." Emmett grimaced at the thought of her dying and shook his head to clear it away.

"That still doesn't explain why she hates me so much," I murmured.

"She doesn't hate you, Bella. I swear it on my parents' graves she doesn't. She just worries. I'm sure Alice has told you about that one chick from a few years ago? Amanda?" I nodded. "That's one reason. She doesn't want Alice to end up hurting you like she almost the other day, because she knows Alice won't be able to survive. Plus, she's fearful that one of us might slip around you. Carlisle she knows wouldn't, same with Esme, but the rest of us have had our…problems."

"Like what?" I asked.

Emmett bit his lip and stared down at the table. His eyes betrayed his emotions, showing pain and sorrow. This was a whole new side to Emmett; one I'd never think existed. Yet here he was, opening up to me and being true to his feelings.

"I guess it's safe to say that when I was became a vampire, Rosalie and I didn't start off being with one another. It's weird to say and I can imagine how strange that may sound, but it's true. We liked it each other, sure and I was grateful that she saved me, but I was in my own world, so I didn't really regard her as much other than a friend at the time. After a few months of being trained by Carlisle and Esme to resist my thirst and control myself, I met this girl. She was a pretty thing and a real sweetheart. But I was still a newborn and I wasn't strong enough…" He trailed off, the pain on his face telling the story for him.

I surprised myself by reaching out and touching his muscular shoulder. "I'm sorry," I murmured.

He smiled softly at me. "You don't have to be, Bella. There was nothing you could do, you weren't born yet. She wasn't the only one, though. There was another, sometime later. It ended the same way, more or less. I was disgusted with myself. I loathed myself for killing two beautiful, innocent creatures. I tried to kill myself, actually." I gasped a little. He chuckled. "Yeah, it was lame and it didn't work. I was miffed, though. Then Rosalie came along and she helped me. She comforted me, just like Esme and Carlisle did. She was there for me. That's sort of how we ended up falling in love. That and Edward helped a lot."

His smile grew a bit wider and his eyes filled with mirth, showing the old Emmett once again.

"So as you can see, Rosalie is concerned about you. She's had some problems in her life, but it wouldn't be right for me to share with you. If anything, she should be the one to tell you, though I don't know if she ever will. She's not as open as most of us are. She doesn't like to talk about her past too much and all."

"I see," I said, nodding.

"Look, the point is, don't doubt what your heart tells you. I know, I know, cheesy romance stuff isn't my thing, but I do know enough to know that it's true. You can't deny your feelings and you sure as hell shouldn't. Alice loves you, that much I know to be true. You just have to give it some time before you feel the same way, which I'm sure you will."

"Thanks Emmett," I replied, smiling warmly at him. "That helps a bit."

He beamed. "Glad to help, Bells. I wouldn't want my new little sister to feel left out, now would I?"

Little sister.

That's right. He was going to be my brother soon.

How strange that I would have siblings.

"You know, it's weird. I always thought you were just the comedic relief who loved to fight stuff, Emmett. I never knew there was so much depth to you aside from all that," I joked. The tension that I had felt before was gone now. Emmett always seemed to take away with his humorous nature.

He guffawed loudly at that. "Hey, cut me some slack here, Bella. I'm not good at this serious crap. I mean, I can be when I need to, but making people laugh is so much easier."

"Emmett, the only person you make laugh is _yourself_," I pointed out.

He rolled his eyes at me. "Ha ha, very funny. But you know, if you and Alice want to, say, video tape you guys kissing, I sure wouldn't complain," he teased, smirking. "Hell, you could just make out on the couch for all I care."

I blushed furiously and hid my face in my hands. "Shut up!" I shouted.

"What? It's hot! Don't pretend you don't like it, Bells. I hear you moaning every time she kisses you. You practically moan every time she touches you to! Gotta say, I didn't think you thought that way, little sis. We're more alike than I thought," he boomed happily, clearly enjoying my embarrassment.

"Shut up, shut up!" I hissed. He just laughed even harder.

I heard the door opening then and glanced up to see that Alice and the others had finally returned from hunting. Edward was through the door first, smirking at me amusedly, followed by Jasper, then Amara and then Rosalie. Wait. Where the hell's Alice?

"She'll be back in a few," Edward answered.

"Oh."

Jasper, Edward and Amara all disappeared, leaving Rosalie, Emmett and I alone.

I gulped, shifting slightly on the couch when Rosalie's eyes fell on me.

Emmett grinned and stood up, pumping his arm playfully before departing the room. All that left was Rosalie and I. I gulped again, nervously looking down at my lap.

"I'd like to talk with you," Rosalie stated.

Whoo boy.

**A/N: Yo.**

**In regards to a review I received for the last chapter, I wanted to take the time to comment on it here.**

**First of all, the whole Amara "sex" thing was meant for humor. She was merely playing around with Bella when she suggested it, knowing full well that Bella is Alice's mate and all. That doesn't mean she wasn't somewhat serious, though, because that's who Amara is as a character. She obviously cares for Bella and likes her enough to play around with her a bit regarding a subject she finds humorous.**

**The thing with Leah was more or less a prelude for what may end up happening. As far as Bella finding her attractive goes, in the book series Bella thought both Edward and Jacob were attractive, so where's the harm in including that in this story? Besides, rivalries make for more entertainment in my opinion, and I've always liked Leah. I've always felt she could use some more depth then what she got.**

**I don't expect everyone to love this story. I don't. It's my first Twilight story ever and it is a work in progress, so obviously it won't be perfect. Here's the thing, though. If you don't like it, then don't read it. Constructive criticism I can and will take. But blatant insults? No. I won't stand for that, especially when there's no purpose behind them.**

**I won't change how I write because one person doesn't like it. Sorry, that's just how I am. No one else has complained, though. Which is good.**

**To the rest of you, again, you're awesome. Sorry. Needed to get that off my chest. Hope you all enjoy this chapter. :)**


	20. Jealousy

**Disclaimer: I don't own Twilight or any of its characters. I own any OC. Man, I sound like a broken record with this crap.**

**Jealousy**

"May I sit down?" Rosalie asked, startling me.

Since when did she need to ask?

I nodded dumbly. She gently seated herself several inches away from me, keeping her eyes on me the entire time. She didn't speak until I glanced up to meet her eyes.

Rosalie looked at me placidly, not a hint of anger anywhere in her gorgeous features.

"Emmett spoke with you about me a little, I assume?" she asked. I nodded silently again. "Then you understand a bit behind my reasoning for not wanting you around us. It isn't that I hate you, I'm just concerned that you being here will cause problems for both parties, yourself especially."

"I-" She cut me off with a gentle wave of her hand.

"Please, let me finish," she said. I was surprised by how soft her tone was. Even her face was soft, almost sad looking. "We have all made mistakes in the past, Bella. We've ruined the lives of countless people and we're forced to live with that knowledge for all eternity. Sometimes I feel that having a perfect memory of my vampire life is meant as a cruel, twisted joke of some sort. Then again, I feel that my being a vampire is a sick joke. However, there's nothing I can do about that unless I were to kill myself, which I certainly won't do."

She paused and leaned into to couch.

"I don't hate you, Bella. I know I treat you poorly and I know I frighten you, but I really don't hate you. I'm sorry for my actions today. I'm sorry I hurt you and I'm sorry I hurt your feelings. What I said and did was uncalled for. It was barbaric and it shows that I am still a monster, no matter how hard I try not to be. I'm sorry. You don't deserve that sort of treatment after what you've been through. Again, I'm sorry. I know you won't believe me right off the bat and I understand if you choose to distance yourself from me," she said. Both her voice and her eyes smoldered with remorse and sincerity.

She meant what she said. She really was sorry.

I bit my lip. "Then why did you treat me that way?" I asked, unable to keep the hurt from appearing in my voice.

Rosalie frowned for a moment before letting out a quiet sigh. "I don't mean to, I swear. I just have trouble with my temper. I've always had a temper problem, even when I was a human I had one. Now, though, because of the way I feel and the way my life is, it's even harder to keep under control. I've spent many years training myself to better my temper. Jasper has helped me a great deal since he joined the family. Sometimes, though, it's hard to control. Being a vampire has a great deal behind it. It makes it worse, if anything."

"Look, I'm not good at this sort of thing. Apologizing is something I've never done well, even when I'm sincere and I mean it. The way I treated you was wrong and I do wish I could take back the things I said. I can't though. And while I may be a bitch and while my attitude may be poor, some part of what I said I felt as true. I do worry that Alice's visions are wrong. However, I can't focus on the what-ifs and neither should you. If you care for my sister and you show it, then stay here with her. I might complain, but I won't stop you."

Rosalie moved a lock of blonde hair from her face before turning to face me fully.

"I love Alice, Bella. I'm sure you're smart enough to know that. She's my sister and I hate seeing her sad. I've seen her heartbroken on a variety of occasions, especially when we dealt with the Amanda incident. I don't want that happen to you, Bella. I truly don't. We've all sinned, Bella. We're not perfect, even though we try to be. I'm not asking you to leave. I'm merely asking you to make sure that this is what you want."

"I would never do anything to hurt her, Rose. She's been so good to me," I whispered.

Rosalie stared down at the table. "I know. I know you wouldn't. But I know that something could still happen, be it intentional or not. I don't want to see my sister the way she was before you came into her life. She wasn't the same. She was a shell of herself, even when I first met her. The fact that she's been alone almost as long as Edward has had a great effect on her. Then she saw you and all of that changed. I want her to stay that way. I don't want her to suffer anymore."

She stood up then, feeling that the conversation was done. She'd said her part, now she wanted me to think over what she'd told me. I couldn't help but think that deep down she did want me not to join the family. I couldn't be sure, though.

Still…

"R-Rosalie?" I stammered.

She turned to face me at an angle. "Yes?"

"I…I don't hate you either. In fact, I want to be friends with you," I murmured.

That surprised her. Something flashed in her eyes that I didn't recognize. She turned away from me to hide the shock on her face, though I was still able to see it for a few seconds.

"I, um…" She didn't know how to respond to that. Emmett appeared downstairs and smiled at me as Rosalie fumbled over how to respond. In the end, she more harrumphed and looped her arm around Emmett's. He gave me a thumb up as the two walked out of the door.

I sighed quietly, running a hand through my hair.

"Nicely done," I jumped slightly at the new voice and glanced up to see an amused Amara smiling at me. She was standing a few feet away, resting against the wall.

"Geez, Amara. You startled me."

She shrugged her shoulder sheepishly. "Sorry. Gotta say though, you managed to keep your cool pretty well considering. Plus, you stumped Rose at the end. The look on her face was priceless."

I rolled my eyes. "I was being serious though."

"I know you were," she replied, grinning.

"So where's Alice?" I asked.

"She'll be back shortly. She needed to go clear her head is all. Don't worry, you'll be kissing her in no time," Amara chuckled. I blushed slightly and hid my face in my hands.

"Oh, leave her alone Amara," sang a familiar voice. I looked up and smiled.

"Alice!" I shouted happily. She grinned and danced over to me, pulling me into her body for a warm hug. I nuzzled into her shoulder, breathing in her amazingly sweet Neapolitan scent. Oh how she smelled amazing. I mean seriously. Bottle some of this up for me.

"Silly girl, I wasn't gone for _that _long," she teased, kissing my shoulder.

I pulled away from her shoulder and received a gentle kiss on the lips. I moaned quietly at the sensations and the taste and kissed her back, forgetting that Amara was still in the room. Hell, I forgot that the others could hear it. I didn't care, either. I needed this.

We pulled away at the same time, both smiling at one another. She seated herself next to me and proceeded to cuddle with me, much to my delight. One of the many things I loved about Alice: how amazingly cuddly she was. God it was like snuggling with an oversized teddy bear. Well, a cold, rock hard, bloodsucking teddy bear, but whatever. Close enough.

"I love when you're like this," I murmured, nestling into her neck. She giggled and did the same thing.

"You two are so adorable together," Amara mused. I had completely forgotten she was still in the room with us. "Don't mind me; I'm just going to watch some TV. You two go on and enjoy snuggling with one another. Actually, I should take a picture…"

Her voice was drowned out as I became consumed by Alice as she started to purr. Dear God, I loved when she purred. Her entire body vibrated and emanated a soothing noise. It calmed me nerves and relaxed me completely. I don't give a shit how lame it is, I love when she purrs too.

We both stayed that way for a good long while without speaking. It was peaceful, warm and above all else comfortable for the both of us. I became distinctively aware that Jasper had joined us, but he said nothing and silently seated himself near Amara. Neither Alice nor I minded their company, since both of them were respectful of our time with one another. I liked that about Jasper and Amara. Though Amara was playful, she was far more respecting then Emmett. Not that I minded his jests every now and then.

"Did Rosalie apologize?" Alice asked, breaking me from my thoughts.

"Mmhmm," I replied quietly.

"I'm sorry too. I'm not as good at controlling my temper as I thought I was," she stated, just as quiet. I almost didn't hear her.

I moved my head up slightly so I was looking into her smoldering golden orbs. So beautiful

"I'm guessing it has something to do with me being your mate and all, right?" I asked, aiming the question at either Jasper or Amara.

Jasper nodded once. "Yes, that's correct. As Alice is new to having a mate, she's experiencing things she's never experienced before. Her protectiveness of you happens to be one of those things, and as such she'll be incredibly defensive of you for a time, at least until she learns to control her urges a bit more. It'll never change, granted, but she'll learn how to cope with her temper and protective nature. It just takes time."

"The fact that you're human has a lot to do with it to," Amara added. "You aren't as physically capable as we are and you're much more…shall we say, fragile? That's another reason for Alice's protectiveness towards you. You can be hurt easier then she can and that's the mentality that she has. She can't help feeling that way, though. It's instinctive."

Alice frowned, clearly not liking the sound of it. I was a bit flattered, actually.

"By the way, Bella, why was Rosalie so upset at the mall? She never told me."

I glanced over at Amara. "You didn't mention it to her?" I asked. Amara grimaced.

"Bella, I wouldn't-"

"What happened?" Alice interrupted, clearly curious.

I shrugged. "I ran into some chick is all, really. I mean, she was pretty and all, but she wasn't as beautiful as you are, Alice. She introduced herself, and then ran off. That's it."

Alice had the strangest expression on her face as I explained all of this.

"A girl," she said. "You ran into a girl."

I nodded. "Yeah, and-"

"You thought she was pretty," Alice stated, her voice darkening slightly.

Oh shit. Wrong word choice. Big time. Damn it.

"Alice, I said she wasn't as pretty as you, remember?" I pointed out, trying to ease her.

She frowned, her eyes darkening significantly. "But you said she was _pretty_. That means that you were _attracted_ to her."

Fuck.

"What? N-no! Why are you-?" Why would she jump to that conclusion?

Alice's eyes turned pitch black as she curled her lips back slightly as her hands grasped my shoulders. "Who is she? Where is she? I want to know!"

"Alice!" Jasper shouted, grabbing her attention. He and Amara were both eyeing her warily. Jasper was tensed up, likely feeling the emotions in the room. Amara seemed calmer, but looked like she would jump in at any given moment.

Alice hissed at her brother, a violent hiss that made his eyes narrow. He and Amara both stood in unison, glancing at one another for a second. Amara departed from the room, leaving only Jasper with us.

He tentatively reached a hand out towards her, slowly. "Alice, calm down. You don't have to be upset."

She snarled at him and swatted his hand away. "No! I need to find this girl! NOW!"

I wasn't really sure how to react. Alice looked pissed off and I was the one who caused it. Shit.

The violence in her eyes was the same look I'd seen before at the mall and in the forest. Yet there was something different about it this time, something I didn't recognize. I was worried instantly at the sight.

Was she…?

Alice snapped her head back to me, boring her eyes into mine. "Tell me where she is. Tell me who she is. Now," she growled, tightening her grip on my shoulders. I winced at the roughness and placed my hands on her arms.

"Alice, please stop. You don't have to be so upset. We barely said two words to each other," I said, still not understanding what was going on.

Oh. Wait. This was just like Amara and Jasper had said. The whole mate reflex thing. But why was she acting out when I'd just looked at someone?

"It's jealousy," I heard Edward say. I glanced over to my left to see him walking towards Alice with wary eyes. He glanced at Jasper, who moved back a few paces. "And you're correct in thinking it's a part of the "mate reflex" as you say. It's a natural thing for mates to experience jealousy. Again, this is a first for Alice. She's not herself right now."

"I AM myself!" Alice snapped, baring her teeth as she did. Edward took a step back while Jasper began to concentrate. Small waves of calm began filtering through the area. I felt them first and relaxed despite Alice's grip on my shoulders. Alice, however, fought them off.

Jasper frowned while Edward moved in and placed his hands on her arms, pulling them off of me and attempting to pin them down. "Calm down, Alice. You're scaring your mate," he stated calmly.

She glared at her brother. "No! I'll kill her! No one touches my Bella! No one!" she hissed as she started thrashing about.

"Alice, please, stop," I urged. I boldly placed my hands on her cool cheeks and started rubbing circles on them. This calmed her down a bit, but she still maintained her grimace. Shit. That's why Amara had tried to warn me. Damn it.

"It's not your fault, Bella. Alice needs to get used to this herself," Edward interjected at me, struggling to keep her down.

Alice wasn't having it.

"Bella is MINE! Mine and no one else's!" Alice roared. "No one can look at her, no one can touch her. She is MINE!"

I watched her writhe around, hissing and growling like she had earlier today. She looked nothing like my Alice now.

My Alice. Again with that. I guess this mate thing is rubbing off on me after all.

Edward made various soft remarks to try and calm her down, but they did nothing. I glanced over, waiting to see why Jasper had yet to use his ability. He was watching her warily, obviously waiting to see if Edward could do it alone. When he failed, Jasper began to focus.

A stronger, more intense wave of calm crashed into us, Alice especially. She slumped back into the couch, blinking several times, obviously trying to get her thoughts straight. Her writhing finally ceased and Edward removed his hands from her shoulders. She glanced up at him through hazy eyes.

"Yes, Alice. You frightened your mate a little. No, she isn't upset, just worried. No, you don't have to be jealous of someone she met just once. Calm yourself, Alice. Don't let the animal within you take control. Keep it and your feelings in check. I know you can. I know it's hard for you, but you have to do it. For your sake and for Bella's," Edward said.

Alice gritted her teeth, struggling with herself for a moment.. When she reopened them, they were a dark butterscotch color. I noticed that the anger and violence I had seen in them were gone now. She seemed pained though as her eyes flickered to meet mine.

I sighed in relief as she looked at me sorrowfully. "I'm sorry about that, Bella. I-"

I shushed her by pressing my lips to hers and wrapping my arms back around her. "It's okay, Alice. No harm done. You just need to get used to this is all. I'm not upset, either. I was having a similar mental battle myself when I saw her."

Alice frowned against my lips at first, but shrugged and happily kissed back. I noticed an intrigued look on Edward's face, obviously relating to my earlier statement.

"How interesting," he mused. Alice, Jasper and Amara looked at him curiously, but he waved their silent questions off.

He then departed from the room, giving me a soft smile before entering the other living room. I heard their piano begin playing, so I figured Edward was going to serenade us with a song to help ease the tension. Jasper and Amara looked at one another, obviously having their own silent conversation. After a moment, Amara turned the TV off and the two quietly went upstairs, each giving both Alice and I a smile before doing so.

That just left myself and Alice.

She was staring down at her lap sheepishly, an adorable pout on her face. I rolled my eyes at her cuteness and snuggled up to her again. She hesitated at first, but eventually she looped her arms around me and pulled me in close, breathing in slowly as she nestled against my head.

"You smell wonderful," she cooed. I felt her nose brush against the top of my head and giggled at the contact, closing my eyes and listening to the rhythm of her unnecessary breathing. Eventually her purring picked up again, bringing pure peace to the entire room. I sighed happily as I rested my head on her shoulder.

"This is my favorite thing to do," I said, smiling. "I love cuddling. I love the purring. I love all of this. It's nice and calm and it always relaxes me. It's nice."

I felt her nod her head against me. "Yes, it is."

About ten minutes passed by before I heard a car driving up. Then another one.

Carlisle and Esme were home, I assumed.

And I was right.

Both Carlisle and Esme entered the house, Esme first, then Carlisle. Not but seconds later were Emmett and Rosalie coming in, obviously returning from Lord know whatever it was they were doing. I cringed a little, trying hard not to think about that. Ugh.

"Hello girls," Carlisle greeted, smiling warmly at us.

I returned the smile. "Hi Carlisle How was work?"

He chuckled. "Oh it was quite ordinary, I'd say. There were a few new patients, but nothing too noteworthy. I heard that a lot's happened today, however." He idly glanced at Rosalie, then back at Alice as he spoke.

Rosalie and Alice looked at one another, their eyes registering an emotion I didn't recognize, before nodding at one another.

"I also heard that there is another vampire in the area?" he asked, looking at Alice.

She nodded. "Yes. I had a vision of it in the mall earlier today. I was actually outside trying to focus on the vampire's movements, trying to see where she was heading. So far, I've only gotten a few vague things. She obviously doesn't know where she's going or what she's going to do. Her movements are impulsive. That just furthers the evidence that she's a newborn."

Carlisle nodded in understanding. "What of the other two, have you seen anything from them?"

She shook her head. "No. I've only seen them moving north, away from Forks. They're obviously leaving the area to lure us into a false sense of awareness, or at the very least to plan out their next attack. I know that they aren't finished, though. I knew when I first fought with them in the forest that they wouldn't stop until they got Bella." She grimaced as she finished and squeezed me a bit tighter.

I remembered the news report I'd seen earlier regarding the dead bodies being found.

"What do you propose we do?" Edward asked, coming from the piano room.

Carlisle frowned and started thinking it through, as did Esme.

Esme was the first to speak up. "I think it best that we keep up with our current plans. We should just lay low and act out our days as we would if the other vampires weren't around. Are there any other vampires in the area?"

"Just Sophie and Arthur," Amara replied. Both she and Jasper had apparently joined without my noticing. Damn those two knew how to be silent.

"Perhaps we should invite them over and inform them of the current situation so that they are aware of what's going on," Carlisle stated. Esme nodded in agreement. "Now then, the current question is what we should do concerning the schooling situation."

"I think that, given the current circumstances that you all should keep going to maintain our public image. At the very least you would know if any of the vampires were in the area, whether by smelling them or by Alice's visions or Edward's mind reading. I also suggest that we enroll Bella into the school. After all, since she'll be in the family soon, she'll have to abide by our rules, now won't she?" Esme asked, smiling lovingly at me.

I smiled back for a moment before scoffing. "You mean I gotta go to school?"

She nodded, smiling wider. "Yes ma'am, that you do. I want my children to get a good education after all."

I couldn't help but laugh at the eight collective groans that echoed through the house.

"We've already graduated more times than any human has," Amara whined.

"It's so boring," Rosalie added. "And I swear that humans grow dumber with each generation."

"If we must, we must," Jasper sighed. "Though I don't mind it so much. Learning is fun."

Edward rolled his eyes. "Says you. You don't have to listen to everyone's thoughts day in and day out. I swear the things some of those girls think are going to drive me up the wall. You'd be feeling the same way if you could hear their thoughts, let me tell you."

"Oh, stop it, Eddie. You just need to get laid is all," Emmett chuckled. Rosalie smacked him while Edward just shot him an icy glare. "What? It's true! It'd make you less tense and moody all the damn time."

Amara, Jasper, Alice and I all snickered as his face contorted into a deeper glare. Even Rosalie was smirking a little. Carlisle and Esme merely shook their heads and quietly laughed at their children's silliness.

"So Amara, will you go call your friends and invite them over?" Esme asked, turning to her redhead daughter.

Amara nodded. "Yeah, sure, hold on a sec." She ran off into the kitchen to go and call her friends then. Carlisle decided to go up to his studies for a bit, Esme and Edward going with him. Jasper went over and started speaking quickly and quietly to Rosalie and Emmett. I saw several nods and head shakes. Then the three departed from the house.

"What was that about?" I whispered to Alice curiously.

Alice giggled. "They're going to go have a training session together."

"Training?"

She nodded. "Yes. We train from time to time to keep our skills sharp and to test our limits against one another. Jasper and Amara are usually are teachers. We usually have playful training sessions when the sun is out or at night. Sometimes we train during storms too. It's constant for us since we need to keep on our toes in case something like this were to happen."

"So who's the best fighter in your family?" I asked curiously.

"That would be Amara. She's not as fast as I am or as strong as Emmett, but she has ten times the amount of skill and fighting prowess then the rest of us combined, even Jasper. And Jasper was brought up on fighting. She's been through a much more rigorous training then we do. Half of the things we day are child's play for her. But Amara only teaches us if necessary. Her training sessions are long and take a lot of time to master. Jasper's are strenuous too, but they're far more simplistic. He's more tactical then she is, after all."

"What do you mean?"

"I'm sure he'll explain it to you later on. It'd be wrong of me to share his story for him."

"Why train, though? I mean, with yours, Edward's, Jasper's and Amara's abilities, why bother training?"

She laughed her tinkling laugh. "Because it helps better us in what we do. It's not just training to fight, it's training on how to act at the right time, how to think on our feet, how to face a problem without relying solely on our gifts. When I fought those two in the forest, I only used my gift half the time. The other half was my own skill. You can see how well that got me, though. That's why it's important for us to train our minds and bodies alike so that we'll be prepared to face whatever task that lays ahead of us. I'll have to start training too, though it can wait for a while."

I frowned. "It's because of me, isn't it?" I asked.

She kissed me on the cheek and nuzzled me. "Bella, don't feel badly. It's fine, really. I can train any day I choose to. I just enjoy spending more time with you is all. Besides, it's not like you can't be present to watch us. Edward didn't like the idea when I brought it up, but with Carlisle and Esme around, I know for a fact that you won't be injured or anything like that. Besides, I wouldn't let anything bad happen to you."

I rested my head on her again. "Okay."

"Besides, I think you might actually enjoy watching us train. I always find our training sessions to be amusing, even if they're meant to be serious. With Emmett and Amara, seriousness is always a bit hard."

"With you too," I joked.

She crinkled her nose and stuck her tongue out at me. "Yeah, yeah."

"So do you guys have like, your own fighting styles or something like that?" I inquired.

Alice paused to think on that. "Sort of. I mean, not in the sense that you would think. We don't fight with karate or anything that mundane. Our fighting styles are all unique since we all fight differently. Some of us, for example, are equated to certain animals in how we fight and in how we hunt too. I suppose that's due in part to our more animalistic nature, which you've seen before. You haven't actually witnessed how we truly fight. Myself perhaps, but not the others."

"I'm curious," I said.

She giggled. "You're _always_ curious, silly."

"Can you blame me?" I asked. She rolled her eyes and kissed me softly on the lips.

"No, I can't. Anyways, to answer your question, let's start off with the easiest. When you see Emmett, what's the first animal you think of?"

"A bear, "I answered simply.

She grinned and nodded. "Precisely. That's probably the animal closest to what Emmett fights like. If you've seen videos of bears attacking, you've got the idea. Of course, he's stronger and faster than a bear is and much more fearsome. Like a super bear, I guess. Either way, Emmett relies more on brute strength than anything else. He's never needed to rely on anything else aside from strength, though, considering how powerful he is."

I stifled a giggle when she said "super bear". My God she was lame sometimes. I love it.

"Then there's Edward, who I'd say is definitely a lot like a mountain lion when he fights. He definitely has the same mannerisms of a mountain lion, plus he likes to think he's the "king of the jungle" so to speak, at least in terms of family. He's fast, yes, but he lacks a few things, like efficiency. Still, with his mind reading talent, he's a formidable fighter."

"What about you?"

"Who, me? Well, they say I'm like a cheetah, which I'd agree on. I rely on speed, accuracy and precision. My strikes are lethal and I always strike fast, just like a cheetah does. Unlike a cheetah, though, I don't tire out and I'm much smarter. I happen to be one of the most skilled fighters in our family, actually," she said, grinning rather smugly.

"You forgot to mention the gracefulness of a cheetah," I pointed out.

Alice rolled her eyes. "Oh Bella, you are far too sweet for your own good sometimes."

I stuck my tongue out at her. "Well, go on," I urged.

She sighed. "Well anyways, then there's Rosalie. I'd say that the closest animal that matches her would be a snake. A cobra to be precise, I believe."

I cocked my head to side at that one.

"Now I don't mean snake in the way you might think. I mean in the fact that she's incredibly deadly and easily agitated. Not only that, but she's precise and every one of her attacks is venomous, whether literally or figuratively. Rosalie has the worst temper of our family, so naturally she's one of the most dangerous. The angrier she gets, the more dangerous she becomes. That's a common thing when it comes to our emotion. She isn't the strongest and she does have a tendency to let her anger get the best of her, but when she's in control…"

She paused for a moment and looked like she was recalling something, shuddering to herself.

"Another reason I'd equate her to a cobra or a viper is because of the fact that she enjoys tormenting her enemies the way a snake does. She likes to wrap around them and break them slowly and painfully. Sometimes she gets a little too into it, I'll admit. That's when she's the scariest; when she likes causing pain. It's a side of Rosalie that you say very rarely and you definitely want to keep it that way, let me tell you."

"Then there's Jasper and Amara, our best fighters. With them, we often compare them more to forces of nature then to animals. Jasper is like lightning. Fast, deadly and vicious. One strike from him is usually all it takes, truth be told. Amara on the other hand is very much like a wildfire. She starts of slow, but as the fight goes on her danger level spreads. She's wild and unruly when she fights, but she knows exactly what she's doing, which is why she's so dangerous. You never want to see her get upset, Bella. Never."

I shuddered at the warning in her words. Her face was dark as she said them, meaning she herself had witnessed Amara angry before. That worried me.

"What about Carlisle and Esme?"

Her face softened immediately. "Carlisle and Esme don't come off as the fighting types because they hate violence, Carlisle especially. They usually try to avoid violence whenever they can, even going so far as to not full out fighting in a battle. However, they have had moments where they've shown their more…animalistic side. You caught a glimpse of Esme's today." Now it was Alice's turn to shudder as she remembered the look in her mother's eyes.

"It's rare to see, that's for sure. But they've both shown it before. They usually only become that way when their family is threatened, because they're the leaders of our coven and all," she explained, clearly taking my look of fear in.

I nodded in understanding. I found the idea of seeing Carlisle and Esme being feral strange and terrifying in the same, especially when I thought of Esme today. I wondered if that was the full extent of angry Esme or if that was just the beginning.

I shivered again, not wanting to think of that.

We sat in silence for another minute and a half. "So I'm really gonna have to go to school?"

She laughed. "Yes, Bella, I'm afraid so. You'll have to deal with it like the rest of us. Don't worry; I'll make sure I'm in all your classes, if that's what you'd like."

"Yeah, I'd rather have that then be stuck with a bunch of strangers. Do you promise you'll try to keep your, um, jealousy problem under control?" I asked warily.

She crossed her arms and frowned at me. "I do not have jealousy problems," she huffed. "I just…don't like the idea of you looking at other girls. Or talking to other girls or being around other girls..."

I gave her a stern look. "Alice…"

She sighed. "Alright, I promise I'll do what I can to tone it down. I can't help it though, it's like I have this voice in the back of my head screaming that you're mine and that by letting you talk to another girl, I'm allowing myself a chance at losing you to her. I can't stand it, Bella. I hate feeling that way and I don't like acting out on it either, but if I don't, it drives me up the wall."

I furrowed my brows and started to think.

I didn't want Alice to act out the way she had today if I looked at another girl. I mean, I wouldn't blatantly check any other girls out, especially not in front of her. There was that one girl from earlier, but it was brief. No, I think I can safely so I wouldn't do that again.

But I wouldn't want Alice to act that way. Not because I'd be afraid for whatever girl I'd talked to or looked at or whatever, but because I wouldn't want her to do anything that would upset or hurt her later. I cared about her too much. I liked seeing her happy and bubbly, not broody and upset. That was definitely Edward's department, if anything.

Ignoring the loud harrumph I heard upstairs, I rested my forehead against hers.

"What if we showed them that we were together? That way they knew that I was yours and that little voice wouldn't bother you so much?" I offered.

She cocked her head to the side curiously. "What do you mean?"

"You know, holding hands and whatnot. A public display of affection. Nothing too grand, of course, since I wouldn't be able to handle that right off the bat. But minor stuff like cuddling and hugging and, er…maybe kissing…" I trailed off on the end when I started to think more about it.

Alice and I, kissing each other, surrounded by horny jocks all hooting and shouting at us…

I cringed at the thought.

No. I didn't want that. I didn't want anyone to see MY Alice that way. No boy would ever treat her like that.

No. I'd kill them if they did. Yes. Kill them.

Whoa. Holy fuck where did that come from?

"Bella?" Alice gently nudged me. "Are you okay?"

"I was…er…I'm fine," I stammered, running a hand through my hair. "Really, I'm fine. Just thinking is all."

She didn't look convinced, but sighed and dropped the subject. I could tell by the look in her eyes that she wasn't dropping it for good, though.

"Well, Arthur and Sophie will be arriving in two hours and thirty two minutes. I think it's nice that you'll get to meet them. They're both very nice, especially Arthur. Sophie's a bit odd, yes, but then again, so am I." she giggled.

I grinned and nodded in agreement. "You're the weirdest person I've ever met."

She playfully smacked my arm. "Shut up, you. Don't forget you still have to try on all the clothes I bought you." A thought hit her and she was suddenly on her feet, smirking at me. "Up! That's what we're going to do right now. You're going to try on all your outfits until they arrive."

"What about food?" I asked. I hadn't eaten much today.

Alice smacked her forehead. "Shit. I forgot about that. Okay, how about this. You try on clothes with me for an hour and a half, and then I'll make you something to eat. Deal?"

"Deal."

**A/N: Call it what you want, I kind of liked this chapter.**

**I think that this chapter is meant to sort of push along the relationship that Bella has with Rosalie, among other smaller things. It's a predecessor of sorts for things to come.**

**Arthur and Sophie are two OCs that will be featured more prominently as the story goes along. They'll have some key parts here and there in future chapters, just so you guys know.**

**Review if you wish. I love you guys and gals even if you don't, because you're reading this. And that makes me happy enough, really. Still, hearing your thoughts is a bonus.**


	21. Arthur

**Disclaimer: I am not Stephanie Meyer (I almost said Myers, ha), therefore I don't own Twilight (sad, I know). I do own Amara, Sophie and Arthur. **

**Arthur**

Alice extended her hand out to me.

"Shall we?" she asked. I rolled my eyes and nodded.

She grinned and scooped me into her arms before dancing upstairs to her room. Once inside she set me down and disappeared, only to reappear with all the bags she had bought me. I grimaced a little when I realized how long this would take.

"Why did you buy so many clothes?" I asked, opening a bag to sneak a peek inside.

She playfully batted my hand away and full out sneered at me. "Because your sense of fashion stinks and I simply won't allow you not to dress the way you should."

I furrowed my brow at her. "Hey, give me some credit; I've been forced to steal half of my outfits, thank you very much."

Alice's jaw dropped at that. "You stole your clothes?"

Oops. I never mentioned that.

I nodded ashamedly. "Yeah, I kinda had to. I didn't have any money, so, you know, I took what I could get."

A flash of anger appeared on her face for a moment before she discarded it and pulled me into a hug.

"Oh Bella, I'm sorry."

I hugged her back. "It's okay. No reason to be upset. What's done is done, I guess."

She shook her head sadly. "You deserve better than that."

"I have better, Alice. I have you." I leaned in and kissed her cheek to prove my point.

Alice looked at me endearingly for a moment before smiling. "You know that was lame, right?"

I scoffed. "Yeah, yeah, fuck off. Now let's get this over with, shall we?"

"You have such a dirty mouth," she giggled. "But yes, I agree. Now then, choose a bag."

The next hour and a half was, as I had expected, half tortuous and half entertaining. It wasn't that I didn't enjoy trying on clothes. In fact, I found that activity somewhat enjoyable. It was the fact that Alice was constantly tossing clothes at me to try on, seconds after I just put the first pair on. She had me change in the bathroom, since I was still a little uneasy at the idea of, well, being half naked in front of her. She rolled her eyes, but agreed nonetheless.

I had to admit, most of what she bought I liked. I wasn't much for dresses and she seemed to know this, since most of the dresses she bought were actually comfortable and not mind numbingly annoying. The outfits were a bit…well, flashy, but I liked them too.

It was decided in the end that I would be keeping everything, which I figured. With Alice, it didn't seem like any clothing would EVER go to waste. She merrily danced about as she began placing all of my clothes into her freakishly huge closet. I didn't fail to notice that there was a large portion empty with a plate that had my name on it above. Huh. She must've fixed all of this up years ago or something.

Once she was finished, as if on cue my stomach started growling. Alice giggled.

"Let's go get you some food, shall we?" she asked, offering her hand to me.

I grinned and nodded. As we made our way downstairs, I could already smell something being cooked in the kitchen. My mouth watered and I licked my lips. I noticed Alice was pouting, though.

"What's wrong?" I asked.

She huffed. "I wanted to be the one to cook you something."

I kissed her cheek. "Aw, don't worry. You can cook for me tomorrow, how's that sound?"

Her eyes lit up. "You mean it?"

"As long as you don't burn the house down or make me sick," I chuckled. She stuck her tongue out at me as we walked into the kitchen.

There was Esme, humming to herself as she grilled my food. A steak. Yum.

I couldn't contain the delighted squeal as Esme finished and plopped the plate down, smiling proudly as she did.

"I do so enjoy cooking," she mused.

I dug into my meal after a brisk "thanks". Never have I had steak that amazingly good before in my entire life. Mouth orgasm to the max.

"I still don't understand how you can eat that. It hardly looks appetizing," Alice grunted, watching me with her chin resting on her palm.

"It's a human thing," I pointed out. "Plus, I think steak is delicious."

"I think it stinks," she replied, crinkling her nose slightly.

I groaned. "You think _everything_ stinks, Alice."

Alice rolled her eyes. "I do not," she scoffed. "I don't think _you_ stink. I don't think flowers stink. And I love the smell of a new car and toothpaste and shampoo and lavender and-"

"Alright, alright, I get it!" I exclaimed, holding my hands up in defeat.

I heard Esme giggle and realized that she was still in the kitchen, smiling warmly at us both.

"You two are adorable," she cooed. "It makes me so happy that you're happy."

"Thank you, Esme," we both said, smiling at her. She beamed and removed my plate from the table before departing from the kitchen.

"So how long until Amara's friends arrive?" I asked Alice.

Alice zoned out for a moment as she looked into the future to see. "Thirty two minutes."

"So what are they like?" I asked, curious. "I mean, I didn't really get a chance to talk with Sophie while we were at the mall. Amara told me a little bit, but not much."

She stood up and chuckled, inclining her head towards the couch before dancing over to it and plopping down. I followed after her and sat next to her. She wrapped her right arm around me and pulled me into her shoulder, resting her head atop mine.

"They're both really nice, I'd say. Sophie's pretty rambunctious. She and Amara have a lot of the same personality traits, which is probably why they get along so well. As for Arthur, he's more like Carlisle and Jasper. He's very polite and quiet, which is the exact opposite of Sophie. They've been allies of our family since Amara joined. They've both helped us out from time to time, so we've come to rely on them in tough situations."

"Do they live here in Forks?" I asked.

She shook her head. "No, they usually travel around from place to place. Arthur wants to settle down soon, though, so I'd imagine that they'll find a place eventually. Carlisle and Esme have offered them a place in our home, actually, but I don't see them joining us. I think they'll end up joining the Denali coven over in Alaska, if anything."

We sat in silence for a moment just enjoying each other's presence, something we did often.

"Alice?"

"Yes, Bella?"

I bit my lip sheepishly. "Do you think that this…this problem will ever go away? The one with James and Victoria?" I asked.

She tensed for a moment, then relaxed, letting out a long sigh. "You're worried?" I nodded. "Bella, I promise you that I will do everything in my power to keep you safe. I will keep you safe, no matter what. They'll be dealt with, that I can promise as well. If you'd like, I'll burn them both and we can dance on their ashes until the sun comes up."

I laughed a little at that, but I knew she was completely serious. Deadly serious, for that matter.

Still, I couldn't help but worry. What if she got hurt? What if someone else got hurt?

"Bella, you need to stop with that. I hate to say it, but you really are beginning to sound like me," grunted Edward, appearing downstairs in a flash.

_If you say so._

"I do. And so do Alice, Esme and Carlisle," he stated, leaning against the wall. "By the way Alice, I think that we should join the others in their training session."

Alice frowned. "I'd rather stay here with Bella, Edward."

"I know that, Alice. But it's been a while since you've trained and I feel that, given what happened to you in your last fight, you could use a bit of training. It's nothing personal and I don't like disturbing your time with your mate, but it is necessary if you wish to protect her."

Alice scowled, obviously not liking her brother's words. Her honey colored orbs looked at me, silently asking me if I was okay with her going. I smiled and nodded, leaning in to peck her on the cheek.

"Go on, I'll be fine. Carlisle and Esme are here too, right?"

She bit her lip, thinking. "Let me stay with her at least until Arthur and Sophie arrive. That way she'll have some company with her."

"Carlisle and Esme are still here," Edward pointed out.

"I don't want to bother them," I stated.

Edward sighed. "You wouldn't be bothering them. But very well, Alice, you can stay. I do expect you out there, though."

"Yes master," she deadpanned.

"Oh stop, you know I'm playing," he grunted, smiling crookedly at her.

She rolled her eyes. "Yes, yes, I do. Now get going before I decide to kick you out myself."

He laughed and shook his head as he exited the house, leaving the two of us alone again. Well, not technically alone, but alone in the same room, more or less.

"I can't come watch?" I asked.

"You could if you wanted to, but I think you should stay and chat with Sophie and Arthur. You'll learn a few things from them, I think, that might surprise you. Arthur especially." There was an odd look in her eyes as she said that.

"Did you have a vision?" She didn't answer, but the look told me she did. I could only wonder what she had seen.

"Oh! They're here early," she announced.

Both Sophie and Arthur appeared in the doorway then, pausing before coming inside.

"Knock knock," teased Sophie.

"Come on in, guys," Alice said, waving them inwards.

They both did as she asked and stepped inside.

It was here that I got a chance to fully study these two, Sophie whom I had caught a glimpse of, Arthur who I had never seen before. I knew they were both vegetarian vampires by their light amber colored eyes. That was the one main thing I'd remembered from my earlier encounter with Sophie, at the very least. Besides, she wouldn't have been in a human environment were she not a vegetarian and I doubt the Cullens would be friends with them.

Of the two, Sophie was taller. She was a well defined woman who looked to be at least nineteen, at least the form her body was frozen in. I couldn't tell though since vampires looked much younger than they were naturally. She could be in her twenties for all I knew. Her face was round and her features were average. Like Amara had said, there was indeed a crescent shaped bite mark around her right eye. It started above her eye brow, parted, then finished underneath the eye. Her hair was messy and a dark blonde color. It looked similar to Alice's, only shorter.

Then there was Arthur. He looked around 5'7, with short blonde hair. His face was rounder then Sophie's was and his eyes were slightly lighter in color. His eyes were much different. Whereas Sophie's eyes sparkled with mischief, Arthur's were gentle, yet distinctively somber. His face portrayed the somberness too. Also unlike Sophie, Arthur was wearing a much more formal attire. Whereas she wore low cut, midriff exposing attires like Amara, Arthur wore a suit, separating the two even more so in terms of differences.

"Hello again Sophie, hello Arthur," greeted Alice.

Sophie grinned. "Hey there pixie stick, what's up?"

Alice furrowed her brow. "Pixie stick?" She shook her head and sighed humorously. "You truly are something else, Soph."

"Takes one to know one, my friend," Sophie replied, smirking. "Mind if we sit down?"

"Go ahead."

"So where's Amara at? Come to think of it, where is everybody?" she asked.

"Everyone save for myself, Carlisle and Esme are off training. Esme will be leaving shortly to go supervise and I'll be joining in with them myself. However, I wanted to stick around to be here for the introductions and to keep Bella company."

That was when both Sophie and Arthur's eyes fell on me.

"Ah yes! Your new mate. Hello again, Bella," Sophie greeted.

"Hi," I said shyly.

She gestured towards Arthur. "Well, you know that this is Arthur, my mate. But this is your first time meeting. Go on Artie, say hi."

Arthur frowned at her for a moment before turning towards me. "Pleased to meet you, Bella," he said, bowing slightly.

"Nice to meet you too, Arthur," I replied. He smiled a little for a moment.

Alice and Sophie proceeded to exchanged pleasantries for a few minutes, chatting about a few miscellaneous things mostly. She didn't mention anything regarding James or Victoria, though, which surprised me. A minute after Esme was downstairs, smiling warmly at me.

"Bella, I do hope you don't mind Alice going. If you do, honey, she can stay. It's up to you," Esme said. I loved that she was giving me the choice of keeping Alice.

I thought about it for a moment.

"I don't want to be selfish, Esme. Besides, if training makes her better prepared, then I'm fine with it. I only wish I could go watch," I stated.

Alice kissed my cheek. "Next time, I promise. I'll be back in a few hours, okay?" I nodded. She turned towards Arthur and Sophie. "You two behave now, okay? Bella will explain to you everything that you want to know."

"Whoa, wait, what? Why do I have to explain?" I asked.

"Because it's better if you tell them, since it's mostly your story, Bella. Besides, you need to get more used to talking to people. I can't understand how you can be outgoing one moment and shy the next. Then again, the complexity is one of the many things I love about you. I'll be back in a while, I promise." She kissed me softly on the lips then and danced out the door before I could get a word in edgewise. Esme smiled warmly at me, gave me a brisk hug, and followed after her.

I stared after them for a moment, feeling a little lost. I remembered that Carlisle was still in the house. At least, I hoped he was. I'd feel really awkward being in here by myself with two vampires I didn't know, vegetarian or not.

Neither Arthur nor Sophie spoke at first. Sophie was appraising me while Arthur held a rather placid gaze.

"Does this make you uncomfortable?" Arthur asked.

"A little," I admitted embarrassedly.

"Sorry," he replied. "Perhaps if we had met at an earlier time you'd be more accustomed to us. I assure you that if we make you feel too uncomfortable, we'll figure out some way to lessen that a bit, even if it means leaving for a while."

"Oh no, I don't want you to leave because of me," I said, kicking myself for being stupid.

"So you have a story to tell us?" Sophie asked, leaning her head down and resting it on her propped up hands.

"Sophie…" Arthur chided softly.

"What? It's not my fault Amara didn't tell us what was going on," she whined.

"That's because you hung up too fast," Arthur reminded her.

Sophie groaned and rolled her eyes. "Not my fault, I swear."

Arthur shook his head in disagreement and sighed. He then looked at me. "I apologize for my mate's bluntness. She's…well, clueless at times. I digress, however. We are indeed curious about what's been going on lately. Amara noted that the last week has been mildly hectic around here. Would you care to explain?" he asked politely. Not only that, he was giving me the chance to decline the offer.

"I…I, um, don't know where to start," I admitted.

Sophie spoke up. "Amara told us about Alice's visions of you, so we get the idea there."

"And we know that she had a vision of another vampire somewhere nearby," Arthur added. "We are merely curious about you and about what's been happening. We don't need full details or too many personal notes, only what you're willing to share."

I sighed. "Okay. Well, I guess the quickest way to summarize it is that I'm being hunted by vampires. I met them four months ago and they've been chasing me around ever since. Then I ended up here, I met Alice and the other Cullens and learned that I'm sort of her soulmate and that they'll protect me and-"

"Whoa there, slow it down a bit, girl," Sophie exclaimed, holding her hands up. "I know we take in information fast and all, but _damn_. Calm down, take it one step at a time here."

"S-sorry," I stammered, blushing slightly.

"No reason to be," Arthur stated.

"Um, but yeah, that's sort of the gist of it," I said. God I was lame. I mean seriously.

"So you're being chased by some vampires and now the Cullens are protecting you from them because you're Alice's soulmate. Is that the point you're trying to get across?" Sophie asked, cocking her head to the side. I nodded feebly. She chuckled and looked at Arthur. "Makes about as much sense as half the shit that goes on around here, wouldn't you agree Artie?"

Arthur frowned. "Please stop calling me that. You know how annoying it is."

She giggled. "But I like Artie though."

He rolled his eyes. "Don't start with me." He focused his placid-yet-morose eyes on me. "You say that you're being hunted? Do you know why?"

"Because I apparently smell really good and I just happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time," I replied, shrugging.

"How many are there?"

"Two of them, a male and a female."

Arthur had the strangest expression on his face as he absorbed the minor bit of information I'd given him. It was almost like he knew exactly who I was referring to. Could he? Is that what Alice had meant?

"Do you know their names?" Arthur asked.

"Er, James and Victoria," I answered.

His eyes suddenly widened, the somberness replaced by smoldering of some kind. Sophie tensed up next to him, clenching her fists tightly as a grimace formed on her face. It was at that moment that I knew what Alice had meant.

They knew something.

"You know them." It wasn't a question, that's for sure.

After a moment, Arthur's eyes darkened slightly, the moroseness returning.

He nodded. "Unfortunately, yes, we, or rather I, do."

"Did they hunt you too?" I asked.

He shook his head. "No. Not myself, at least. My brother was their intended target at the time."

Arthur paused and looked at Sophie. She looked at him sadly and touched his shoulder. He gave her a small smile before returning his eyes to me. They looked so sad I felt like crying just by looking at him.

"What happened?" I asked in a quiet whisper that _I_ almost didn't hear.

"To understand better, perhaps I could share with you my past. I imagine, though, that you're probably tired of hearing all of these as if they're storybook fairy tales. It's your choice on whether you wish to know or not. I promise I'll skip the boring details, though."

I shook my head. "No, no. I'm fascinated by all of it, really. I love hearing about the different lives vampires had as humans. I've only heard two so far, to be brutally honest."

He chuckled a little, a soft, airy chuckle. "I see. Very well then, I shall start from the beginning."

"My full name is Arthur Aaron Bradley. I was actually born here in Washington sixty seven years ago, in a small town down south. My father was named Derek, my mother Claire and I had two siblings; an older brother named Tim and a sister named Sydney. Now, my early life as a human wasn't very exciting, so I'll skip most of the more boring details and get to when things started changing in my life. Believe it or not, I was out in the woods at age seventeen when I first met Sophie over here. And it was a very…peculiar encounter."

I watched a big grin snake onto Sophie's face as he stretched out the word "peculiar".

"You see, my parents owned a cottage out in the woods that we would often go to over the summer for vacation, I suppose you could say. I rarely stayed indoors during that time. I loved to explore and take photographs of things. It was a hobby of sorts. Anyways, I was out in the woods, snapping photos when I happened upon the strangest, wildest sight I'd ever seen: a girl fighting a mountain lion with nothing but her bare hands."

He glanced at Sophie, who snickered as she recalled the memory herself.

"Her clothes were torn and her body drenched in redness that didn't belong to her. I watched as she egged on the best and dodged its every blow. It hissed and roared, but she countered with a snarl of her own that chilled my bones. She ended up grabbing it by the neck and piledriving the poor beast into the ground. I was utterly stunned by the sight, so stunned I dropped my camera. She heard it and spun around to see me staring at her. I remember not knowing whether to run screaming or go towards her. Of course, fear was my most instinctive emotion and it prevented me from budging from my spot."

"She stood there for a few minutes, just silently staring. Then she disappeared into the forest without a word, leaving me speechless. I didn't know what I'd just seen. I thought I was insane at first, but then I realized I had taken a picture of her lifting the lion off the ground. I cannot tell you how many nights I spent studying that picture, trying to convince myself that I wasn't crazy," he chuckled, shaking his head as he did.

"Needless to say, it was our first interaction and certainly not our last. To speed things up a bit, we spoke for the first time after two more encounters similar to the first. If you'd like, I can always discuss those at a later time. However, I'll get to the main point of the story. It happened when I was seventeen, you see. My brother had left to go run errands, but he didn't come back. For three days he was gone without a call or a note or anything. We were all worried sick."

He paused for a moment and took in a deep breath. Sophie wrapped an arm around him for comfort, which he smiled a little at.

"On that third day he finally came home, looking staggered, tired and afraid. His clothes were torn and he looked nothing like his old self. My parents tried to get him to tell them what was wrong, what had happened and where he had been, but he couldn't give them a straight answer. He said he needed to leave and fast, but my parents fought him to get him to stay and tell them what was wrong. Eventually he gave in, but by then it was too late."

He closed his eyes as he recollected what happened.

"To put it bluntly, James and Victoria had been hunting him. They ended up attacking and killing him and the rest of my family. I was the last one, watching in horror as they were all killed. But then, before James and Victoria could kill me, Sophie arrived on the scene and fought them off. She wasn't able to kill them, but she did manage to drive them off. Unfortunately, during the fighting I was injured rather badly. I wouldn't survive unless she changed me, but she didn't have the control for it. I figured I would die at that point. Fate, however, had a different plan."

Arthur reopened his eyes then. They still filled with somberness, but there was a small glimmer of warmth in them.

"After the two of them fled, we were approached by another vampire. He wasn't like them, though. He had dark skin, a man of African American descent, and golden eyes. He spoke politely and softly with a hint of a French accent. He approached us cautiously, since Sophie was growling at him. He told us that he meant no harm and that he was here to offer me what Sophie could not: the change me. Sophie didn't believe him at first, but I managed to persuade her to calm down, even through my weak grunts."

"He said, "I am deeply sorry for the pain that has been caused for you today. I once traveled with the two who were here earlier, but their ways became far too cruel for me. I met a family that saved my life and helped change my ways for the better. If you wish, I will change you so that you may be with your mate forever. What do you say?" I was surprised by his words, but I could see that he meant what he said. So I accepted his offer."

His eyes fell on Sophie's as the two gave each other a meaningful look. Their golden-amber orbs twinkled with happiness as they smiled at one another. I had to admit, it was a pleasant sight to see, actually.

"So that was how I came to be a vampire and how Sophie came to be a permanent part of my life. I met Amara shortly after and she became a close friend of mine. Now then, before I start to ramble, I'll get to the point. James and Victoria. They're dangerous, as I'm sure you know. There is a lot more to them then what you do know, however, as the man who changed me, Laurent, lamented on some bits of information he discovered. This might not be overly helpful for you, Bella, but it may be of some use to the Cullens. Would you like to hear?" Arthur asked.

I nodded, curious to hear more.

"Perhaps the first thing you should know is that they aren't mates. I could tell by the way you said their names that you assumed as such. I did as well, but Laurent told me otherwise. It seems that Victoria has another mate, one who is more powerful than James. He didn't know who, however, since Victoria never spoke of her mate. James, as far as he knew, was mateless. Apparently James was more concerned with his games then finding a mate."

"Secondly, Victoria has a gift. "

My eyes widened in fear. She had a power like Jasper, Edward, Amara and Alice. Shit.

"What can she do?" I asked worriedly.

"From what was described to me, you could call it a natural "pull towards safety", I suppose," he explained.

I furrowed my brow in confusion.

"Say what?"

I noticed that Carlisle had ghosted into the room and was looking on curiously himself.

Arthur frowned, obviously trying to figure out some way of explaining.

"I suppose you could call it a gift of self-preservation," Arthur stated, running a hand through his hair.

"Um, the human is still lost," I muttered. Sophie snickered a little, clearly amused by it.

"If I may?" Carlisle offered, looking at Arthur. He nodded. Carlisle smiled and turned towards me. "Bella, self-preservation is basically knowing how to survive, though I'm quite curious as to how it can be utilized as a gift."

"I'm still lost here. I can't help that I'm not as smart as vampires are," I grumbled.

"Well, I don't know the exact details of her gift, but from what Laurent explained to me, her gift makes it so that her body moves her to a safe place on its own. She can also sense when danger is nearby, something she used to do quite often when they traveled together. That was when he first noticed her ability. Not only that, but whenever they fought someone, she would always know how to move and where to go to avoid taking any damage."

Carlisle placed his hand on his chin thoughtfully. "Perhaps that is why they fled the area rather then tried to attack again. She obviously sensed that they were outnumbered and they decided to leave in order to plan out a new attack. That would explain things," he mused.

"I would agree," Arthur stated.

"So how do you defeat someone who knows what to do in order to survive?" Sophie pondered.

I was still a tad lost, but I was getting the gist of it.

Victoria could sense danger and her body would act in order to avoid it.

That explains why Alice wasn't able to kill her…

"You've given us a lot to think about, Arthur. Thank you for informing us," Carlisle said, smiling at him.

Arthur chuckled softly. "You should be thanking Laurent, Carlisle. I believe it was you and your family who changed his ways, no?"

Carlisle nodded. "Yes. We met him years ago and helped him change his ways. He's been a close friend of our family ever since then. I'm glad to see that he was able to help you out when you needed it. Now then, we know a bit more regarding our enemies. Now we must find a way to use our new knowledge to our advantage."

The two of them started having a discussion regarding various ways of exploiting Victoria's talent, among other things. Sophie pitched in from time to time, though she mostly remained quiet and listened intently.

I didn't partake in it. I was lost in my own thoughts, since there was so much going on right now.

Everything was happening so fast.

Days ago I was a running, scared girl with no one in the world. Now I was about to be adopted into a family of vampires, complete with a loving mother and father, siblings and one of the most beautiful creatures in the universe as a girlfriend.

Alice. My girlfriend.

The very thought of that, of how lucky I was, made me quiver slightly.

I was worried, though. Worried about what Rosalie had said to me. Worried that I'd fuck up and we wouldn't be together. Worried that I'd hurt her. I couldn't bear to think of that.

Yet despite the worrying, the feelings I had for her were growing. I didn't acknowledge them as best as I could, but I could feel them.

Every time she laughed or smiled or looked at me or even spoke, I felt joyous tingles surging through me, rippling through my heart, telling me that she was mine and that I was hers. It warmed my heart and made me feel things I've never felt before.

However, despite all the good things that had happened, there was still the bad.

Victoria and James.

They were out there. Buying their time, lying in wait. That scared me.

I was afraid of losing Alice. I was afraid that someone else would get hurt. I was afraid of dying.

Death. It terrified me. I'd been nearly killed so many times, yet the thought of dying still scared me. I knew that Alice would protect me, but at what cost? I couldn't bear the idea of her dying, let alone even _think _about it. It was too painful.

If Alice was going to die, I would gladly give my life for hers. End of story.

I heard a throat clearing and snapped out of my thoughts to see Carlisle looking at me placidly.

"Are you alright, Bella?" he asked, clearly concerned.

I nodded. Why wouldn't I be?

"You were staring at the table and quivering," Arthur stated. "You were obviously thinking about something painful, most likely the current situation."

What the hell? What is he, a mind reader too?

He chuckled as he took in my quizzical look. "I'm no mind reader, Bella. I'm merely very skilled at reading people. I've always been good at analyzing someone and learning things about them based on little details, things they aren't even aware of."

"So you can guess things about me just by looking at me? Is that a gift?" I asked.

"Oh no, not at all. Though I do have a gift, it is far different in context. Instead, I would call it a skill or a hobby, perhaps. Would you be willing to allow me to test it?"

I shrugged. "If you want to."

"Very well then," he murmured. For a moment he studied me, amber eyes looking deep into mine for a moment before studying me thoroughly. It didn't bother me, oddly, the way he was looking at me. It wasn't creepy or annoying. Everything about his actions just screamed gentleness, which was strange.

After about a minute he blinked, nodded to himself, then leaned into the couch.

"I believe I've surmised a few things. First, perhaps I'll begin with basic physical details. Your fingernails are short and gnawed, meaning you chew your nails a lot, the habit of a nervous person. Your hands are constantly moving to and thro as well, though it isn't because they're uncomfortable, but rather you have a hard time finding a position that you don't feel is awkward. Clearly, you don't like standing out too much and you try hard to avoid that as much as possible, though in your current predicament, you feel as though that is impossible."

He paused for a moment, taking my gaping mouth as a sign that he was on the right track.

"Your skin is pale, reflecting a lack of sun exposure and that one of your parents was clearly albino, perhaps your mother? You dress in long, baggy clothing because you fear exposing yourself because you do not find yourself attractive. You believe that hiding behind large clothes will protect you from the scrutiny and attention of others. You fear their rebuking and their scorn, probably because you were teased as a child for the way you look."

"Then there's your hair. It's unkempt in a way that shows that you run your hands through it a lot, another nervous habit that you likely picked up from your younger years. You like your hair and at the same time dislike it because it doesn't have the shine you feel it should have, again relating to your problem with your physical appearance. You've clearly considered cutting it short, but again you fear the reactions you would get. You've been bullied in the past, no doubt, hence your chronic fear of other's opinions on you."

"When you're embarrassed, you blush a deep shade of red, something you've never been fond of, yet you've never been able to stop it. You bite your bottom lip lightly to try and hide the embarrassment and shame you feel, but it doesn't work as well as you'd like it too. When someone says something about you that is true, your eyes look downwards. That, of course, leads into your eyes, the very portal to the soul and the quickest way to learning about someone."

He paused again and clasped his hands together. I shifted rather uncomfortably on the couch. I idly glanced at Carlisle and noticed that he had an inquisitive, thoughtful look on his face, his eyes flickering with intrigue and warmth in the same.

"That right there, the way your eyes darted over to Carlisle. I can tell that you do that a lot by the way your eyes move. You do that because you want to meet everyone's approval. You fear the idea of someone disapproving of something you do or say. You also worry a lot, more so about others then about yourself. There's a small hint of concern for your own person, but you have a tendency to worry about others because you feel worrying about yourself is selfish."

"With that said, I can also see the good qualities. You're very curious and you're constantly taking in new things, doing the best you can to absorb details even if you don't fully understand them. You're very passionate about your feelings, too. You think with both your head and your heart, though you rely more on your inner feelings then your judgment. You're also a very emotional person. You're quick to anger, but you're also very warm and loving towards those that show you the same. It is in your nature to feel strongly towards those close to you."

"There's also Alice. Each time her name is mentioned, you get a distinctive sparkle in your eyes. That shows that you love Alice and that your love for her is steadfastly growing each day, signifying the bond that you two have and how quickly it's developing. You're scared that it may not be what she wants it to be and you're still confused about some things, but you're going with the flow because it feels natural to you and because it's worked out well so far. Am I wrong?"

I gawked at him for a moment. Every last thing he'd said was correct. And he said he couldn't read minds?

"How'd you know all of that?" I asked incredulously.

Sophie snickered. "My Artie's a genius."

He rolled his eyes. "Hardly. I'm merely very good at noticing things. I was when I was human and after years of practicing, I'm even better now as a vampire."

"Amazing," I breathed.

"It truly is," Carlisle agreed.

Arthur fidgeted with his fingers. "I don't think it is, really. I'm certain there are others far better at it then I. Regardless, thank you for your praise. And it's been a pleasure meeting you, Bella. I do hope we can speak again sometime. Right now, I think it best that we depart for the time being. We'll return later on when everyone else is home. I'm certain there is more to discuss?"

Carlisle nodded in understanding and smiled. "That's fine, Arthur. It's been nice seeing you again, and you as well Sophie."

"Likewise, Carlisle," she replied, standing. "Nice meeting you, Bella. Give Alice some loving for me." She winked at me before walking off.

I blushed as Arthur sighed. "Sorry about that." With another sigh, he nodded towards the both of us before departing after his mate.

It was silent for a moment after they left.

I mulled over what he had said about me and how correct he had been. It was eerily strange how much he had been able to get right from just looking at me.

I sighed quietly, leaning back into the couch, lost in thought.

"Bella?"

I glanced over at Carlisle, who was appraising me. "Yes?"

"I do hope I'm not disturbing you, but while you were speaking with our guests, I received a phone call. It seems the adoption forms went in sooner then I'd thought. Apparently Alice sent them off a day and a half ago. I was wondering if you would be willing to accompany me to go and get them?" he asked.

I thought about it for a moment before standing up. "Sure," I replied. I liked the idea of getting to talk with Carlisle.

He smiled at that. "Splendid. Let's go then, shall we?"

**A/N: I realize this may have been an odd chapter, but I felt it helped give some insight to James and Victoria while introducing new characters.**

**As I said before, they will be more important as time passes, not just random OCs thrown in to pass the time.**

**The next few chapters are going to be more for fun, though there will be more information and more bonding. School starts soon, which is when things start happening.**

**Hope ya'll enjoyed it. Peace.**


	22. Cullen

**Disclaimer: Stephanie Meyer owns boring canon Twilight and all of its characters. Me, I own OCs and I'm writing this story. Because it's fun. **

**Cullen**

Carlisle walked me out to the garage, over to his Mercedes.

"So, um, do you drive super crazy too?" I asked meekly.

Carlisle chuckled softly as he opened the passenger door for me. "Well, I do from time to time, I'll admit. But I'd say that Esme and I are probably the only ones who can drive at a normal pace without any complaints. I've had years to deal with the impatience that comes with being a vampire, so it really isn't a big deal for me."

I muttered a brisk "thanks" and got into the car.

This car was definitely Carlisle's. It fit him in a way I couldn't describe. It had a refined air to it, much like he did. Another thing I noticed was the smell. It smelled like honey, which I recalled being the same scent as Carlisle's. It was quite lovely, actually, and I couldn't help inhaling the sweet scent several times.

He was inside in an instant, buckling up. I was surprised, since Alice never buckled up.

Carlisle noticed this and chuckled again. "I like to follow the law, even if it's a stretch at times."

He pressed a button on the center console that caused the garage doors to open before quietly revving the engine. Carlisle then pulled out of the garage, flicking the button once again to shut the garage door.

"Don't you worry about intruders?" I asked as he drove off. Unlike Alice, his driving speed was very mellow. It was still a bit over the speed limit, but not nearly as much.

"Not at all," Carlisle replied. "In fact, you're the first person to ever set foot in our house without us knowing about it. Usually whenever someone comes by, be it for directions or something like that, Alice informs us ahead of time. Even then, it's actually quite rare for us to have guests."

I nodded and leaned comfortably into the seat, watching Carlisle's Mercedes glide past several other cars with ease.

"So it's easier for you to drive like this?" I asked.

He smiled. "Yes, actually. I can appreciate the thrills of driving fast, but I'm also quite comfortable driving at a slower pace. I'm certain Alice may have mentioned that the essence of time for a vampire is much different. When I was younger in age, I'll admit I preferred to drive faster, but as I grew older, I learned to control myself and to become more patient. Now it's second nature to me. Esme is probably the second best, though I must say she prefers driving fast. You've never seen her behind the wheel before and let me tell you, you probably wouldn't want to unless you were a vampire," he laughed.

"Was it hard? To adjust, I mean."

"Not as hard as it may sound. I suppose you could say the reason it was simpler for me is because I'm naturally a very patient person. And again, I've had many, many years of experience with it, too."

"So you're really over three hundred years old?" I asked.

He chuckled. "Yes. I'm technically still twenty three, at least that's the age my body is permanently frozen in."

"Wow," I breathed. "You must have a lot of cool stories."

Carlisle smiled and nodded. "I've seen many things in my lifetime, yes. And I would be happy to share some with you. Is there anything in particular you'd like to know?"

I wracked my brain for a list of potential questions to ask the man sitting next to me, whose life spanned centuries more than mine. It was mind boggling knowing how old he was, yet at the same time I was left beyond curious. I wanted to know everything that I could. Arthur had been right; I did love learning new things, especially concerning vampires.

"How'd you become a vampire?"

"Ah, yes. Perhaps that would be a good place to start. Well, I was born in 1640 in London during a time where people would regularly hunt down beings that they believe existed, vampires included. The thing is, vampires did exist. My father, Mathias, was an Anglican pastor who worked with other pastors, believing that purging the world of these "demons" was freeing the world of sin. Unfortunately, many a times they ended up ending the lives of innocents, something that I was appalled by."

"As he aged, I was assigned his role. I disliked the idea of harming anyone, but I was able to deduce the location of a coven of vampires. I led the hunt after them, but I was ultimately bitten and left for dead. I had to crawl into an alleyway and hide myself as the change took place. It was incredibly painful and I believed that I was going to end up dead. But then I awoke as a vampire three days later. Initially I was repulsed by what I had become."

"I attempted to end my life any way possible, but nothing worked. Jumping from great heights hardly affected me, blades shattered against my skin. I even tried starving myself. It was during this time, when I was hiding in a cave, that the thirst became too much and I ended up feeding on a herd of deer. That was when I discovered that I could survive off of animals rather than humans. That helped change the course of my life. I used this knowledge to my advantage and started studying things, learning as much as I could. Because I never slept, I was able to take in new information constantly while I fed on animals."

"I discovered that I could resist the temptation of feeding on humans, which helped spurned me into becoming a doctor. That is how I spent most of the next two centuries, studying medicine and helping treat people. I turned my curse into a blessing, I suppose you could say."

"So you've had good control since you became a vampire?" I inquired.

"Well, yes. I refused to kill humans no matter how bad my thirst was. I trained myself, you see, in order to resist the scent of blood. I hardly even recognize it now, truth be told. The others have been trying to adapt to that, but it isn't always easy. Once you've tasted it, it becomes difficult to, shall I say, wean yourself off of it. I can assure you that you are in no danger though. Were there an accident, I would be able to assist you without hesitation, I can promise you that."

I "huh-ed" and sat back in my seat, closing my eyes to think.

Three hundred years. I couldn't wrap my head around the idea of being that old. Or could I?

The idea seemed strange to me, but a part of me was open to considering it.

Was I insane?

Yeah, I was. I knew that already.

"It must've been awful lonely," I mused quietly.

Carlisle nodded. "At first, I wasn't concerned with it. If you recall that portrait I showed you before, with myself surrounded by other vampires? They are called the Volturi. They are an ancient group of vampires that live in Italy. They're culture has been around far longer than I have and I was able to become a high ranking member of their society. While I did learn a great deal from them, however, I refused to abide by their diet of feeding on humans. They attempted to "cure" me, but I refused. Eventually I set out into the world on my own."

"Loneliness was beginning to affect me, though. I was lucky to be in Chicago when the Spanish Influenza struck, for that was when I found Edward. His mother, Elizabeth Masen, asked me to save him, knowing that I was more than human. I did so because I knew that he had no one in world and because there was no other way to save him. Each of the others slowly came into my life, which I was eternally happy for."

"I see."

He smiled warmly at me. "And now here you are, the newest part of our family. It brings me great joy to see Alice has found her mate. Now all that's needed is for Edward to find his and our family will be complete. Of course, I would never shy away from accepting new members into our family and I know Esme wouldn't either."

I frowned. "I may be joining your family, but I'm just a human."

'That is true," he replied softly. There was something off about his tone.

Before I could ask, however, he stopped the car and turned to smile at me.

"Here we are," he announced. I blinked and looked out my window to see a large black building in front of us. I furrowed my brow in confusion. "This is the place where we go for our documents, you see. We do business with a man here who, well, I suppose you could say he's aware of us being different, but he keeps quiet about it."

I blinked and he was already outside, opening my door for me. I smiled at that and got out, feeling a chill wind blow overheard.

"Oh dear, I'm terribly sorry," Carlisle said, realizing that I was cold. "One moment, please."

He vanished for a split second, then reappeared with a medium sized coat in his hand. I quickly put it on once he handed it to me and found that it was Esme's coat. I could smell her sweet, freesia like scent emanating off of it and smiled to myself.

Carlisle indicated for me to follow him, which I did. We walked inside the building where it was pleasantly warm, thankfully, though I didn't remove the coat.

Carlisle gracefully strode over to the front desk, where a petite, dark skinned woman was working. She took one look at Carlisle and nearly fell out of her seat from the sight. I noticed that he nearly chuckled, but he held it in and melded his face into one of calmness.

"Hello, my name is Dr. Cullen. I believe Mr. Jenks is expecting me?"

The receptionist blinked several times before nodding. "Um, yes sir, he's on the third floor in his office."

Carlisle smiled appreciatively at her. "Thank you."

I couldn't help the quiet snicker that escaped my mouth. Her facial expressions were utterly priceless.

"I wouldn't laugh if I were you. You make the same faces when Alice smiles," Carlisle teased.

My snickering stopped immediately as a violent blush stormed onto my cheeks. I grumbled as we headed into the elevator, Carlisle quietly chuckling along the way.

Upon exiting the elevator I followed Carlisle down a long hallway. He eventually stopped and gently knocked on one of the doors. I remained behind him, curious as to what was going on and who he was meeting with.

The door slowly creaked open to reveal a short, bald man who looked to be in his fifties.

"Hello Mr. Jenks," Carlisle greeted.

The bald man squinted his eyes for a moment before smiling a little. "Ah, Dr. Cullen. It's so good to see you! And might this be the newest member of your family?" he asked.

Carlisle nodded. "Yes, this is Bella, our newest daughter," he replied, smiling proudly at me.

"Please, come in, come in," he said, gesturing us inside.

I followed inside the small room as the man shut the door behind us. Something about the way he moved, the way his eyes darted around nervously, made me uncertain about this man. What was his deal, exactly?

"Bella, this is our business associate, Jason Jenks. He's been in service to our family for many years," Carlisle explained. "Truthfully, he usually does business with Jasper and Amara. But since they are not here at the moment, I'm responsible for the day's business."

Jenks nodded nervously. "And how are Mr. Jasper and Mrs. Amara doing?" he asked.

"They are well, thank you. Now then, regarding the adoption papers?"

Jenks nodded his head and scurried over to his freakishly large desk. He opened up the top drawer and pulled out a sheet of paper before walking back to Carlisle and handing it to him.

"Here it is. The only things I have yet to fill out are date of birth and the name," he explained. He turned towards me, smiling a little. "That, my dear, is where you come in. You can officially change your name to whatever suits you, though I do believe keeping your name the same might be best, it is your choice."

I nodded as Carlisle handed me the sheet and a pen. "Where do I sign?" I asked. Jenks pointed to the two areas that needed my signature and the places where I needed to fill out any missing information. I smiled as I filled each thing out, stopping at the name. I glanced over at Carlisle.

Carlisle smiled. "You're welcome to take our last name as yours, Bella."

I smiled back and filled it out. Bella Cullen.

Jenks took the slip after I'd finished and scurried over to his desk again. I couldn't for the life of me see what he was doing, but I assumed he was making a copy of the adoption form for legal rights or something like that. Once he returned, he handed Carlisle the sheet and smiled at me.

"Congratulations, Mrs. Cullen. May you live in happiness with the Cullen family from here on out." I smiled back and nodded at him. His eyes returned to Carlisle. "Now then, Dr. Cullen, the form will be sent. It will take a few days for the state to recognize the change, but it shouldn't matter too much. She is now an official part of your family."

"Thank you, Jason. You've been a great service to us once again," Carlisle stated, extending his hand to the man. Jenks hesitated for a moment before shaking Carlisle's cool hand. I didn't miss the odd look in his eyes and the slight shiver he did as he pulled away.

"You're quite welcome, Dr. Cullen." He shifted slightly on his feet as he checked the other slip of paper in his hands. "Well, I do believe-" He stopped suddenly and grimaced. "Ouch. Dang paper cuts…"

He lifted his index finger, which was now bleeding.

Blood.

I frowned. I hated the smell of blood. It always made me feel nauseous for some reason.

My eyes flickered to Carlisle, who merely looked concerned.

Then my eyes went back to the finger as blood dripped from it.

I watched it drop. Jenks frowned, trying to decide how to handle it.

Something about the blood was…calling me.

I felt compelled to look at it. Compelled to smell it.

The scent.

It wasn't bothering me. Usually I couldn't stand it because it smelled like rust and salt.

Now, though.

It smelled…

Good.

Blood.

Smelled good.

To me.

I couldn't look away from the red liquid as Jenks started wiping it up. I felt like I was in a trance.

Something in the back of my mind made me want that blood. I wanted to taste it. I wanted it.

It. Should. Be. Mine.

Blood. Mine. Blood. Mine. Feast. Kill. Mine. Mine. MINE.

I felt a cool hand gently grasp my shoulder, snapping me out of my thoughts. I looked to see Carlisle staring down at me with a worried expression on his face. I looked back at Jenks, who looked rather afraid of me, like I was going to kill him or something.

_I almost did_.

"Are you alright, Bella?" Carlisle asked softly.

I bit my lip and nodded. "Yeah, I'm fine." I noticed Jenks had bandages his finger. "I just don't like the smell of…blood is all," I murmured.

It was silent for a moment. Jenks wiped sweat from his brow with a cloth from his pocket while Carlisle appraised me, not quite believing me. Eventually Jenks cleared the awkward air by clearing his throat and turning his attention to Carlisle

"Ah. Well then, our business for today is concluded. Have a good day, Dr. Cullen."

Carlisle nodded and smiled at him before wrapping on arm around me and helping me out the door. Neither one of us spoke as we made our way downstairs and out to the car. Carlisle opened and closed my door once again before getting in his side. It was only after he had started the car did he turn to face me, concern etched into his eternal face.

"Are you certain you're alright?" he asked.

"I'm fine. Just feeling a bit weird is all," I lied.

He nodded, still not fully believing me, but he didn't speak anymore on the subject as we drove away. I could tell by his eyes that he didn't like the idea of one of his children hurting or being upset about something, but he was respectful enough not to push.

As we drove, I couldn't help the thoughts going through my head.

What the hell had happened? Why had I thought those things? What was wrong with me?

Maybe this whole mate thing really was rubbing off on me, perhaps in more ways than one.

That frightened me a bit, honestly.

I sighed, not really wanting to think about it right now.

Besides, I wanted to break the awkward air.

"Is that guy, um, okay? He was acting a little weird," I blurted.

Carlisle smiled, pleased that I was speaking. "In truth, we've been doing business with him for over thirty years, his predecessor before him as well. He's used to having dealings with Jasper, so you may be able to guess why he's so…nervous, shall we say."

"What'd Jasper do to him?" I asked.

Carlisle chuckled. "Well, in order to avoid any potential problems, Jasper uses his gift to make certain that Mr. Jenks doesn't get any ideas. He doesn't enjoy doing it and I don't like it myself, but it is a necessity for us because of our predicament. Sometimes Edward or Alice do business with him, using their gifts to their advantage as well." He paused for a moment and laughed again. "He's actually quite terrified of Alice, actually."

I smiled, pleased by that for some reason. "Why's he afraid of her?"

"He made the mistake of making an off comment about her attire and she snarled at him. It was quite entertaining, I'll admit, though Esme and I did chide her a little for it. She has that tendency when it comes to fashion, so be careful what you say."

"Are you kidding me? She looks great in _anything_ she wears," I snorted. I quickly realized that I'd said that out loud and blushed slightly. Carlisle merely smiled amusedly.

The rest of the drive was a silent one, but the awkwardness from before was gone. I still thought back to that incident in the building, but I pushed it aside when Carlisle began to slow down as we neared the house.

I was confused at first, but when my eyes looked in front of me, my jaw nearly fell off its hinges.

The first thing I noticed was that the trees leading to the Cullens' driveway—our driveway—were covered in silver and blue ribbons. The further we got, the more ribbons there were, twisted about in various patterns.

And then we got to the house.

The house was beyond decorated. The ribbons were everywhere forming a beautiful scene, mixed in with brightly lit candles and other decorations like wind chimes. It was a beautiful scene, almost as if there was some sort of party going on.

Wait. Party?

I looked at Carlisle and saw that knowing smile on his face.

I was confused and naturally furrowed my brow to try and deduce what the hell was going on.

Then it dawned on me.

"They weren't training, were they?" I asked.

Carlisle only smiled wider. "Nope," he replied.

"_That's_ why Alice didn't want me going with her," I breathed, internally smacking myself for not picking up on it sooner.

No sooner had the words left my mouth was my door being opened by none other than Alice herself, bouncing on the balls of her feet with a large, warm smile on her angelic face. She was wearing a beautiful dark blue silk dress, her spiky hair a bit more kempt then usual.

She extended her hand out to me. "My lady," she greeted.

I was too stunned by the sight of Alice to respond verbally, so I merely took her hand and gawked, both at her and at the house.

"You did this?"

She nodded, smiling wider if possible. "Yes ma'am, that I did."

I was speechless still, unable to form any coherent words. Alice laughed and leaned in to kiss me softly on the lips. That got my brain to work again, thankfully. She cupped my cheeks and pulled me into her lips, each movement full of love and tenderness. She broke apart slowly, smiling giddily, before gently pulling me towards the house.

I gasped when I saw the inside.

The same ribbons were everywhere, with even more brightly colored ribbons to boot. The furniture was all neatly arranged, more lit candles that smelled of honey and caramel, several miscellaneous decorations here and there. I was awestruck.

I blinked and suddenly Esme was there, wrapping me into a loving hug. "Welcome home," she whispered in my ear.

That was when I understood what the occasion was.

Me becoming a Cullen.

"Maybe we decided to get dressed up for kicks," Edward joked, appearing from up the stairs and leaning against the wall. Rosalie, Emmett, Amara and Jasper all appeared as well.

Alice rolled her eyes and turned to embrace me. "No. This is all for you, Bella."

I couldn't really find the words to reply, merely nodding instead.

Edward and Emmett both snickered at my silence, earning a sharp glare from Alice to silence them both. Well, Edward at least. Emmett was still grinning like an idiot, something I'd become accustomed too.

Carlisle glided over to Esme and the two hugged each other before turning back to face me.

"Shall we begin?" Esme asked, glancing at Alice.

Alice nodded enthusiastically. "Yes, yes!"

Esme clasped her hands together joyously, disappearing for a moment before returning with a camera in her hands.

Alice smirked and before I knew it, her lips were against mine. Those amazingly soft, marble lips moved rhythmically against mine, each kiss loving and tender. I heard Esme click the camera, taking a photo of us kissing.

My face turned tomato red.

"Yes!" Emmett cheered. "Copies for all!" Rosalie swatted him on the back of the head for it.

Amara snickered. "I think I'll take a copy."

"Me too," chuckled Jasper.

"You see, Rose? Free copies!" Emmett crooned, earning him yet another smack.

"No. No copies for anyone but me," Alice snorted, breaking our kiss for a moment before pressing her lips back against mine.

"Aw," Emmett, Amara, Jasper and Edward all whined playfully. My face turned an even darker shade of red as Alice continued kissing me.

Esme snapped another photo, giggling as she did. "This one will look good in the photo album."

"Esme!" I whined.

"Now, now, dear. Don't embarrass the poor girl too much," Carlisle snickered.

Ugh. Parents.

Whoa. Parents.

They're my parents.

I can't believe I actually get to call them that. Me of all people.

I think I'm truly the luckiest girl alive.

"Alice would disagree with you, were she technically alive," Edward joked.

Alice stopped kissing me and looked at her brother queerly. "What?"

Edward rolled his eyes while I glared at him. "She was saying that she thinks she's the luckiest girl alive."

Alice looked back at me and kissed me again, smiling against my lips. "That would be me, sweets. But you're a close second, how about that?"

Now I was the one rolling my eyes. "No, I think I am." _Because I have you._

"Lame," snorted Edward.

_Fuck you, Edward._ I growled in my mind.

His eyes widened in mock offense. "Why I never! Such language from a young lady," he chided, clearly enjoying himself. He smiled wider when I mentally flipped him off and at Alice's puzzled face. He mouthed a "later" to her before smiling at me.

_Ass._

"Sometimes," he snickered.

Alice shot him a glare to silence him before silencing me by capturing my lips.

After another minute or so of amazing kissing, she pulled apart and rested her forehead against mine. We gazed into one another's eyes, then. I was reveling in the beauty and warmth of hers, finding myself lost in them. Oh how I wish I could swim in those pools of honey.

I glared at Edward when he almost laughed, vowing to end him if he did. He held his hands up defensively while smirking, eventually quieting down a bit.

Alice chose that time to break the silence, turning to face her family.

"So who's going first?" she asked.

I was confused. First? First for what?

Edward laughed. "I will."

In an instant he was in front of me, handing me a wrapped box. I stared at it for a moment, not quite recognizing what it was. Then it hit me.

A present?

"What else would it be?" he asked, giving me a crooked smile. "And no, it isn't a bomb or a spider or something childish like that. That's Emmett's gig, if anything."

"Darn right," Emmett replied, smiling.

"Quiet," Rosalie grunted.

Edward shook his head before pushing the present into my hands. "Here, it's for you."

I blushed slightly and took it from him. "Thank you," I murmured.

He rolled his eyes. "You're supposed to _open_ it before you thank me," he pointed out.

I blushed again and slowly started peeling the wrapping paper away. I heard the sound of a photos being taken as I tore the remaining paper off, tossing it to the ground. My eyes bulged at the contents of the box: an iPod.

"There's more," Edward stated. I moved the new iPod aside and saw four iTunes gift cards, each for one hundred dollars. "I figured that having your own music to listen to might come in handy from time to time."

I stared at the gift in front of, feeling a tug on my heart that I'd never felt before.

"I…thank you, Edward," I murmured, looking into his eyes.

He smiled and pulled me into a half hug, patting my back. "Any time, Bella. Welcome to the family, officially."

Once he pulled away, Alice took the gifts from my hands and vanished, likely dropping them in her room.

No, _our _room. Yes. Our. Well, if she wanted me to stay in it, that is.

"I'm certain she does," Edward stated, smirking.

Alice frowned. "What?"

"Oh, she was wondering if you'd let her stay in your room," he replied.

Alice looked at me and rolled her eyes before kissing me on the cheek. "Of course you can!" she shouted gleefully. "Next gift!"

I gawked at her. There was more?

Edward chuckled and stepped back, grabbing the wrapping paper as he did.

Jasper and Amara stepped forward next, Amara holding a large wrapped box in her hands.

"Here you go," she said, handing it to me.

Again I felt a tug at my heart as I began opening the gift, Esme snapping more pictures excitedly.

A brand new laptop. I gaped at it, feeling my eyes begin to water.

They bought me a laptop. I couldn't believe it.

"How much did this…?" I couldn't even begin to think how much money they'd spent on me.

Jasper rolled his eyes. "The cost doesn't matter. You're our sister now, so you'll have to expect gifts from us from time to time. Please don't concern yourself over price. Nothing is too expensive for us, after all."

I choked back a sob at the honesty in his words.

"Yup, we're filthy stinking rich," Amara snickered. "Besides, nothing's too much for our new sis, right Jazz?" Jasper chuckled throatily and nodded his head in agreement. "Now come here, you." Amara pulled me into a warm hug, followed by Jasper.

I could taste the salty tears in my mouth despite forcing them not to fall.

Alice giggled and snatched my laptop away, zooming up the stairs once again.

Emmett and Rosalie stepped up next, Emmett immediately wrapping me into one of his big bear hugs. He twirled me for once before gently setting me down. Rosalie, to my utter surprise, actually tousled my hair a little. She didn't smile, of course, but she was at least showing some form of affection towards me.

I felt a stray tear trickle down my cheek as Alice came back down and hugged me. She wiped the tear away and kissed my cheek again.

The emotions I was feeling were overwhelming me.

Emmett beamed. "Well, you got your music and your laptop. But our gift is the best."

I sniffled a little, glancing at their handles to see no box. Rosalie smirked and lightly grasped my shoulders before spinning me around towards the door and lightly pushing me outside. I was pushed a few feet outside before turning left.

Then the garage doors opened and my eyes nearly popped out.

They.

Bought.

Me.

A.

Car.

Holy fuck.

"It's a Ferrari F430," Rosalie stated, rather proud of her knowledge. "It's the latest model with an extra comfortable interior, a built in sound system and even its own personal navigation system, though I doubt you'll need it. I have to say, it's one of the sexiest cars I've seen in quite some time. I picked it out myself."

She was right. The car was fucking amazing. It was a sleek midnight blue color and I even noticed that it was customized especially for me. The back plate read "BELLICE". I thought that was actually pretty cute.

No words could describe what I felt right then as Emmett grinned and handed me the keys.

"T-thank you," I stammered, fighting the tears that kept pestering to fall.

"No prob, little sis," Emmett crooned, smiling wide.

"But I…I don't have a license," I stated, realizing that rather important face.

Emmett rolled his eyes. "You think we do? Don't worry about it, we'll just get Jasper to forge one for ya."

"You would…you would do that for me?"

Rosalie lightly smacked my shoulder. "Of course we would. You're one of us now," she replied, turning to walk back into the house.

Emmett chuckled. "You should definitely try this baby out when you get a chance," he suggested. "She glides across the road pretty smoothly, I'd say. Oh, and you'll find that the in interior is a bit customized to your liking. Esme and Alice insisted." He winked at me before following after Rosalie, leaving me to gawk at my new car.

I blinked. Once, twice, three times. Nope, this wasn't some twisted fantasy. This was real.

There really was a brand new car in front of me and it was all mine.

Holy shit.

How did I get so lucky?

Alice wrapped her arms around me and helped move me back to the house, since I was too stunned to move on my own.

I was speechless.

I had never in my life been given anything before. Nothing like this. Yet here these people were, handing me expensive gifts like it was nothing.

An iPod. A laptop. A fucking _car_, for God's sake!

Alice smiled and kissed me on the cheek. I noticed there was something in her hands too.

Oh God. One more present and I'm gonna burst.

I can't hold in the tears…

"Bella, I bought this for you," Alice said, handing me the tiny box.

I slowly opened the box, revealing a silver necklace. In the center was a heart, with the initials of our first names embroidered into it. Two smaller chains surrounded the heart, each with a small silver angel, a blue gem in the chest of one, a yellow in the other.

"Look on the back," Alice stated softly, turning the heart around.

There was an inscription there. It was Italian.

_Al mio cuore. La mia anima. La mia eternità. Io vi amo sempre, la mia dolce Bella._

"It says to my heart, my soul, my eternity, I will love you always, my sweet Bella," Alice murmured, her ocher eyes smoldering with love and warmth. She leaned and captured my lips, every ounce of love in her body for me pouring into her lips.

That did it.

I flung myself around her and exploded into tears.

She said nothing, merely wrapping her arms around me and holding me close. No one else spoke either. I could hear the others leaving the room, giving Alice and I some privacy.

I sobbed and sobbed and sobbed into her shoulder, completely drenching her dress. She didn't seem to mind though. She lifted my legs up with one arm until she was holding me the way a mother would her child. Then Alice went outside and sat under a tree, stroking my back with one hand and holding me tight with the other.

"Esme's baking you a cake," she whispered. "She and Carlisle also bought you a gift that you'll get later. I know you'll just love it, Bella."

I cried like a baby in her arms, unable to form an intelligible response.

I sniffled a few times and tried desperately to calm myself, but the tears kept coming.

"W-w-w-why-y d-i-i-i-d-d y-you b-b-buy so m-much s-s-stuff?" I stammered in between sobs.

Alice smiled and kissed me lovingly on both cheeks. "Because we love you very much and because you're a part of our family, Bella."

"B-b-but I-I-I…" She cut me off by pressing her soft lips to mine. We held the kiss for a minute before she broke apart and cupped my cheeks, making me look her in those gorgeous glowing eyes. Then she leaned in to my left ear and kissed it.

"You are worth every scent," she whispered. Though it was a whisper, the strength behind it made me burst into tears once again.

I'd never felt so much love before in my entire life.

Never.

This was all so new to me. Yet it felt amazing. The warmth, the love, the care. It all showered over me.

So this was what it was like to have a family. To be a part of a true family. To be loved.

It was amazing.

I felt joy. I felt bliss. I felt ecstasy.

I felt…happy.

And above all else, I felt like I had found where I truly belonged.

Corniness be damned, I loved this.

I never wanted these feelings to go away. Ever.

I don't know, honestly, how long I was crying for. It felt like hours, but I think it was more along the line of seven minutes. Eventually I had cried all my tears out, merely hiccupping and letting out a few stray dry sobs.

Alice hadn't budged from her spot under the tree. She had kept rubbing circles around me back and cradling me, cooing in my ear every now and again that she loved me and telling me that I should let it all out.

Eventually I was able to stop completely, sniffling a little as I pulled myself away from her shoulder.

Alice smiled warmly at me. "Do you feel better?" she asked.

I nodded. "Yes. But I soaked your dress…and it was so nice…"

Alice laughed her wind-chime laughter, spreading ease through me. "Oh, don't worry about that. It'll dry. Besides, you're what's most important to me right now."

I glanced at her hair and tousled it with my hands, messing it up so that it was spiky again.

Alice looked at me with wide eyes. "What are you doing?" she asked.

"I like you with spiky hair," I replied. I removed my hands and eyed my handy-work. Well, suffice to say, I should've just left it alone.

Alice sighed and ran a hand through her hair, lightly neatening it up a bit. "I'll just have to keep that in mind next time. And here I spent so much time getting it ready…"

"Oh. I'm sorry, I didn't mean to-"

Alice silenced me with another kiss, smiling against my lips. "No need to apologize, silly girl, I was only playing. If you prefer my hair spiky, then spiky is what you'll get from now on, I promise. Do you like the dress, at least?"

I nodded. "It's lovely. I love silk, for one thing, and it definitely brings out your eyes."

Alice cocked her head to the side, looking at me curiously. "It does?"

I grinned. "Yup! It makes them shine and sparkle much more. Of course, they're beautiful naturally, but I guess the dress just helps show how bright they are."

Alice stared at me for a moment before smiling and shaking her head. "You truly are a strange creature, my dear Bella." She giggled and stood up, helping me up with ease. "But you're my strange creature, and I couldn't be happier."

"I feel the same," I said sheepishly. "I can't believe all of this has happened in such a short amount of time. I mean, what did I do to deserve all of this? To deserve you? It makes no sense, yet it all feels so right…" I trailed off, uncertain.

Alice sighed and pulled me into her arms. "Bella, stop thinking about things like that, okay? You're worth it. You're worth every last bit of it. You deserve all of this, you deserve me, you deserve to be loved. And I'm going to show that to you each and every day as much as I possibly can, okay? I love you. Deeply."

I had to hold back more tears from showing up at her words.

God I loved her.

And she loved me.

I smiled and stepped back, about to tell her how much I loved her.

Suddenly I tripped over a root and fell backwards, my right hand grinding against the trunk. I winced as I fell over, feeling a sharp pain in my palm.

Alice was by my side instantly, holding me up. "Are you okay?"

"Y-yeah, I think so," I grunted, rubbing my head. My right hand hurt pretty badly.

I was about to ask Alice something when I saw her eyes were darker and widened, staring down at my hand.

I frowned and glanced down to see what she was staring at.

That's when I saw it.

Blood.

**A/N: Cliffhanger insurance for the win.**

**I liked this chapter. I like having Bella bond with different family members because I enjoy exploring the different relationships. I also liked having a tender moment, since those are always nice and heartwarming. Of course, adding a bit of trouble here and there makes things more entertaining, wouldn't you agree?**

**It's pretty obvious what's going on with Bella. And if you haven't figured it out, no worries. It'll become clearer in future chapters.**

**I will say that, regarding where this is headed, the next two chapters will be more so filler (okay, maybe not filler, but I can't think of a good word to use). Once they start school, things kick back into gear. More action as the story progresses, plus more development and other stuff. It takes time, though, since I like going at a steady pace. **

**By the way, if you're Italian or you speak fluent Italian, don't laugh too hard if I messed up on that bit. I don't speak it, so I went to a translation site. Best I could do.**

**On an off topic note, I'm experiencing a weird problem with my story statistics page. It says that there have been zero hits for the last chapter, which I know is false. Very confusing.**


	23. Heart

**Disclaimer: I don't own Twilight, nor do I take credit for it. I do own any and all OCs. And I own you, too. **

**Heart**

I stared at my hand with wide eyes. I was bleeding.

Fuck my life.

Of course I have a good moment and then I trip and start bleeding. Shit.

Why can't things ever go good for me for at least one fucking day?

Damn it!

I glanced at Alice warily. Part of me was screaming danger; the other part didn't want to move, because moving would only kick in her vampiric instincts.

Her eyes were darkening as they stared down at my bleeding hand. I watched as her now coal black eyes zoned in on the blood, gazing it at hungrily.

Instinctively I tried to pull my hand back. No sooner had mind budged an inch did Alice's hand shoot out and grab my wrist. It wasn't a forceful grab, but it was strong enough to prevent my arm from moving anymore.

I felt…threatened by the action. I narrowed my eyes at her, a low, rumbling noise coming from my chest. Before I knew it, I had curled my lip back and hissed at her.

Alice's black eyes shot up to mine and narrowed before mimicking my actions.

I blinked, wide eyed with surprise, confusion and fear. I had just _hissed_ at her.

"Alice…" I choked out, hoping to get through to her.

Her eyes remained black and emotionless as they ignored me and resumed staring down at my bloody palm. She pulled it closer to her with her left hand, her right hand on my shoulder, preventing me from trying to move.

I was becoming more and more afraid.

Was this it? Would she lose control?

She pulled my hand up to her nose and took in a long, deep breath. Her face contorted into an expression of pure ecstasy as she let out a quiet moan that turned into a long purr. She repeated this several times, bringing her nose close to the blood, but never quite touching it.

Then she did something that surprised me.

Alice blinked several times, a look of sheer pain forming, and released my hand.

I quickly pulled it to myself and tore a small piece of cloth from my shirt, wiping some of it off my palm.

Alice shifted uncomfortably where she was seated, closing her eyes and clamping her jaw shut tightly. I could see the turmoil in her face as she desperately fought against her inner monster, clenching her hands into tight fists and stilling her breathing altogether.

I couldn't help but wonder where the hell the others were at a time like this. That was when I realized how far Alice had taken me. Here I had thought we were still near the house. In reality, I could barely see their house through the thick trees surrounding me.

A stray gust of wind blew over us.

Suddenly, my nose was hit with the scent of my own blood.

The scent was the same as it had been earlier when I was in the room with Mr. Jenks. Only this time, it was stronger. And more….appealing to me.

I couldn't describe the way it smelled. It was like a fragrance. A mouthwatering fragrance, warm and sweet, with a hint of the rusty, salty smell that blood was supposed to have. It was so strange, so surreal, I wasn't even sure if it my nose was functioning correctly.

I brought my palm up to my face and sniffed. It was.

My heart pounded in my chest as everything started spinning. I blinked as my mouth became dry, an aching feeling welling up in both my throat and my chest.

What was going on? What's happening to me?

I blinked again, trying to dispel this odd haze, but it did little good.

The smell of blood grew stronger, causing my nostrils to flare. I felt odd. I felt thirsty, yet not for water. I felt hungry, yet not for food. I felt this odd weight on my chest, as if something was squeezing it. My breathing slowed, becoming more erratic as sweat started to form.

I took a heavy breath, falling to my back as these sensations intensified.

My eyes fixated on a small bit of blood still on my palm. I stared at it.

It was so bright, so moist, so shiny, so…

So…good.

I idly traced my palm with my left index and middle finger. My body moved on its own. I hadn't even blinked by the time my hand shot over to my mouth, my lips parting, tongue gliding out and tasting the blood on my fingertips.

Flavor instantly came into my mouth. A part of my sub-conscious wanted me to throw up from the taste, the other relished in it, begging for more.

And then it was gone. The urges, the smell, everything but the taste lingered. And the taste made me sick to my stomach.

I couldn't even _look _at my hand without the queasiness spiking.

I can't _believe_ I just tasted my own blood. Ew. Gross, gross, gross, gross! Blech!

A rumbling noise cut through my thoughts, forcing me to open my eyes. Alice was staring at me, eyes wide with hunger and longing. There was pleading in them as well, sorrow too. She bit her lip, and squirmed about from her position, struggling to keep herself in check.

I opened my mouth to speak, but before I could, Alice had pounced.

Wait. No.

Alice wrapped her arms around me and pulled me into a slightly rough embrace, positioning me so my head was under her chin. Before I knew it, Alice had buried her nose in my hair and started breathing in. Each breath was slow and yet each had a tenderness to it. I could feel her nuzzle her nose as deep into my hair as she possibly could, moving further with each breath.

Her body started to vibrate as she began purring, which both eased and confused me. She started moving her nose too and thro through my hair while she purred, at the same time rocking me. A strange noise began emanating from her mouth. It wasn't a moan per say, more of a humming noise. It was tender, light and gentle in tone, further relaxing me. It was so strange, the sudden change of emotion I was feeling.

The way she was acting was almost…

I felt another pair of cold hands lift my right hand up. I peered over her shoulder to see Esme, shaking her head at my injured hand. I noticed her eyes were a dark ocher color as she began wrapping my palm up with bandages. Once it was fully wrapped, she smiled warmly at me and touched Alice on the shoulder.

"Alice dear, go and hunt. I'll take Bella to the house," Esme said softly.

Alice hesitated for a moment, growling slightly, but stopped and pulled away before vanishing into the woods, not once looking back at me.

I watched after her until I felt a cool hand on my shoulder and looked up to see a worried Esme.

"Are you alright?" she asked.

It took me a moment to find the words to respond. Everything that had just happened up until this point flashed through my mind, confusing, worrying and scaring me all at once. I shook them off, however, when I peered into the gentle, loving eyes of my new mother.

"Y-yeah, I'm okay. She didn't hurt me, honest. She just kinda…I…" I paused. "I don't know. I couldn't figure out what she was doing, really. I mean, I know it's wrong of me to think and all, but I'm surprised she didn't react as much as I thought she would."

Esme nodded in understanding and helped me to my feet, dusting my shoulders off.

She glanced down at my hand again, a sad look in her eyes. "How did you do that?" she asked.

I glanced at it myself and sighed, cursing my horrible luck. "I tripped on a root and cut it on one of the jutting pieces of bark on the tree," I replied, sighing. "I didn't mean to, though. I guess nothing can ever be good for long for me. I should've watched what I was doing. It was my fault."

Esme shook her head in disagreement. "No, Bella. It wasn't your fault. Accidents happen sometimes, honey. No one is to blame. In fact, you handled this incredibly well, I'd say. As far as Alice, I'm very proud of her control. She was so good today."

"Will she be okay?" I asked, looking at her concernedly.

Esme smiled and wrapped her left arm around my shoulders. "Of course, dear, she just needs to hunt and calm herself."

We started walking at a human pace through the wooded area we were in back to the house. I was confused as to why she didn't just zip me back, but it didn't bother me too much. I liked the idea of getting some quiet time with my new mother. It was nice, even after what had happened.

"I apologize for not being here sooner," Esme murmured, looking at me with sorrowful eyes. "We didn't know that you had hurt yourself until we smelled the blood. Poor Amara and Jasper, they became riled up over it. Carlisle and I had Emmett, Rosalie and Edward take them hunting to calm themselves down. Carlisle and I were both concerned about you and Alice. I decided to go and help while Carlisle went with the others."

I shrugged. "It's fine, really. I'm just…you know, stunned is all."

Esme nodded her head in understanding, lifting me up with ease over a few rocks.

"I understand. Tell me, Bella, do you know what Alice was doing?"

"Um, purring?"

She chuckled musically. "Yes, dear, that's true. What I mean is, do you know why she was able to fight off her thirst and instead began cradling you, as if you were an infant?"

I had noticed that. Alice was so gentle, so cautious; it was almost as if I was the most precious thing in the world to her. Which, I mean, I was.

I shook my head. "No, not really," I admitted.

"Her maternal instincts were kicking in. You see, when our mate is injured, our primary instincts are to care for our mate. Vampires are very much like animals in that sense. They love their mates as their mates love them, so when a mate is hurt in any way, the first thing we do is go to their side and make sure they are alright. The amount of tenderness differs from vampire to vampire, I'd say, but I'd say that there's always a pull towards it in any situation."

"You being human, however, makes it different. In Alice's eyes, you are more vulnerable to things that couldn't naturally cause us harm. I don't mean this as an insult to you, Bella, but I believe she sees you as…shall I say, fragile. She loves you deeply and she doesn't want to hurt you, this you know. That is why she was acting that way, treating you so tenderly. Did she do anything out of the ordinary beforehand?"

I fidgeted slightly as Esme helped walk me over a small hill. "She, um, she brought my hand to her nose and sniffed it a few times. Then she let it go and buried her nose in my hair."

"Ah. That was her trying to distract herself from the smell of your blood no doubt. Another thing about mates is that your mate will naturally smell incredibly appealing to you. In truth, you do smell very good, but to Alice, you probably smell even better. Not in an appetizing way, however, though I'm sure that is a problem from time to time. I'm sorry if this is confusing to you. I'm not as good at explaining these sorts of things as my husband is."

I shook my head. "No, no, you're fine. I like this. I mean, I like spending time with you, Esme. I want to bond with everyone in the family. My family." The words felt unquestionably right as they left my mouth. Esme smiled endearingly at me.

"Oh! That reminds me, your cake is done. I wasn't certain what flavor you liked, so I went with chocolate. I hope you aren't allergic to chocolate, are you?" she asked, clearly concerned.

I laughed quietly. "No, I love chocolate. Thank you," I replied.

She beamed at that. "Excellent! I swear, I had a hard time deciding on that alone. I had no idea there were so many different flavors!" she exclaimed. I laughed again. Esme certainly had a charm to her. "Oh, if only I could taste the different flavors to see how is each different. You'll have to do it for me, Bella, and let me know."

"Okay, will do mom."

She paused for a moment and looked at me. "You said "mom"," she said softly.

I blinked, realizing I had. I hadn't said that word in ages. And just now, I'd said it naturally.

Esme pulled me into a warm, loving hug. It was the embrace of a mother who had just gotten a new daughter. Not only that, it was the embrace of someone I knew I loved and who loved me and the embrace of perhaps the greatest mother in the world. I felt tears beginning to pool in the back of my eyes from the warmth flowing off of Esme, struggling to keep them at bay.

Today had certainly been a day for crying, it seemed, but I didn't want to cry now.

Esme eventually released me and picked up the pace, lifting me slightly with her hand as she walked. She didn't run, however, instead keeping her pace fairly human-speed. It didn't take much longer to return to the house, though.

Carlisle was waiting on the front steps, looking worriedly on. He noticed me and his face softened up, though he was still clearly concerned.

"Are you alright, Bella? What happened?" he asked, the same loving, caring tone as Esme.

"I'm fine," I replied as Esme placed me down. "I tripped on a root and cut my hand open." I showed him my bandaged hand as proof.

He nodded. "I see. May I take a look at it? Perhaps I could apply an ointment to help ease the pain?"

I frowned. Come to think of it, I hadn't felt much pain. I shook that off and nodded at him.

Carlisle smiled and led me inside to the kitchen. I noticed that the others were back, Emmett, Rosalie and Edward all sitting on the couch playing a video game. Jasper and Amara weren't present, though, so I figured they were still out hunting.

We walked into the kitchen, where I seated myself while Carlisle knelt down near my hand and undid the bandages on my hand. Esme vanished for a moment before reappearing with a small thing of ointment, which she handed to Carlisle as he studied my palm.

There was a relatively good sized cut in the center of my palm, though it looked far shallower compared to the amount of blood that I'd seen when I cut it. Most of the blood had dried up by now, posing much less of a threat to the others in the room. I noticed that Rosalie wasn't breathing through her nose while both Edward and Emmett had their mouths clamped shut, making it rather humorous whenever Emmett grinned or frowned.

I sighed morosely, feeling guilty for the trouble I was causing. Not the best way to treat my new family.

Carlisle looked at me curiously. "What's wrong?"

I bit my lip. "N-nothing, just thinking is all," I murmured.

"She's upset with herself because she thinks she's causing us pain," Edward stated from over on the couch, not taking his eyes off the screen.

Carlisle and Esme both frowned while I silently cursed Edward for being nosy.

"Sorry, Bella. Like I said, though, I can't control it. And it's not being nosy when one of my family members is being ridiculous," he responded. I could practically imagine Edward sticking his tongue out at me mentally in a gesture of playfulness.

I rolled my eyes at the thought while Edward smirked.

"Bella, you're not causing anyone any trouble at all," Esme stated warmly. "If anything, we should be apologizing for having such poor control. I'm truthfully sorry if this is making you uncomfortable, honey, but I mean it when I say you have no reason to feel guilty. You've done nothing wrong, Bella."

I merely nodded my head, choosing not to reply.

Carlisle felt my hand for a moment, applying the ointment to the cut before re-wrapping it in new bandages. Once he was finished, he gently let my hand drop down to my side before standing up and smiling.

"That ought to do it. Now then, I believe Esme has a treat for you?"

Esme clasped her hands together. "Yes, yes! Oh, but before I do, I want to get a picture of Bella with her cake. Come here, dear," Esme said.

I smiled and walked over to her as she pulled the cover off of the most delicious looking cake I'd laid eyes on in…shit, forever. My mouth was already watering as I took it in, noticing the words "Welcome to the family, Bella!" written in yellow frosting.

"Now, first a picture of the cake…" Esme murmured, snapping a photo of the cake that was to be mine. Wait, where the hell did she get the camera from? What'd, she pull it from thin air?

Edward snickered from the couch, to which I rolled my eyes at. Seriously, how annoying.

"And of course, a picture of you with the cake," Esme said, moving me so I was in the correct position. "Now smile and say…um…" She paused for a moment and furrowed her brow in confusion. "What is it humans say? Spinach?"

I couldn't help giggling at that. Esme looked so damn funny trying to figure out the appropriate word to use. Carlisle smiled amusedly as well, clearly enjoying watching his wife fumble over what to say.

"It's "cheese", Esme," I said at last, stifling my giggling as best as I could.

Esme frowned. "Cheese? Now why would they say something ridiculous like that for a picture? I swear I don't understand humans much these days," she said, shaking her head.

That only made me laugh harder. I couldn't help it. She sounded like one of those old people who yelled at kids to stay off their lawn with the way she had said that. I heard Edward start laughing too, which confused Esme.

"What? Did I say something funny?" she asked, wanting in on the joke.

I giggle-snorted a few more times before calming myself and catching my breath.

"You…you sounded like…oh God, Esme, you're too funny," I laughed. Her facial expression wasn't helping much either.

Esme crossed her arms and huffed, extending her lower lip in a childish pout that was almost as cheek-pinchingly adorable as Alice's.

"Well fine then, no cake for you," she huffed.

I stopped laughing and frowned, plastering a mock-hurt look on my face.

"Aw, mom…" I whined playfully.

The word "mom" did wonders, since Esme couldn't keep the pout on her face for more than a few seconds before she caved.

"Oh, fine! But you're telling me what was so funny. Now stand up straight and smile," she commanded, her tone full of warmth and mirth. I did as she commanded and smiled a natural smile as she snapped the photo.

Carlisle, who had been struggling valiantly not to burst into laughter over the short banter Esme and I had just had, let out a brisk chuckle, shaking his head.

"It's nice to see this sort of thing, let me say. I'm glad everyone can get along so well. Again, welcome to the family, Bella," Carlisle said, smiling warmly and proudly at me.

I smiled back at him and nodded. "Thanks dad." His eyes lit up at that, the word having the same effect as it did on Esme. And again, the word flew from my mouth naturally, as if it were always meant to.

"I'll leave you to your cake, then. Oh, and afterwards I have a gift for you up in my office." He smiled one last time before departing up the stairs.

I sat back down at the table and watched as Esme cut a piece of cake of. What was funny was watching her try to figure out how big a piece she should cut me. She hesitated for a minute or so, her hand constantly moving over what piece to cut. Eventually she shrugged it off and sliced down before slapping the piece on a plate and placing it in front of me.

I stared down at it, finding myself hungrier than I thought I'd been. And I did love cake, after all, especially chocolate cake.

As my hand began to reach down for the fork, though, it was stopped. I blinked and looked up to see Alice standing near me, a blank look on her face. Her eyes, at least, were honey colored again, which made me feel relaxed and happy.

"Hey," I breathed, smiling up at her. "You feeling better?"

She didn't respond at first, instead closing her eyes and sighing. Then she blurred into thin air and I found myself being lifted up. I was soon sitting on her lap facing her, her back to the table. It was an odd position, truth be told, but I didn't mind it too much because I was next to Alice.

With her left hand she cupped my injured hand, cradling it as if it were an infant. Her other arm wrapped around my back and pulled me into her as she had in the forest. She was more at ease now, however, as her breathing was less ragged and quieter.

I rested my head on her right shoulder, breathing in that rich scent of vanilla, strawberry and chocolate.

Oh. Chocolate. My cake.

Since my right hand was both injured and being cradled by Alice, I decided to eat the cake with my left. On a good note, I had learned how to both write and eat left handed perfectly due to the numerous times I'd broken my right hand or arm back in Arizona.

No sooner had I grabbed the plate, however, did Alice snatch it from me with her free hand. I was confused at first as to what she was going to do. She leaned in until her lips were inches away and, to my surprise, breathed on it.

She breathed on the piece of cake for a minute or so before smiling and holding it out to me. I realized that she was going to hold it while I ate, which I was thankful for. I grabbed the fork and stabbed into a piece before ripping it out and stuffing it in my mouth.

The second that piece hit my tongue my mouth exploded with flavor. I didn't just taste the chocolate; I tasted Alice on my tongue. Dear Lord in heaven. It was the same flavor that I smelled on her, the rich scent of vanilla, strawberry and of course, chocolate. But this chocolate was far superior then the cake. It was angelic in ways I couldn't describe.

I moaned softly as I chewed, relishing in the amazing tastes soaring through my mouth.

Dare I say it; it was like having an orgasm in my mouth.

I swallowed the blissful piece of cake, ignoring the snickering from Edward and the amused look on Alice's face. I took another piece and did the same, then another, and another. Eventually I had downed the entire cake, my tongue tingling and my mouth hungering for more.

I had to snap myself out of the euphoric haze I was in when I heard Alice begin to purr again.

"Good?" she asked, nuzzling into my neck.

I nodded briskly. "Heaven," I replied.

Again I heard Edward's snickering, this time added together with Rosalie and Emmett's. Well, Emmett's was a loud, booming laugh, but whatever.

She rolled her eyes and smiled before leaning in to kiss me softly on the lips. I moaned again, silently taking back my last statement. Alice's_ lips_ were heaven. I gleefully kissed her back for a minute and a half until she slowly broke apart, giving me the chance I needed for oxygen.

That was always a downside to this. I needed oxygen. She didn't.

Still, it was worth it.

Alice pulled my hand up to her lips and lovingly kissed each knuckle several times over, her whole body vibrating as she did. I leaned my head against her shoulder and enjoyed the various sensations I was experiencing as she purred and kissed my hand, reveling in the love and warmth emanating from her.

Everything that had happened minutes ago practically evaporated into thin air. I didn't care since nothing bad came from it, other than that odd thing, which I tried not to think about. I still couldn't believe I'd _done_ that. Yuck.

"I'm sorry about earlier," Alice whispered, looking up at me with warm tawny eyes.

"It's fine, Alice. You didn't hurt me or anything like that. You have no reason to apologize. I should be the one apologizing for being so clumsy," I stated.

Alice shook her head. "No, don't apologize. Didn't Esme just get finished saying that?"

"How did you…?"

She smiled and tapped her forehead. "I had to check and see how you were doing after I'd hunted. I was a bit worried you'd be frightened of me, but you weren't, which I'm glad for. To be honest, I'm actually pretty surprised with myself."

I frowned. "How so?"

Alice cocked her head to the side, looking at me as if I'd asked her a very dumb question.

"Bella, do you realize that I was able to resist your blood? Do you realize how hard that was to do, how it's nearly impossible to do?" she asked.

I blinked, realizing what she meant. "Oh."

She nodded her head. "The fact that I was able to resist your blood was…well, let's just say it wasn't easy."

"How'd you do it, though?" I asked, curious.

Alice seemed surprised by the question, blinking several times to try and figure it out herself.

"I don't know," she admitted, hanging her head slightly. "It was hard, though. One of the hardest things I've ever done. When I first smelled your blood…I…I don't know. I mean, God, Bella, if you had any idea how good your blood smelled." She sighed almost longingly, shaking her head. "It was euphoric, really. Probably the same to me what that cake was to you, I'd say. Only my craving for it was stronger and the burn in my throat was intense."

"However, there was another craving that I felt, one I didn't recognize. It was the craving to…nurture you," she said, looking into my eyes. "I felt the need to nurture you because you are my mate and you were injured. So I fought off my thirst and focused on that need, which is why I was able to release your hand. Truthfully though, had I not smelled Esme coming, I'm not sure I would've have been able to control myself much longer."

She hung her head, a look of shame on her face. I hated seeing my angel sad. I leaned in and kissed her full on the lips, surprising her. The surprise was gone in seconds as she quickly kissed me back. I was the one who broke away first, leaning my forehead against hers and staring into those loving pools of gold.

"You don't have to feel bad either, Alice. You were amazing, plain and simple."

Alice grinned. "Thank you, Bella. That means a lot coming from you. Oh, I almost forgot!"

In an instant I was no longer on her lap as she stood up, stuffing her hand into her pocket. She pulled out the necklace that she had gotten me as a gift and placed it around my neck, positioning it just right. She stepped back and admired it for a moment, smiling wide. I couldn't help smiling myself. Happiness was contagious when I was around her.

"Beautiful," she said. "And the necklace isn't too bad either."

I blushed at her comment, though a part of me still didn't fully believe what she said. How could I be considered beautiful when there's a Goddess in front of me, not to mention the other seven insanely beautiful people in this house?

Edward snorted from the couch. I glanced over, having completely forgotten that the others were still here. Jasper and Amara had returned, both looking relaxed as they sat together on the couch, watching in amusement as Rosalie kicked Edward and Emmett's asses in the game they were playing. Alice looked at Edward confusedly for a moment before her eyes glazed over into a vision. It was a brief vision, too.

Alice tsk-ed, scooped me into her arms and carried me off to her room, gently placing me on her bed. She sat directly next to me with her arms crossed, giving me a quizzical look.

"What?" I asked, resting my head on her pillow.

Alice rolled her eyes. "Do you honestly not think you're attractive, Bella?" she asked.

I shrugged, not responding to the question.

She sighed and laid next to me, her eyes boring into mine. "Bella, do not doubt that you are the most beautiful person in this house. I don't care what you think regarding it, you are more beautiful then Rosalie, Amara, Esme and myself combined. Do you know why, Bella?"

I shook my head, still not verbally answering.

Alice pulled me closer to her so our foreheads were connected. "It's because you have both inner and outer beauty, Bella. You just don't see it for yourself. You refuse to acknowledge how beautiful you truly are because you're too used to being told you weren't. Well, I have news for you. I'm going to tell you you're beautiful every day until you finally see it for yourself."

"Alice…" She put her finger to my lips.

"No. I don't want you to tell me not to, Bella, because I'm going to anyway. You need to see it, so I'll do whatever I can to prove my point. Understand?" I nodded. "Good. Now then, I do believe you will start to feel tired in about a minute and forty two seconds. If you'd like, Esme and Carlisle will give you their gifts tomorrow. It is getting a bit late and you need your rest, especially since school starts in a couple of days."

I groaned. "Ugh. Do I really gotta go to stinking school?" I whined.

She kissed me and giggled. "Yes, you really have to go to stinking school."

"Damn," I complained.

"Don't worry, we'll talk more about that tomorrow. Oh, and about that feeling tired thing…"

On cue, I let out a very loud yawn, finding myself incredibly fatigued.

"That's so weird," I murmured after my yawn.

She cocked her head to the side. "What is?"

"I just…I suddenly became super tired, when I wasn't tired before. Jasper's not messing with me, is he?" I asked.

"No, he's not," she replied, frowning slightly. "Are you feeling okay?"

"I, um, I don't know," I admitted. "It's super weird, really."

She frowned deeper. "Maybe you could speak with Carlisle about it tomorrow? Or are you up for it right now? I don't want to push you if you don't feel like and I know Carlisle feels the same way."

"I-" I was cut off again by another yawn that I tried to stop, feeling incredibly tired for reasons I didn't understand. "I guess tomorrow?"

She nodded in understanding and slowly started to get up.

"Wait, Alice," I called. She turned back to face me. "Can you, you know…"

She smiled. "I was just going to change, Bella. Into something more…suitable. Hold on one moment, okay?"

I nodded and stared up at the ceiling while she blurred out the door.

I suppose now would be as good a time as any just to think. To contemplate all that's happened in such a short period of time.

Yesterday I was Isabella Marie Swan. Today I'm Bella Cullen.

I have a house, a car, money, clothes…

Most importantly, I have a family. And a lover.

Sometimes I swear I'm living in a fairytale. But then I realize that it's all real, which surprises, confuses and amazes me all in the same.

Why me? It just doesn't make sense.

I sighed and closed my eyes, feeling the sleepiness growing stronger.

That was another thing that worried me. I hadn't felt tired all day up until this point, when I was suddenly hit by all the fatigue at once. I didn't understand that.

Then there was the deal with blood, both in the forest and when I was with Carlisle. There were the odd urges I'd get, the growling and snarling that I couldn't control, all those strange thoughts running through my head. It was like…

No. I shouldn't think silly things like that. That can't be possible.

Can it?

I need to see Carlisle tomorrow. Perhaps he can run a test or something like that…

"Bella?"

I opened my eyes to see Alice standing near the doorway, wearing a sleek pair of light blue silk pajamas. They fit her body perfectly, even exposing a small amount of her stomach. Sweet Jesus, pinch me now.

"Y-yes?" I stammered, struggling to take my eyes off of her body.

She smirked and strutted over to the body, shaking her hips seductively as she did. Oh Lord.

Eventually she got on top of the bed, followed by crawling on top of me. Her mouth came inches away from mine, breathing that sweet, delicious scent of hers all over me. The combination of its sweetness and how cool it was made me shiver and thirst for more.

"Do you like?" she asked, arching an eyebrow.

My eyes were probably the size of fishbowls as I nodded. "Yes…"

She grinned wider before pressing her lips to mine. I'm not sure why, but her lips tasted even better for some reason, which I didn't think possible. She kissed me slowly and lovingly as she curled her arms around me, resting her head inches away from mine on the pillow.

I'm not sure how it happened, but within minutes I had shrugged off my shoes and a good portion of my clothing. I mean, I wasn't naked, since I was now wearing a pair of dark blue silk pajamas of my own, which Alice had somehow managed to put on while we had been kissing.

I swear I have no idea how she did it. Then again, I _was_ pretty distracted with her lips.

Eventually my need for oxygen overpowered my need to kiss her and we stopped. She started purring again, much to my enjoyment, and wrapped around me as she pulled the covers over our bodies. We both gazed into one another's eyes as we nuzzled into each other, enjoying the other's scent and presence.

These were the moments I loved most. I loved cuddling with Alice. I loved just being near her, kissing and hugging. When it was just the two of us, no one else mattered, no one else existed. It was as if we were alone in our own small bubble of bliss and love. All the problems that lay ahead of us didn't matter. Time didn't matter. Only we mattered. That was it.

I loved it.

I loved her.

As the waves of bliss and warmth washed over me and my eyelids started to drop, I pressed my lips to hers one last time.

"Alice?"

She looked at me endearingly. "Yes?"

"I love you," I murmured.

Her eyes lit up with sheer joy. She kissed me once, twice, three times, each slow and full of that joy and love.

"I've waited almost five decades to hear those three words," she whispered. Her eyes were glazed over, but in a different way than from when she had visions. They looked liquid-like, as if she were about to cry. Vampires couldn't cry, though. This was the closest she could come to it.

I couldn't help shedding a tear at her words. To wait so long to hear those words…

"Oh Alice, I'm sorry I didn't say it before," I choked, pulling her as close to me as possible. She mimicked this and pulled me into her. We were practically melting into each other.

She kissed me fully, smiling with happiness. "Don't apologize. I love you, Bella. You are my heart and soul, for now and forever."

I choked back a sob coming, tired of crying so damn much today. "I love you too, Alice."

We kissed one last time as her body started vibrating. I rested my head into her, letting the peaceful sound of her purring lull me into a blissful sleep.

Despite the odder parts, I think today truly was the happiest day of my life.

**A/N: Aw, tender moment. This time, _without_ the "holy shit!" ending. **

**I kind of liked this chapter. It conveys the growing bond between Alice and Bella, the love they feel, a bit of humor here and there and of course the changes happening to Bella.**

**By now, most of you can guess what's going on. Bella, however, isn't sure. So bear with me as that comes more into play in future chapters.**

**School will be starting up (in this story, not real life, thankfully) soon. In another chapter or so, I'd say. That's when things become more interesting. Oh yes, very much.**

**Thank you to all my wonderful readers and a big thanks to all my wonderful reviewers. You help make this story what it is! Rock on.**

**Oh, but as I said before, don't expect a whole lot for the proceeding chapter. The one after it is when the plot gets back into place, though. **


	24. Drive

**Disclaimer: Blah blah blah, I don't own Twilight. Blah blah, Meyer does. Blah, I own all OCs. Nothing's changed. **

**Drive**

"Wake up, Bella!" sang a voice like wind-chimes. One I knew and loved.

Only, I didn't want to wake up yet.

"Mmph," I grumbled, burying my face into my pillow.

I felt a cool pair of lips brush against the back of my neck, making me shudder from the sensations it brought.

Get up, sleepy. We have lots to do," Alice whispered, her lips brushing against the bottom lobe of my left ear, making me shudder again. I struggled against myself to try and sleep further, but my resolve dissipated when she slowly pulled the covers off of me.

"Ugh, what? Can't I get some sleep?" I whined, blinking several times so my eyes adjusted better.

Alice was standing in front of the bed, hands on her hips and an amused smile on her face.

"You've already slept too long!" she whined right back, bouncing on the balls of her feet. "Come on, Bella! Up, up, up!"

I couldn't help giggling at her childish exuberance. She knew how adorable she was when she acted like that and she knew how much of a sucker I was for it. I sighed and sat up, straightening my hair out a bit with my hand.

"What time is it?" I asked while yawning, stretching my limbs outward. I felt really good. Last night had been an amazing night of sleep, that's for damn sure.

Alice gradually stopped her bouncing before plopping down next to me. "It's twelve in the afternoon."

I blinked, wide eyed with surprise. "Holy shit, _twelve_? How long have I been sleeping?"

"Well, you went to bed yesterday at eight thirty, so…almost sixteen hours?"

My jaw dropped. "Alice, that isn't normal for humans…" I murmured.

She frowned at that and cocked her head to the side. "Hm. Well, you aren't exactly normal yourself, you know. And it's not like you've slept a whole lot in recent months, Bella, remember that. Besides, you slept well, didn't you?"

I frowned, thinking about that for a moment before nodding. "Yeah, I guess I did."

She smiled and leaned in to kiss me, but I pulled away. "Bella!" she huffed.

"Morning breath," I grumbled.

Alice rolled her eyes. "Bella, your breath can never stink to me, nor can any part of you. How many times must I tell you that?" she asked. Before I could respond, she grabbed me and pulled me into her lips for a kiss. When we pulled away, she had a giddy grin on her face, her eyes twinkling in more than just the kiss.

"What?" I asked.

"You talked in your sleep," she giggled.

I blushed. "I…I did? Oh God, I d-didn't say anything embarrassing did I?" I stammered.

"You said you loved me," she replied, her smile widening broadly.

"Oh. Well, yeah, I do. Besides, I told you that last night, remember?"

"I know. But I love hearing it all the same," she said, kissing me again."Now get up! We've got lots to do today. Tomorrow's your first day of school and-"

"Whoa, wait a moment!" I shouted, holding both my hands up. "What do you mean tomorrow is my first day? I thought we'd be starting next week!"

Alice bit her lip and sighed. "I'm sorry. I must've forgotten to mention to you. We usually don't go to school when the sun is out, for obvious reasons. The fact is, Esme called the school and told them that we were adopting a new family member and, well, tomorrow isn't going to be sunny, so…"

"So tomorrow I start high school with you guys…" I breathed. She nodded sheepishly.

Holy shit. I do NOT think I'm ready for this yet.

It's been so long since I've been in school…

Oh, wait. Four months. I guess it hasn't been that long. But it's felt like _ages_. I mean shit, I didn't have a family back then and now I do. This is a new place, new faces…

Alice touched my shoulder, breaking me from my thoughts. "Bella, relax. It's okay. I'll be with you in every class, so don't worry so much. We'll talk more about it after you've eaten something and cleaned up. Like I said, you don't stink or anything, but I know how you love taking showers and all."

I rolled my eyes at her, though I still felt a sense of dread about the idea of going to school.

Breakfast and the shower were the same as always, which is to say, awesome. Esme made a combination of different things that all tasted fantastic, coupled together with Alice's usual remarks and cute facial expressions. I bid everyone good morning after I'd finished eating and jumped into the shower, which helped wake me up all the way.

After that, I slipped into some of the new clothes Alice had bought me. A pair of comfy designer blue jeans coupled with a long, short sleeved blue shirt made of lace.

"Looking good," Alice purred, giving me a once over when I'd exited the bathroom.

I blushed slightly. "T-thanks…" I glanced down and realized that several of the bite marks I'd received from Victoria were showing. "What am I going to do about these?"

Alice frowned, a surge of hate in her eyes as she looked over my scarred arm. "You can wear a long sleeved shirt or a jacket if you'd like. I can understand if they'd make you uncomfortable. I have to say, though, I don't think they're that noticeable. We see them because our eyes are incredibly powerful and you can see them well since it's your skin. But I don't think a normal human would be able to notice them unless they were really paying attention."

"If you say so…" I murmured.

She pulled me into a hug and kissed my cheek. "I did and I do. Now cheer up, we need to get your picture taken for your license!" she chirped, lifting me up slightly. She danced down the stairs with me slung over her shoulder before plopping me gently down on the couch.

Esme was there with that damn camera in her hands, smiling warmly. "This won't take too long, alright dear? Now smile!"

Alice stuck her tongue out at me from my left, instantly making my face light up with a goofy grin. Esme snapped the photo and grinned before disappearing up the stairs. When she reappeared, she had something in her hands, which she handed to me. It was another present.

"I never gave you my gift, so here it is," Esme sang delightedly. "I hope you like it."

I smiled appreciatively at her and slowly undid the wrapping. It was a photo album.

"I want you to be able to keep all your memories in it," Esme said, touching the soft fabric of the cover slightly. "That way, you'll be able to remind yourself of all the good times you've shared as a member of our family. I've already placed a few in, actually."

"Thank you, Esme!" I shouted, wrapping her into a hug. She smiled warmly and hugged me back. "I couldn't have asked for a better mother." Her eyes widened for a moment before she tightened the hug ever so slightly, pouring her love into it.

Eventually she pulled apart, gave me a kiss on the cheek and handed the camera off to Jasper, who had ghosted into the room from up the stairs seconds earlier.

"I'll be back in an hour or so with your license, Bella," he said, smiling.

"Thanks Jasper," I replied. He nodded before departing out the door. "He seemed pretty happy."

"He was reflecting the love that you and Esme were feeling," Alice explained, sitting next to me and idly tracing the cover of the photo album with her fingertips. "I think it's a great idea for a gift, actually. Plus, it'll be full in no time with the way Esme's been taking pictures."

I laughed and rested my head on her granite shoulder. After a minute of silence, I turned my head slightly to better face her.

"Alice?"

She looked at me expectantly. "Yes?"

"I'm sorry for killing the mood and all, but have you had any visions about that newborn?" I asked. I couldn't hide the fact that I was worried. Worried that the newborn was in league with James and Victoria and that they would attack when we least expected it.

Alice eyes darkened slightly, but they lightened back up as she leaned over and pecked me on the lips. Her left hand started to stroke the back of my head, her fingers lightly running through my hair soothingly.

"You're worried, aren't you?" she asked. "I can see it your eyes, Bella. The fear, the concern…I can see it all. Listen, Bella. I know you're scared. I am too, to be honest. But you don't have to worry about a thing. I. Will. Protect. You. I vow that on my life that I will do everything in my power, no matter what happens to me, to protect you. I promise you that."

Both her eyes and her words smoldered with love and sincerity, the strength enough to bring dampness to my eyes.

"Okay?" she asked, capturing my lips again.

I nodded. "Okay."

"Good."

"So what do you want to do now? Didn't you say we had a lot to do today?" I asked.

She smiled innocently at me. "I kinda just said that so you'd get out of bed," she admitted.

I gaped at her. "You…ugh! You little jerk!" I pulled away from her, crossing my arms and huffing dramatically. I tried to glare at her, but that adorable pout and those gleaming puppy dog eyes that she donned on her face was far too much. I ended up cuddling further into her, nuzzling into her neck. She kissed the top of my head lovingly, laughing quietly as she did.

"You're too easy," she giggled. "And you're a horrible actress."

"Shut up," I groaned. She giggled even more as she kissed my neck. I sighed and leaned further into her, resting my hand on her knee.

Our growing tender moment was quickly interrupted, though.

"My God you guys are so incredibly cheesy sometimes," snickered Amara as she glided into the room, holding onto my laptop. She grinned at my questioning expression as she sat next to me, setting the laptop down on my, well, lap. "I wanted you to use it. I figure if anything you could put those gift card things Edward got you to use, you know? That way you'll have something to drown out Alice's bantering when you need it."

Now_ I_ was the one giggling as Alice glared at her sister, unamused with her attempted humor. Amara, on the other hand, was clearly amused by her reaction, leaning away from Alice with a smug grin on her face as Alice tried to swat her.

"I do _not _banter!" Alice hissed.

Amara laughed, ignoring her sister and opened up the laptop. "C'mon, try it out already!"

I did as she asked and turned on my new laptop. A few seconds later, the screen flashed and I was welcomed by a picture of Alice…

In a bikini.

My face turned ten shades of red as I gaped at the photo of Alice in a yellow two piece, smiling rather impishly at the camera. Next to me, Alice's eyes bulged, apparently not knowing that her picture would be being used as a background.

"Amara!" Alice shouted, hiding her face in her hands. "I can't believe that's the picture you used!" She looked like she'd be blushing like I was, were she able to.

I still couldn't believe what I was seeing, blinking several times as I memorized every detail of Alice's amazingly sultry body. My God she was hot.

"Wow…" I breathed, too astonished to care about Amara's laughter or Alice's obvious embarrassment. What the hell did she have to be embarrassed about? This was the sexiest thing I'd ever laid eyes on. I mean, _damn_.

Alice snatched the laptop out of my hands and closed it.

"Hey!" Amara and I both shouted.

Alice ignored me and glared at Amara. "Why'd you have to choose that picture?" she demanded. "Did you see my hair? And that bikini? It was a atrocious!"

"Give me that!" I shouted, snatching the laptop right back.

"But Bella-"

I hugged it into my body. "No! Mine! By the way, what you said was bullshit. Your hair looked amazing like it always does and that bikini was not atrocious. Alice, do you not realize how jaw-droppingly_ sexy_ you look? I mean, seriously, I'd kill to have a body like yours."

Amara looked like she was trying hard not to burst into laughter while Alice merely gawked at me. I quickly realized what I'd just said and blushed slightly, turning even redder when I heard Emmett's booming laughter and Edward's velvety chuckle upstairs. I swore I even heard Rosalie laughing.

"You think I look sexy?" Alice asked, cocking her head to the side. There was a hint of amusement in her eyes as she spoke, but there was also genuine curiosity.

"Yes," I squeaked.

She kissed me on my hot cheek. "Thanks."

"You see, Alice? I told you we'd pick a good picture," Amara said, grinning.

Alice crinkled her nose and stuck out her tongue. "Yeah, well you could've at least _told_ me. It wasn't fair that you kept changing your minds so I wouldn't see."

"Where's the fun in that?" Amara asked, rolling her eyes. "Anyways, Bella, Edward already got your little music account set up for you, so you can start getting music whenever you feel like it. I'd suggest doing it soon, since you'll need it tomorrow."

I grimaced. School.

Amara noticed my expression and nodded. "Yeah, tell me about it. I mean, sometimes it ain't too bad, but there are other times where I dread it. We go because we need to keep up personal appearances, since it'd be weird if we didn't otherwise. It's a pain, though, because whenever we move we always have to reestablish ourselves. I think, if anything, the first few weeks will be a tad difficult for you."

"What do you mean?" I asked, becoming a bit concerned.

Alice answered for her. "She means that you'll probably be the hottest gossip topic at the school for a while. You'll likely be stared at every minute you're there and you'll probably be approached by a dozen people asking questions." She shot her our sister a reproving look as the worry continued to build.

"Hey, don't give me that look," Amara grumbled. "She has a right to know what's in store for her, doesn't she? Would you rather the poor girl have a heart attack?" Alice's eyes widened in sheer horror. "Exactly my point, Alice. It's better that she know."

"Know what?" I asked confusedly. "Why would people care so much?"

"Because by now the entire town knows that the illusive Cullen family has adopted a new daughter, one who will be starting Forks High School tomorrow. Word travels fast in small towns, and because of our reputation, you'll be…well…popular. Not popular in the sense that you may think, but popular to gossip about."

I tried to push away the fear growing inside me. "What reputation?"

"We're not known for taking an interest in other people," Alice explained. "We rarely speak to anyone at school, too. I mean, it's not like we're super rude or anything, we use manners and we're always polite to people, we just don't have any friends and stuff like that. So people will find it odd for us to suddenly adopt someone."

I frowned, not liking the sound of being the center of attention. I didn't mind it if it were a couple of people, but an entire school? No. Just, no. That scared me. I could only imagine being surrounded by curious students, all piling in to ask me questions that I didn't want to answer. I shuddered at the thought.

Alice noticed this and wrapped an arm around me. "Don't worry, Bella. I'll keep you safe," she said softly. She wasn't joking, either.

I smiled, feeling a little reassured, but not by much.

Amara chuckled next to me. "I feel sorry for any human dumb enough to try and hit on you."

Alice's eyes both narrowed and darkened significantly as she bared her teeth venomously.

"They'd better not if they know what's good for them," she growled. "She's _my_ Bella."

I glared at Amara for upsetting Alice and touched her shoulder. "It's okay, Alice. I know I'm yours and you know I'm yours. You don't have to be jealous, okay?" I lifted up the necklace around my neck and showed it to her. "Remember, Alice?"

She narrowed her eyes and studied the necklace before the gold slowly started to return.

"I do," she replied, sounding calmer.

"And you remember promising you'd try and work on your jealousy?"

She frowned. "I remember. It's just…hard. I can't promise you I won't do anything, but in the worst case scenario, the others will stop me if things get too bad. I'll try as hard as I can, though, I promise I will. Just…please understand that it's hard not to act on my instincts, Bella. This is all so new to me, you know?" Her golden eyes pleaded with me for understanding, which I did.

"I know, Ali. I know. I'll help any way I can, I promise," I said, running my hand through her silky hair. She closed her eyes and smiled, enjoying the feeling.

Alice looked at me endearingly, her eyes glistening. "You called me Ali," she murmured. She leaned in and pressed her lips to mine, smiling against them as she did. "Does that mean I get to call you Bells?"

I smiled and shrugged. "If you'd like, then sure." She smiled wider at that and kissed me again. Oh how I loved the feeling of her lips. And the smell of her breath…phenomenal. It was like her scent, only more concentrated. My mouth was watering as I breathed it in and kissed her.

"You two are something else," Amara chuckled.

We both broke away, smiling at each other, before I turned and faced Amara, crossing my arms.

"You know, you got Alice all upset, what about you and Jasper? Have you two ever had jealousy problems before?" I asked, quirking an eyebrow.

Amara blinked, caught off guard by my question. After a moment though, she shrugged and leaned into the couch, looking up at the ceiling as she mulled over her answer.

"I guess that's fair," she mused. "Truth be told, it hasn't been that big of an issue for us. Jasper's got a pretty good handle on his emotions thanks to his gift, so when guys try and flirt with me or look at me or something like that, he doesn't jump up and start growling or threatening them. He merely remains calm as I turn them down. There have been a few times, like once when a guy tried to grab my ass, where Jasper has gotten in their face over it. He doesn't even need his gift since he can scare the crap out of you on his own, though that's only when he's upset."

"It generally takes a lot to upset him, though there are certain things that get him angry quick. The main things I've noticed are when someone insults one of us or when someone treats a woman poorly. He's very gentlemanly and believes in treating woman with respect and as equals, so you can guess that he hates men who don't do that."

"As for me, I've been able to keep my jealousy curbed, though most of that is thanks to being around Jasper. I used to get miffed whenever random girls would fawn over him, but he would always use his gift to calm me down before kindly turning them down. He's a sweetheart, though. He's never rude to them and he always uses his gift to show his sincerity. He's the kind of person who's nice to everyone, boy or girl, as long as they're respectful of him and his family. I'm quite lucky to have him as mine."

"That's sweet," I said. Alice nodded her head in agreement. "I kind of have to say, Amara, that that _was _pretty corny in itself."

Amara rolled her eyes. "Yeah, okay, you got me there. But, if you want real jealousy problems, look no further than Emmett and Rosalie."

I heard Edward snort upstairs while Emmett and Rosalie both grunted rather loudly.

"It's true!" Alice agreed with a giggle. "All it takes is a glance for Rosalie to get jealous. And a jealous Rosalie is never a good thing. Emmett is the same way, though he's nowhere near as frightening as Rosalie is. They try and deny it, but they're _way_ worse than I am, trust me."

Amara stood up and patted my head. "Just be sure to use this thing as much as possible, okay?"

"Of course I will. Thanks Amara."

She smiled at us before blurring out the door, leaving us alone. Well, alone in the same room.

"Hey Alice, where's Carlisle?" I asked, remembering that I wanted to talk with him.

"He's at work. He'll be there all day, I'm afraid," she replied

I frowned, but shrugged it off. I could always talk to him another time.

"I'm sure if you wanted to call and talk to him, he'd be alright with that," Alice suggested.

I shook my head. "No, I don't want to bother him while he's working. I can wait, don't worry. I just wanted to ask him something is all."

"Like what?" she asked curiously.

I bit my lip. I didn't want to worry her. "Just…stuff. It's nothing, Alice, I swear."

She frowned. "You're lying."

"Alice…"

She pulled me into her and rested her cool forehead against mine, staring into my eyes.

"Bella, I know that you're lying. But I won't push you into something you don't want. Just know that I'm here for you at all times. No matter what, you can always talk to me, Bella. You are my world. If you're not happy, then I'm not happy. Okay?" I nodded.

"I understand, Alice. And I appreciate it. I just don't want you worrying about me," I explained.

Alice sighed and pressed her lips to mine. "Bella, when will you learn that I will always worry about you? I care about you so much; I want you to be happy. Honestly, though, I think you worry more about other people than you do yourself. That's not healthy, Bella. Being a little selfish is a good thing, you know."

I laughed at that. "I can't imagine _you_ being selfish, Alice."

She grinned. "I'm selfish when it comes to you, that's for sure. And fashion, too. You just haven't noticed because you're too busy staring at my body or kissing me."

"Hey! I do more than just stare at you, thank you very much."

"Uh-huh, like fantasizing what I look like without clothes on, I bet," she teased. My face turned bright red as I tried to move away, but her arms pinned me in place as she grinned wider. "I saw the spark in your eyes when you saw that picture of me. You've been dying to see what's under these clothes, Bella. I don't need Edward's gift to know that."

"N-n-no, that's n-not t-true," I stammered feebly.

Her eyes gleamed with delight as her smile broadened. "Oh? Are you sure? I wouldn't mean showing you one of these days…" She trailed off and winked at me, making my face heat up like a volcano. She leaned towards my left ear, her lips brushing against the lobe, her voice a quiet whisper. "After all, I've already seen you naked."

I nearly fell out of her lap at those words, my face as red as the sun. Alice laughed her amazing wind-chime laughter as she caught me and pulled me back up, kissing each cheek. I could hear Emmett and Edward's laughter ringing from upstairs, too.

"Oh, Bella, you are too cute sometimes," she giggled, rubbing her nose against mine.

"Are you s-serious?" I asked, gaping at her. "You were spying on me?"

She looked mock offended. "What? Me? Spying? Oh come now, Bella. I would never stoop so low as to spy on you while you take a shower or undress. That, if anything, is Emmett's thing, not mine." I heard Emmett shout a 'Hey!' from upstairs, but Alice ignored it. "Now, on the other hand, I may have, you know, looked into the future once or twice. Out of curiosity, of course…"

I stared at her, awestruck that she had actually done that. I mean, sure, I'd thought that she might have, but I didn't think she actually, well, _did_.

Alice hung her head, looking at me sheepishly. "I'm sorry, Bella. I know it was wrong of me. It's just…I couldn't help myself. I promise you'll get your chance eventually. Maybe this weekend we could go, I dunno, swimming or something?" She looked up, hope in her eyes.

Even though I was slightly annoyed with her, I couldn't be mad. Hell, if I had her gift, I'd watch her too. Not in a creepy way, of course. But then again, with a body like that, who wouldn't want to? I sighed and nodded, which brought a big smile to her face. I couldn't help smiling myself. Happiness was contagious when I was around Alice. One of the many things I loved about her.

We spent the next hour talking with each other, mostly about potential things we could do together at some point. Going to the movies, swimming—where there were no people, obviously, and of course, more shopping. Jasper returned shortly after we'd finished and gave me my new license, which looked authentic in every way.

It was strange, the idea that I would be driving with a license that I didn't technically earn. Then again, the idea that I would be driving period was strange to me. Alice said that she wanted me to give the car a test spin later on, which I agreed to. I'd be lying if I said I wasn't excited, especially considering how awesome my car was. I had to give Rosalie credit; she knew her cars pretty damn well. I'd have to get her something in return someday, when she liked me more.

Edward, Emmett, Rosalie and Esme all came downstairs from their rooms and decided to go hunting. Jasper joined them, leaving the house to just Alice and I. When I asked if she needed to hunt, she said that she didn't need to because she'd hunted earlier in the morning before waking me up. I decided to start buying music for myself on my laptop, while Alice wrapped an arm around me and started talking again.

We chatted about our different tastes in music, our guilty pleasures and what the others liked listening to. I nearly fell off the couch laughing when she told me that sweet, loving Esme secretly listened to heavy metal. Not only that, but she fucking head-banged to it too! And I did fall off the couch when Alice told me that Emmett liked to listen to pop songs while Rosalie had a stash of country CDs hidden in her room.

The others apparently didn't have anything like that that Alice knew of. Carlisle preferred classical music and songs popular in the sixties, while Edward was more into instrumental songs then anything. Jasper was mostly a country fan, though some soft rock he did like, whereas Amara was more into hard rock and metal. When I asked Alice about her tastes, she told me she liked some of everything, though her favorites were dance, electronic and pop songs, especially anything she could sing along with.

I had to stop her at that point.

"I didn't know you liked to sing," I said, looking at her intently.

She shrugged. "It's not something I brag about, but yes, I do enjoy it. I thought I told you?"

"I must've forgotten, sorry."

"No worries," she replied, leaning in to peck me on the lips.

"Would you sing for me?" I asked.

She thought about it for a moment before smiling. "Tonight. I promise."

I hated having to wait, but it did give me something to look forward to tonight, I suppose. I went back to buying songs on my iTunes account, nowhere near reaching my limit thanks to the amount of money Edward had put into it. I was up to fifty songs by now and itching to get some more, but I decided I'd do that later. I smiled at Alice before running up the stairs, in need of a human moment, before returning. Alice was waiting by the door, jingling my car keys in her hand. She had already seen what I wanted to do next and looked rather excited.

"Ready to try out your new car?" she asked.

"Hell yes," I said, grinning. She laughed and wrapped an arm around me as we walked outside to my midnight blue Ferrari, which looked utterly gorgeous as it lay stretched out on the driveway, just waiting for me to climb inside.

Like a good gentlewoman, Alice opened my door for me, beckoning me inside.

"Your ride, my dear," she said with a suave voice.

I laughed and kissed her cheek. "Thank you, kind lady." She giggled and danced over to her door as I stepped inside.

Wow. The car was…fantastic.

The seats were incredibly soft and comfy, that much I noticed right off the bat. Not only that, but the entire car smelled amazing. It was the same scent as Alice, just as sweet and potent as my pixie was. I also saw that the steering wheel had a B and an A engraved into it, representing our first initials. To top it all off, there was a little bobble head on the center console that looked identical to Alice. I laughed when I saw that.

Alice rolled her eyes, knowing exactly what I was laughing at. "They insisted that they put that wretched thing in here. I was against it, but it was one against five, so I lost. I hate losing," she grumbled, pouting adorably as she crossed her arms. The pout was gone seconds later as she appraised me, a look of curiosity on her face. "How do you like it?"

"I love it," I told her, smiling. "And it smells like you."

Alice laughed. "Yes, I'd hope so. I spent quite a bit of time rolling around in here so it did."

"Really?"

"Of course! I know how much you love the way I smell, so I figured I'd make the car smell like me."

"Thanks, Alice," I murmured, blushing. "You're so good to me."

Alice's lips were against mine in an instant. She kissed me softly and passionately, cupping my cheeks and pressing my lips further against hers. I deepened the kiss and we stayed that way for about two minutes, though it felt like a century.

We broke apart smiling at each other.

"Like I said before, you deserve every last bit of it," she stated, firmly yet lovingly. "Now let's get this baby started, shall we?"

I smirked and put the key in before slowly revving up my car. It purred to life nice and easy, reminding me a lot like Alice. Now that I thought about it, a lot of this car reminded me like Alice. I wondered if it was just as graceful and fast as her, too. Well, I was about to find out.

In seconds I was speeding down the driveway. I was amazed by how quickly this car picked up speed, but at the same time, I relished in it. Before I'd been uneasy about driving fast, yet for some reason, all that fear was gone. I had a feeling that Alice being by my side was the main reason behind it. I opened the window up, allowing the wind to blow my hair as I sped down the dirt road, smiling like a fool as I did.

Now I saw why the Cullens drove fast. It was so much fun!

I couldn't help it, I let out a loud "yee-ha!" as I drove, Alice laughing beautifully next to me as I did.

"You see why driving fast is so much fun?" she asked.

"Yes!" I shouted back.

In truth, I didn't know where I was driving too. I didn't care, though. I was enjoying myself too much. A part of my subconscious worried about getting into an accident, but with Alice by my side, I felt safe, knowing she would alert me to any danger. Alice seemed content watching me, smiling endearingly at me as I drove.

We drove all around, even going into town. I had to slow down when we got to town, of course, since I was paranoid about hitting someone or crashing, despite Alice's insistence that nothing bad would happen. I then proceeded to drive out of town, no particular destination, before I noticed Alice looking out the window, a scathing glare on her face.

I became instantly worried, not knowing whether to slow down or speed up.

"Alice? What's wrong?" I asked.

Her lip curled back as a low growl rumbled from her chest. Her eyes never left the window. I snuck a glance and caught sight of something in the thicket of trees. I only saw it for a split second, but whatever it was had been big. It was gone in a flash, causing Alice's growling to stop. She turned towards me, taking in my worried look, and softened immediately.

"Sorry. It's nothing, Bells. Don't worry, it isn't a vampire. I just…thought I saw something is all." She smiled at me, trying to convey her truthfulness, but her eyes said otherwise. I knew she was lying, but I knew that she didn't want to worry me. Oddly enough, it was a switch from earlier on. I sighed and nodded my head, deciding now was a good time to go back home.

To my utter shock, it was already eight o' clock. Where the hell did the time go?

It was eight twenty by the time we returned to the Cullen house. I had to slow down my speed since there were more cars out. Not only that, but I passed a police officer on the way, furthering my growing paranoia. Alice was silent, but her left hand ghosted on to my shoulder to tenderly rub it, easing me a bit.

When I pulled into the driveway and stopped the car, I noticed Alice looking at me intently.

"What?" I asked. Did I have something on my face?

She smiled and kissed me. "You know, you look amazingly sexy the way you drive," she cooed.

I blushed. "I do?"

She nodded and kissed me again. "Incredibly sexy. I love how your hair whips in the wind, and that gleam in your eyes…damn, Bella. It was something, I'll say that."

I hadn't even gotten a chance to blink by the time she'd blurred over to my side and opened my door for me. I thanked her and got out, noticing Emmett and Rosalie on the porch. Emmett was grinning amusedly while Rosalie scanned over the car, likely looking for any dents or scratches.

"So what do you think about her?" Emmett asked.

"She's fucking awesome," I replied.

"Language, dear!" Esme shouted from inside.

I grimaced and ran a hand through my hair while Emmett snickered.

"You didn't scratch it," Rosalie mused. "Amazing."

"Well, I knew what I was doing and all…"

Rosalie shrugged and walked into the house. Emmett laughed and followed after her.

"Bella, dinner is ready!" Esme shouted.

I blinked and realized the time. Alice looped her left arm around my right and the two of us walked inside together smiling.

I ate dinner, a medium well hamburger with French fries, at the table with Alice like always, watching her crinkle her nose in that same adorable way and ignoring the playful remarks of my siblings as they made fun of the food I was eating. Afterwards, Carlisle returned from work, happy about a successful operation with a young patient.

"Ah, Bella. I do apologize for not giving you your gift earlier, but it isn't quite ready yet. I'm terribly sorry," he said, looking sad.

"It's okay," I replied, smiling at him. "I appreciate the thought, though. You don't have to worry, either." He nodded in understanding before walking up to his office, though I could tell he still felt a little bad. I wasn't worried at, since I was more than satisfied with my presents.

Edward's laughter interrupted my thoughts. "You'll love this one," he snickered. I cocked my head to the side, confused as to what he meant. He held up a finger for me to wait, zoomed up the stairs, then reappeared holding a backpack in his hand. "This is your other present from me."

I stared at it for a moment, registering his meaning. Fucking school…ugh!

Edward laughed even harder, amused by my obvious hatred for having to go to school. I looked at Alice pleadingly. She giggled and rolled her eyes before swatting her brother on the shoulder.

"Hey!" he whined playfully.

"Stop teasing her," Alice stated.

He held his hands up in surrender, smiling crookedly as he did. "Alright, alright, I give."

"Honestly, Bella, its only school," Esme said, shaking her head as she cleaned my plate. "I don't see what the big deal is. I'd of thought you'd be excited for your first day with your family."

"I hate school…" I groaned.

"Same here," Amara agreed. Rosalie and Emmett both nodded too.

Esme smiled and shook her head. "You kids are something else."

Amara snorted. "You know, I'm technically older than you are, Esme. You were born in 1895, I was born in 1875. Therefore, even though I'm still nineteen in body, I'm technically twenty years older than you are, making me one hundred eleven altogether."

I gawked in surprise at the new information while Esme merely rolled her eyes.

"You're going to start feeling tired soon," Alice said, touching my shoulder. "And you'll need your rest. Tomorrow's a big day for you, my sweet little human."

"Must you keep reminding me?" I groaned. She was right though, since seconds later I yawned.

"Bed time for the human?" Alice asked, mirth glowing in her eyes. I sighed and nodded as she giggled and pulled me into her. I exchanged goodnights with everyone, save for Rosalie who merely absently nodded in my direction, before Alice carried me upstairs. I ran into the bathroom in order to change into my pajamas and wash up first, then jumped into bed.

Alice was soon next to me, kissing my forehead. I curled into her, breathing in her delicious scent as she silently stroked the back of my head.

"Will you sing to me now?" I asked.

She rested her head against mine and seconds later started to sing.

I was blown away.

Her singing voice was like nothing I'd ever heard before. It was…I couldn't even mentally describe it. It was every bit as beautiful as her natural voice, yet even more so in ways that didn't even make sense to me. Her voice was ethereal in a way, entrancing and perfect, like listening to a choir of angels all singing perfectly at once.

Her tone was drenched with emotion, with love and passion, warming me to the core and at the same time, wrapping around me. It was so strange, these feelings, yet they were welcomed. Eventually her tone softened, becoming soothing and tender, as my eyelids became heavy. I smiled and slowly embraced slumber, not wanting to think about what lie in wait for me.

Tomorrow was going to be a trying day. I knew that much.

**A/N: Like I said, more of a filler/transitional chapter then anything. Not that I disliked it. I enjoy little chapters like this.**

**I realize that this won't be all too popular. I'm not complaining, mind you. I'm fine with that. I just needed something to help transition into the next chapter, which is when the fun begins. **


	25. School

**Disclaimer: Stephanie Meyer sadly owns Twilight and all Twilight characters. I, at least, own my OCs. And because I feel like it, Ashley Greene makes a beautiful Alice. In my mind.**

**School**

Morning came faster then I'd wanted it to. Then again, I guess I kind of didn't want it to come.

Today was the day; my first day of high school as a part of the Cullen family. I really wasn't looking forward to it. Not one bit.

I had woken up to Alice's lovely face in my view, something I still had yet to get used to. Every time I saw her, I was always surprised by how amazingly beautiful she truly was. It seemed that she felt the same way, since she often had the same expression on her face as I did.

We exchanged a loving kiss for a moment before she scooped me into her arms and whisked me downstairs, where I already had breakfast waiting. Yet another thing I had yet to get used to, having such mouth wateringly good food every day. Esme was an amazing cook. I could definitely see her topping chefs around the world and told her as such. She smiled warmly and dismissed the idea, though I could tell the compliment helped boost her ego a bit.

Once I'd finished eating, it was off to take a shower. I mentally told Edward to prevent Alice from doing any peeking. I mean, I was actually pretty flattered—and a little excited, I'll admit—that she had in fact done that, but I didn't want her to be doing it without my knowing. That, and I enjoyed the idea of messing with her visions. Just a little bit, of course.

My shower was a quick one, since I didn't want to be a bother and make everyone late. Of course, that was stupid of me to think, since they all moved at super speed and drove like maniacs. There was no way they could be late, unless I slept in or something. Even then, I doubt it would've mattered much to any of them, considering that they had all graduated high school numerous times in their eternal lives.

Once I'd finished, I dried myself off and slipped into my underwear. I glanced at myself in the mirror, frowning slightly. I didn't really see how Alice thought I was so amazingly beautiful. I mean, I didn't think I was ugly. No way. I found that I was relatively pretty, maybe. But compared to Alice? To Rosalie, Amara and Esme? I didn't see how I could be compared to them in any way, shape or form. They were Goddesses. I was…well, _me_.

Then there were the bite marks on my arm, which only made me cringe when I saw them. They were permanent reminders of the past, nightmares that not even Alice could take away. I could only hope that my pursuers would be gone soon and I wouldn't have to worry anymore.

"Are you dressed like that for my benefit?"

I spun around to see Alice leaning against the door, wide eyed as she stared at me. Her eyes trailed up and down my body several times, causing me to turn ten shades of red.

"Alice…w-w-what are you d-doing here?" I stammered.

In a flash she was standing in front of me, her eyes wandering up and down once more before meeting mine and staring into them.

"My God, Bella. You are so incredibly beautiful…" she breathed, capturing my lips.

I was still blushing, not knowing what to say. "Why are you…?"

She took a step back and ran a hand through her spiky hair. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to startle you or intrude. I just…well, I honestly didn't think to see if you were dressed, since Edward told me that you wanted some privacy. I thought you had gotten dressed and I just wanted to…um…"

She looked surprisingly abashed. Apparently she hadn't meant to see me like this. My blushing was toned down a bit, but I was still embarrassed. I mean, I hadn't expected this. It's not that I'm uncomfortable being around Alice, I just wasn't used to this kind of thing yet.

"It's…fine, Alice. I'm just a bit s-surprised to see you, is all."

"Sorry," she repeated. "I wanted to ask if you would let me do your hair."

"Oh. Um, sure thing. Can I, er, get dressed first?'

She bit her lip and nodded her head and turned towards the door. "I meant what I said, though, Bella. You're incredibly beautiful, far more than I or any other being on this Earth."

I couldn't help scoffing at that. She spun around abruptly and frowned at me. "Sorry, Alice, it's just I don't see myself like that. I can't mentally compare myself to the likes of you or your sisters or Esme. You're all ten times more attractive than I am."

"We've been over this before, Bella. You're too negative. You need to be more positive, to learn and appreciate your body. You have an amazing body, Bella, let me tell you. Forgive me for sounding perverted, but everything about you is perfect in my eyes. You have a great chest, an amazingly curvy waist, an adorable belly button, very nice legs, gorgeous eyes and…" She paused for a moment and glanced downwards, cocking her head to the side. "A very cute butt, may I say."

My face felt like it was on fire as I struggled to, well, think at this point.

Alice's eyes darkened minutely as she took a step back, clenching her jaw. "I'm sorry. I'll let you get dressed, Bella. I'm sorry. But you are beautiful. Don't doubt that, okay?" She gave me a slightly strained smile before exiting the bathroom, giving me my privacy once again.

It took me a moment to compose myself before I hurriedly slipped into my clothes. Alice had, of course, been the one to choose my wardrobe. I didn't mind it too much, really. My entire outfit was more or less designer clothes similar to what she and Rosalie wore, only it was far less fancy then Rosalie's usual attires, something I preferred. I was already going to be getting loads of attention anyways.

On cue, I heard Alice's knocking on the door.

"Come in," I called, calmer now. I wasn't upset with Alice. I was just a tiny bit embarrassed.

Alice danced into the bathroom and gave me an apologetic look. "You aren't upset, are you?"

I shook my head. "I'm just…I didn't expect you to, you know, pop in right then."

"I understand. I promise I won't do that again. Now go ahead and sit so I can do your hair."

I did as she told me and seated myself into the chair near the mirror. I'd noticed it before, but it never crossed my mind what it was used for. Apparently, I now knew.

Alice twirled over to me, a broad smile on her face. We spent the next ten minutes fixing my hair up. And when I say fixing, I mean everything possible; brushing, curling, kneading, spraying…the works. Of course, I didn't mind it. I actually enjoyed it, truth be told. Alice was incredibly nimble and gentle in her movements and would sparingly massage my head with one hand while working with the other, switching hands from time to time until she had finished.

"Done!" she chirped, spinning the chair so I could see. "What do you think?"

I stared back at my reflection, surprised by the detail that gone into my hair. For once, it actually didn't look too bad. I was amazed, really, at how well Alice had styled it. Then again, this was Alice. She could do _anything_ and succeed.

"I love it," I breathed, running a hand through it. "Thank you."

She squealed delightedly before pecking me on the cheek. "Ooh, I'm so glad you like it. Now hurry up and get ready!"

I groaned and begrudgingly finished preparing myself. Once my teeth were brushed, I took one last look in the mirror. Everything seemed to be in order. I was thankful Alice wasn't making me wear makeup, since I'd probably just sweat it all off from nervousness. I was already started to perspire, which I doubted was a good thing.

For a moment, I considered punching the mirror just so I could avoid going to school for the day.

"We'll drag you if we have to!" shouted Edward from downstairs.

_Ugh! Fuck you, Edward!_

"No thanks!" he laughed.

Grinding my teeth in frustration, I trudged out of the bathroom and down the stairs. The others were all waiting, most with amused expressions, Edward especially. Alice was bouncing excitedly with my backpack in her hands, which she presented to me. I took it reluctantly, forever sealing my fate.

"Must you complain so much?" Edward asked teasingly. "It's not like we're asking you to cut your arms off or anything like that."

"Gives me a few ideas," chuckled Emmett.

"Emmett…" Alice warned, glaring at him.

"Kidding, kidding! Sheesh!" he shouted, holding his hands up. Rosalie smacked him on the arm before leading him outside. Jasper and Amara both snickered and followed, then Edward. Alice hovered near the door while I mentally prepared myself.

"Come now, dear, it won't be so bad. Have a positive attitude!" Esme stated, hugging me.

"I'll try, Esme," I murmured, hugging her as tight as I could.

She let go too soon in my opinion, but before I could protest Alice had me in her arms and dragged me outside. Eventually I gave up trying to escape and walked with her over near the garage. My car was gone.

"Your car is in the garage," Alice stated, knowing what I was about to ask. "We usually only take one car, but since there's more of us, we'll be taking too. Today you and I are going to be driving with Jasper and Amara."

And just like that, the garage doors opened and out drove Amara in her Thunderbird. Rosalie's red BMV peeled out of the garage and zipped past us, Emmett and Edward waving to us it passed by. It was gone in a matter of seconds.

"Let's go!" Amara shouted from her car.

Alice giggled and bounced over to the backdoor, opening it and inclining her head for me to get in. I nodded to her and got in, Alice following suit on the opposite side. Once I had buckled up—since none of them needed seatbelts, the jerks—Amara stepped on the gas. I had thought Alice drove like crazy. Amara drove even _faster_ than she did. I didn't mind it too much, since I had gotten used to being in a fast car. It was just surprising.

I felt Alice squeeze my hand and turned to look at her. "It's okay, Bella. I'll be with you in a few of your classes," she said softly.

I sighed. "I know you will. I'm just nervous." She nodded in understanding and squeezed my hand again. "Is there anything in here?" I lifted my backpack up. It felt rather empty.

"Just a binder with some paper and pens is all. You'll get your books in class," Alice replied with a smile. "Speaking of which, we're here."

I looked out the window and sure enough, we were here. Forks High School. Oh joy. Rosalie, Emmett and Edward were already out of the car, waiting for us. Alice zipped over to my side and opened my door for me again. I always thought it was so sweet of her, too.

"Does Bella have her classes, yet?" Jasper asked Alice.

Alice frowned. "No, I never got around to getting them." She turned to me. "Bella, could you go grab your class schedule? The office is right over there. Just say your name and you'll get them. I'll be waiting right here for you, don't worry."

I frowned, but decided against arguing and followed her instructions. The parking lot was actually, well, empty save for us and a few people who, as I had expected, all looked at me as I walked towards the office, backpack slung over my shoulder. I ignored any wandering eyes as I entered the office, looking around for someone to talk with.

Sitting at the front desk was a rather heavy set woman with short, dark red hair. She paid me no mind as I entered and only looked up after I cleared my throat.

"May I help you?" she asked, squinting at me through her beady glasses.

"Uh, yeah, I'm here to pick up my schedule?"

She frowned. "Name please."

"Er…Bella Sw-Cullen." Wow. I had yet to vocally say my new name. It sounded weird, but at the same time, it sounded so _right_.

The pudgy woman gaped at me like I had five heads. She even dropped the stack of papers she had been holding, causing them to fly around the room. I swear I had heard some people chatting in the room behind the desk, but now everything was silent.

_Awkward_…

"Could…could you repeat that?" she asked. I groaned inwardly.

"Bella Cullen," I repeated, both louder and firmer.

It took about a minute for the woman to process what I'd said. She still didn't look like she believed me, but she shook her head and thumbed through another stack of papers before pulling out a sheet with, guess what, my name on it.

"H-here you are, dear," she stuttered as she handed it to me. She handed me two papers, one my schedule, the other one I didn't know what to do with. "Have that signed by your teachers and come back with it later."

"Thanks," I muttered, grabbing the sheets and walking out of the office.

More cars were parked in the lot and more students walking about. Some glanced at me curiously as I walked back towards Amara's car. Alice was the only one there, waiting rather anxiously for me. I smiled. She was always so adorable when she was like that, bouncing on her feet with a big grin on that angelic face of hers.

"Have you looked over the classes?" she asked when I had gotten over to her.

I opened my mouth to reply, but closed it when I realized I hadn't. So I glanced down at the sheet of paper in my hands and looked over my classes.

Math? Shit. English? I guess so. Biology? Boring. Spanish? As if I'll ever need it. PE.

My eyes bulged at the last one. PE. Oh God.

I felt Alice nudge my shoulder. "What's wrong?"

I looked up at her. "PE," I replied.

She furrowed her brow in confusion before a look of understanding came onto her face. "You don't like PE."

"Fuck no. I _hate_ PE. I've always hated PE."

"How come?"

I gawked at her. Did she really need to ask? "Alice, I stink at _everything_ when it comes to PE. Not to mention the fact that, as you should know by now, I can't walk across a flat surface for very long without falling."

"Bella…"

"I got kicked out of my gym class at my last school. Whenever I tried to do any sort of sport, my fucking crappy luck always got the better of me and I always ended up hurting myself and everyone around me. Eventually they just kicked me out of the class. Plus, all the kids used to make fun of me for it." I cringed when I remembered all the teasing and bullying I'd been forced to put up with at my old school.

I felt Alice's hand grasp my shoulder. "They won't make fun of you here," she stated.

"How do you-"

"I won't let them," she growled. She had _that _look in her eyes. She meant what she said.

"I guess we should get to class," I suggested, trying to change the subject.

She blinked and nodded. "Yes, that would be wise. The quicker we're there, the less gawking we have to deal with. Come along then." She looped her arm around mine and together we walked towards the school.

By now, the parking lot was mostly full. And nearly every student's eyes were on us as we walked together. Alice seemed utterly oblivious, humming to herself rather happily as she skipped along with me to our first destination. Having so many eyes watching me was unnerving, so I tried to concentrate on just Alice.

Eventually we made it to our first class, which was, of course, math. Alice opened the door for me before following inside, swerving over to her desk. The class was mostly empty, save for a few students. Two of them looked like they were asleep, one was on her phone and the only other one was staring at me wide-eyed. I looked at Alice like I was a lost puppy, uncertain of what to do. She gestured towards the teacher and pointed to her hand. I frowned even more before I remembered that I needed the teacher to sign the other slip.

The teacher, a balding man, had a similar reaction when I told him who I was. Thankfully, he didn't introduce me in front of the class when class started, he merely sent me off to sit next to Alice. Neither of us really paid attention during class and instead passed each other notes, which I absolutely loved. What I didn't love was the number of students staring at me throughout the class, even despite my location at the back of the room.

Alice told me just to ignore them. Easy for her to say, she was used to it. Better yet, she probably didn't think about trivial things like being stared at the way I did. Then again, I did notice her eyes darken slightly. She even shot a glare at a few people, forcing them to turn their gaze elsewhere. After feeling like decades, the bell finally rang, thankfully.

"That wasn't too bad," Alice said as we walked together out of class.

"You weren't bothered by all the staring?" I asked.

She shook her head. "Well, not really. I mean, I didn't like that they didn't stop staring at you, but I suppose you'll get used to it."

We walked a ways to my second class, at which point she stopped.

"You don't have this class?" I asked.

"No…" she grumbled, hanging her head sadly. "I'm sorry."

I was becoming worried. "W-when will I see you again?"

Alice bit her lip, looking even more ashamed. "Lunch..."

I cringed. "Oh."

"But we have the same classes with each other afterwards! Biology and PE!" she said, trying to cheer me up.

"I, uh, I guess I'll see you at lunch then?" I asked. I wanted to stall her as long as I could, dreading having to go into class without her. No such luck. She nodded and leaned in to peck my cheek before reluctantly dancing off.

I sighed and crept into the room, speedily moving over to the teacher. Half of the class watched me curiously as I handed the teacher, an older man with a beard, the slip. He had the same reaction as the first teacher, but again, he merely signed it and sent me off to a free desk.

"You must be the new girl," I heard a male voice say next to me. I turned to see a boy with tan skin, greasy black hair and a nerdy-yet-friendly smile on his face. I nodded. "I'm Eric Yorkie. You're…Isabella?"

"Bella," I corrected. Even as quiet as it was, my voice was loud enough to grab the attention of nearly everyone in the class.

Eric raised an eyebrow. "Bella…?"

I sighed. "Bella Cullen." That, in turn, got everyone's attention. I could already hear the whispers starting as Eric looked at me surprisedly.

Whoa. I could _hear_ whispers. When did that happen?

"So _she's_ the new Cullen," a boy whispered to his friend.

"She doesn't _look_ like one of them," remarked a girl several desks in front of me. Two of her friends nodded their heads in agreement, shooting me a jeering look. Excuse me?

"Pfft. She ain't as hot as the other girls," grunted another boy.

"Yeah, man, _especially_ that Alice. She's a babe," replied the boy next to him.

I twitched. Did he just…?

"Have you tried asking her out yet?" his friend asked.

The boy frowned. "Yeah, but she keeps turning me down. I'm certain she's into me, though. She just won't admit it yet. I'll get her eventually."

The fuck you will, asshole. She's _mine_.

I glared scathingly at the douchebag who _dared _to think he could have Alice. He caught sight of it and shuddered, shrinking back into his seat. I memorized what he looked like—short, blonde hair gelled into spikes, a goofy, baby-like face and thin blue eyes—because if I EVER saw him near Alice, there would be hell to pay.

"What's her problem?" the asshole's friend asked. The boy shook his head, not verbally answering. Smart move.

"You okay, Bella?" Eric asked next to me.

I blinked and realized that he had been watching me this whole time. "Er, yeah, fine," I muttered.

He frowned, but he didn't pursue the topic anymore.

The rest of class was droning. I spent most of it listening to the side conversations the students around me were having, all of which were centered on me.

"You think she's single?" a darker skinned boy asked the girl next to him.

"Ew. Yeah, why _wouldn't_ she be? I mean, look at her. She's so pale…it's like she's albino or something," she replied.

I ground my teeth together when I heard that. Memories of being teased in years past for my pale complexion—among other things, like my chronic clumsiness—flashed before my eyes. It further reminded me of why I loathed school so much.

Once the bell rang, I brushed past most of the students and up to the teacher. He gave me my respective math book and wished me well with the rest of the year. Yeah, whatever.

As I exited the class, Eric tapped my shoulder. "Hey, it was nice meeting you, Bella. Maybe I'll catch you around some time, huh?" He seemed genuinely nice, unlike most of the other kids I'd seen so far.

I gave him a brisk nod. "Yeah, sure. Later."

He smiled and walked off. He seemed nice enough, I suppose.

"Who was that?"

I recognized that voice dead away and turned to see Alice leaning against the wall, looking fantastic as always. I swear she looked like a Goddess in my eyes. Like one of the Greek Goddesses. Which one was it? Aphrodite? Yeah, that one. That's who Alice reminded me of.

"Just some guy from my class," I replied as I walked over to her.

She crinkled her brow and stared after him for a moment, her gold eyes swirling darkly, before sighing and returning her gaze to me. We stared into one another's eyes for a minute or so, enjoying the feelings that came with it. I loved her eyes. They were far more beautiful than anything I'd ever seen before.

Of course, it felt like every moment we had together had to be ruined in some way.

"Hey Alice," greeted a male voice. I knew that voice too.

It was the same ass from my class. He walked over to us, hesitantly glancing at me, before smiling at Alice.

I clenched my fists together.

How DARE he look at her like that?

"Hello Mike," she deadpanned, clearly not interested in speaking with him.

"So I was wondering-"

I sharply cut him off. "Excuse me, but we were having a conversation," I hissed.

He seemed taken aback by my tone. "I, um…sorry, it didn't look like-"

"Well, we were Mike. And it's rude to interrupt," Alice stated firmly.

Mike scowled and muttered something under his breath. "Sorry," he grumbled before trudging off in a different direction.

"Asshole," I growled. I glared after him, seething. I'll teach _him_ to look at _my_ Alice like that.

"Bella?" Alice's voice jarred me from my thoughts, forcing me to look at her. Her gold eyes were smoldering with concern as she appraised me. "Are you alright?"

I took in a deep breath, then released it. "Yeah, I'm fine. I just didn't like the way he was looking at you," I responded. Alice frowned and pulled me into a hug.

"It's okay, Bells. I'm yours," she cooed into my ear.

"I know," I murmured. "I think it's the same thing you feel from time to time. That protective jealousy, you know?"

Alice cocked her head to the side. "Bella, that usually only happens for vampires."

I shrugged. "I think being your mate is just rubbing off on me."

Alice frowned, her beautiful eyebrows tilting downwards so far that her forehead started to crease. She looked so statuesque as she placed her hands on her hips, lost in thought over what I'd said. Apparently something wasn't adding up in her mind. Then again, I hadn't told her about my other odd moments. I wasn't sure if I would yet, truthfully.

"You should get to class," she murmured, looking up at me. "I'll save you a seat at lunch, okay?"

I nodded. "Okay, see you then." She smiled and pecked my cheek again before dancing off down the hall.

Unfortunately, I had no idea where my next class was…

I dug into my pocket and pulled out my schedule, studying where my next class was. I hated being caught with the stupid schedule in front of my face, since I felt like a total idiot gawking at it in the middle of a hallway.

"Are you lost?"

I looked up from my schedule to see a rather tall girl with long black hair and glasses giving me a placid look. Her eyes, a light shade of green, held sincerity in them.

"Yeah…" I admitted sheepishly.

She smiled. "What's your next class?"

"Spanish with Mrs. Nova," I replied. What a weird name for a teacher.

"Oh! I have that class next. Would you like me to show you the way?" she offered.

"Sure."

We started walking together towards our next class.

"So you must be the newest member of the Cullen family?" she asked. I nodded. "That's really cool. You're lucky. Dr. Cullen is a great doctor and a really nice man. I haven't met Mrs. Cullen, but I hear she's just as nice."

"They're terrific," I said. "I can't imagine having better parents then them."

"That's good!" she said, smiling. "Oh, I didn't get your name."

"I'm Bella."

"It's nice to meet you. I'm Angela. Angela Weber."

The two of us talked a little as we walked to class, even when we went inside the classroom. Angela was really nice, if not a bit shy. She was actually friends with Eric, the boy from my English class, who happened to also be in Spanish with us. After I handed the teacher the slip to be signed, I sat down next to her. Class didn't start for another few minutes, so we continued talking together. She asked if I knew anyone else, to which I replied no, only meeting someone I didn't like.

"May I ask who?" She was clearly the type who wouldn't push someone into anything. I liked that, and a part of me felt that Angela and I may become good friends.

"Some guy named Mike," I said, scowling when I thought of him.

She nodded in understanding. "I bet its Mike Newton you mean. Yeah, he's a bit of a jerk sometimes. He usually hangs out with other jocks and acts like he's the most popular guy in all of Washington. Do you know about his crush on Alice?"

I gritted my teeth. "Unfortunately," I grunted.

"I take it you two are together?"

That surprised me. "W-what are you…?"

She giggled softly. "I saw you two in the hall. I saw the way you looked at each other. I could tell you too were a couple. I think it's cute, actually. I'm glad Alice finally found someone."

I was speechless. "You don't…you don't think it's gross or anything like that?"

Angela shook her head. "No. I don't think that gender should matter when it comes to love. If you love someone, it shouldn't matter what color their skin is or how tall they are or whether or not they're the same gender. Love is love."

More students started filing in. Eric saw us and grinned, walking towards our table.

"What's up ladies? I see you met my girl Angela, Bella," he said, seating himself next to me.

Angela rolled her eyes playfully. "I'm not "your girl", Eric. You already have a girlfriend and I already have a boyfriend, remember?"

Eric shrugged. "So? Katie's my girl and Ben's my boy, too. No big deal."

The three of us continued talking, even after class started. I was really starting to like Angela and Eric. They were both really nice and they seemed genuinely interested in being friends with me. I wondered if Alice would be jealous of that. I guess I'd have to ask her later on, after class.

"So it must be different for you," Eric stated, playing around with a pencil.

"Huh?"

"Being adopted by the Cullens after what you went through and all."

I furrowed my brow. What I went through? What was he talking about?

"You know, how your parents abused you and you ran away from home and how the Cullens found you in the woods near death and took you in," Eric explained.

It dawned on me then that they must've made up a story as to how I came into the family.

"Oh, yeah," I said, trying to sound like I knew what he was talking about. I wish Alice would've mentioned that earlier.

I felt incredibly awkward. Both Angela and Eric looked at me confusedly for a moment, but they both shrugged it off as the teacher droned on. Thankfully, my body was actually able to save me. I raised my hand and was excused to run to the bathroom, which I took in stride.

After I'd finished and exited the stall to wash my hands, I noticed I wasn't alone. There was another girl, equal to my height with pale blonde hair and green eyes. There was something about the way her face was that just screamed _bitch_ to me, which was confirmed when her fishy eyes narrowed at me.

"Who're you?" she demanded. Ugh. Her voice was high pitched and nasally sounding.

"Bella Cullen," I replied instantly. I'd gotten a bit more comfortable saying it by now.

Her eyes bulged and her mouth made a large "O", which I swear made her look like a fucking fish. I tried hard not to laugh at the hilarious expression on her face, which darkened as she studied me, scowling as she did.

"You're lying," she sneered.

"Excuse me?"

She scoffed. "There's no way that _you're_ a Cullen. You don't look anything like they do and I doubt they'd adopt someone as unattractive as _you_ into their family. Look, I don't have time Bella whatever, I have other things to do." She breezed past me, nearly knocking me over, before storming out of the bathroom.

Once I'd steadied myself, I glared after her. Who the fuck does she think she is?

"Bitch!" I hissed, slamming my hand downwards.

That might not have been the best course of action, since I was slamming it on the sink counter. A sharp pain shot through the knuckles of my left hand as I retrieved it, cursing myself for being stupid. When I looked at the spot where I'd slammed my fist, I was stunned. There was a small dent where my hand had been. I didn't have much of a chance to look, though, since I needed to hurry back to class, bruised knuckles and all. But _damn_ was I pissed.

I stuffed my hands into my pocket as I trudged back to class, abruptly seating myself. My irritation must've shown well because both Eric and Angela noticed it.

"You okay?" Eric asked, clearly concerned.

I gritted my teeth. "Not really."

He took that as a hint and thankfully dropped the subject altogether.

The rest of class went on painstakingly slow, but as it did, I was able to calm myself down. I was actually feeling concerned about why I was so angry and why my temper was lasting so long. Normally, yeah, I was a hothead, but even then I usually lost steam after a short period of time, unlike today for some reason. Maybe that was another mate thing, too?

A few minutes before the bell was going to ring, I had calmed myself completely. Then the bell rang and I walked with Eric and Angela out of class. As we exited, I caught sight of the bitch from the bathroom and glared at her. She stuck her nose in the air and glared right back.

"Who's that?" I growled under my breath.

Eric glanced over his shoulder. "That's Lauren Mallory. She's one of the most popular girls here at Forks. I'm not too fond of her, personally, and she doesn't much like me either. She only hangs out with certain people, namely her boyfriend a couple girls like her. Don't pay attention to them, they ain't that important."

"She's not very nice," Angela agreed. "She treats everyone who isn't her friend like garbage and she gets jealous real easily. She's not very fond of the Cullens, truthfully."

Eric snorted. "Well, I gotta go meet up with Katie. You should meet her, Bella, she's a cool girl and I bet you'd get along. See you at lunch." With that he took off in another direction.

"I like him," I said. "He's nice. A bit dorky, but nice."

Angela giggled. "Yeah, that's Eric for you. But he's right, Katie's real nice. So is my boyfriend Ben. Speaking of which, I'm going to go meet up with him too. We all sit at the same table, so if you feel like it, you can sit with us. You could always invite Alice too, you know. It's up to you, though. Bye Bella."

"See ya, Angela." She smiled at me before departing in the same direction Eric had gone. She was really nice. I liked her too.

I sighed and trudged towards the cafeteria. At least I'd be able to be with Alice and the others.

I stared down at the floor as I walked past people, some ignoring me, others staring at me. I could hear several whispering about me being the new Cullen, something that the whole school was apparently aware of by now. It was a little unnerving, but I did the best I could to ignore both the feeling and the gawkers.

Unfortunately, my ignorance prevented me from noticing someone in front of me, causing me to bump into them. The brief collision caught me by surprise and caused me to fall over, bashing my right knee on the floor. I could hear snickering and laughing from the hallway as students passed me by.

I groaned and rubbed my knee with my non-sore hand. Seriously, today was full of a lot of ups and downs. Damn it.

"Oh! Sorry about that!"

I groaned again, though this time it was inwardly, and glanced up to see none other than Mike Newton, the boy who had a crush on my girlfriend. Okay, he didn't know she was my girlfriend, but the fact of that matter was that she was _mine_.

He offered me a hand to help me up, but I ignored it and stood up on my own. Stubbornness was also stupidity, since my legs nearly buckled and I almost fell again. He caught me, which irritated me at the same time as it helped me. I muttered a 'thanks' and collected myself, rubbing my knee to ease the pain. Since when did that ever work, though?

Seriously, how stupid am I?

Wait. Don't answer that.

"Sorry about that," Mike repeated, looking at least somewhat sincere. "I didn't see you coming."

"It's fine," I mumbled.

"Look, I'm real sorry about earlier too. I think we got off on the wrong foot. My name's Mike Newton."

"You know mine already," I stated.

"Bella Cullen, right?"

"Yup." Jackass.

"Cool. Well hey, maybe sometime you could sit with me and my friends?" he asked. He tried to give me some sort of puppy dog eyes, but God did he fail. Only Alice could pull that off on me.

"Sorry, but I think I'll sit with my family today. And the next day, too," I replied. And the rest of the year, away from you.

He frowned. Wait. Why was he looking at me like that? The fuck? Oh God. Don't tell me…

He was looking at me in a really creepy way. The same way he'd looked at Alice when he first walked up to us. Worse still, he was checking me out. Ugh!

I was in no mood for that, so I turned and started limping off. Maybe if I ignored him, he'd leave me alone. Then again, I got the distinctive feeling that he was staring at my ass. I wasn't about to turn around to double check, since I didn't want him getting the wrong idea. Ew.

"Hey, wait!" he called. Seriously? Why can't he just-

My thought process was interrupted when I felt a hand touching my butt. This wasn't the 'oops-I-was-reaching-for-you-and-missed' touch, this was on purpose. I quietly yelped when he actually grabbed my ass. Oh no he did NOT.

I spun around on my good leg, fists clenched and teeth bared, about ready to punch this dude's lights out.

"You son of a…" I stopped dead in my tracks when I caught sight of something moving quickly towards the two of us.

And I recognized it right away.

A very, _very_ livid Alice.

**A/N: Jealous Bella + jealous Alice + Mike about to get his fucking head ripped off. I'm having too much fun with this, I think. And I've only just begun!**

**Also, I find perverted Alice amusing. You know you do too. Who wouldn't?**

**Thoughts? I won't beg, but I always love reviews.**

**Off topic note, what Angela said sort of mirrors my opinion. Gender shouldn't matter in love, nor should race or religion or appearance. **


	26. Guardian

**Disclaimer: Why must I keep putting this? Is it necessary? Ah well, whatever. Meyer owns Twilight and all Twilight characters. I can only claim the OCs. Alice rules!**

**Guardian**

Alice was, to put it bluntly, infuriated, livid, pissed off _and_ angry. I know they all mean the same damn thing, but with the murderous look in her eyes, I think I have a right to use them all at once. Her eyes were black as black could be, glaring _scathingly_ at Mike Newton.

I was amazed that his head hadn't exploded yet from her glare. What amazed me even more, though, was how _oblivious_ he was. There is no fucking way in hell he can't feel a gigantic hole being burned into his skull. I mean, I'm not the target and I can feel it. Of course, I'm glad he can't feel it yet, because it'll make it even more so fun to watch Alice tear him apart.

Did I just seriously imagine that? Wow.

Mike was just looking at me, a mock look of shame on his face. "Whoa, I'm sorry about that Bella. Are you okay?" he asked, taking a step towards me.

I stepped back on reflex and, thanks to my knee pain, toppled back down, falling on my ass.

Mike reached his right arm out, likely offer and help me up, but before it could come anywhere near me, Alice's left hand came from nowhere and grabbed his wrist. The sound of bones cracking reached my ears instantly as Alice's hand tightened around his wrist.

"Ow…" he grumbled. "What the hell-"

"You. Will. Not. Touch. Her." Alice pronounced each word firmly and full of enough venom to melt the faces off every student at this school.

Mike looked utterly terrified. He tried to form words, but Alice increased the strength of her hold. The strength of her grip was enough to bring Mike to his knees, even though she was only using one hand. Her right hand was balled into a tight fist at her side, clenched so tightly I could see the veins bulging. It was quivering too. Alice's entire body was shaking with fury.

Her eyes bore into Mike like daggers into a heart. She was seething so badly I could practically see the waves of anger pouring off of her. I wasn't sure what to do. Part of me wanted to watch Mike suffer; part of me was worried about Alice.

I cringed when I pictured Alice's rage getting the better of her, which would likely result in Mike losing an arm. Or worse. As much as I felt he deserved punishment, I didn't want him to die and I sure as hell didn't want anything to affect Alice's consciousness.

"Alice…" I spoke quietly, hoping it would reach her. No such luck. Her grip only tightened as she bared her teeth, a low, rumbling growl emanating from her chest. Mike was wincing in pain, trying to break free from her grip. His mouth was moving, but no words forming, lost under Alice's wrathful gaze.

I remembered Esme explaining to me the whole maternal instinct thing. I needed for that to kick in so she would snap out of her rage. How, though?

"Alice," I said again, louder. There was still no answer, no signs that she had even heard me.

I got an idea, then. I didn't like it, but it would do the trick. I tried to move, to stand up, but did so abruptly, punching the floor with my left hand as I did. That got the effect I desired. Both my hand and my knee surged with pain, enough to make me whimper out loud. I winced at the pain, having not meant to hurt myself worse.

My whimpering did the trick, though. Alice's coal eyes shot over to me. She saw that I was in pain, which forced her maternal instincts to kick in. And thankfully, her maternal needs overpowered her need to rip off Mike Newton's arm. She released his arm in an instant and was by my side seconds later. I watched as Mike's arm fell to his side limply. He clutched it, his face full of agony and pain as he started rubbing his sore wrist.

Alice paid no attention to him, her eyes focused solely on me. Her right hand gently cupped my left as her left slid under my pant leg and started to tenderly rub my knee. She knew exactly where I was hurting, amazingly enough, and was doing anything she could to ease the pain. I looked into her eyes. They were still ink-black, but they were smoldering with emotion. I saw love, concern and warmth pouring out of them, but something more. Something animalistic.

It wasn't the bad kind of animalistic, though. It was…I couldn't describe it. It was like her entire world was suddenly revolving around me, that my needs were her needs. Maybe I was imagining it, but the way she was acting now seemed to justify my thoughts. Her motions were tender and soothing; easing away the pain I felt, the worry and fear along with it. I practically forgot that Mike Newton was there, hell, I almost forgot that we were at school.

"Miiiiiiiiiiiiiike!" shouted a loud, female voice. That snapped me from my thoughts and forced me to peel my eyes away from Alice. I watched as a blonde, preppy looking girl ran towards the injured jock, who looked like he didn't know what the hell had just happened.

"Mikey, are you okay?" she asked, clearly concerned.

He idly glanced over at us. Fuck no, boy, you'd better not. I shot him a glare that told him he owed me for getting Alice to stop, which, amazingly enough, his peanut sized brain seemed to acknowledge. He quickly turned to the loud girl and nodded.

"Yeah, I'm fine. I just fell and hurt my arm is all," he said, wincing slightly.

She pouted. "Would you like me to kiss it and make it go away?" Oh dear God…

He stood up and shook his head, forcing a smile. "Nope, I'm fine. Let's go to lunch."

She shrugged and nodded her head, only to notice Alice and I on the floor. Alice hadn't budged or stopped what she was doing. She was still zoned into doing nothing but helping me. Her black eyes were trained to my hand and nothing more.

"Who are you?" the girl asked in a snobby voice.

"This is Bella Cullen," Mike answered for me. That startled me, but I paid it no mind.

Her jaw would have become unhinged if physically possible. "What? You're the new Cullen?" she asked, bewildered. She looked like she didn't believe me, taking a similar expression to that other girl, Lauren.

"Yes," I replied.

She narrowed her eyes. "What the hell are you doing?"

I was about to answer, but Mike cut in. "I ran into her by mistake and she fell and hurt herself too. Alice is just there helping her out. C'mon, Jess, let's go. Tyler and Lauren are probably waiting for us."

Lauren? So he was friends with that bitch? Why am I not surprised?

He shot me an odd look before clutching his arm and sauntering off with the Jess girl, who scowled at me once more before turning her attention back to Mike.

At last, I was given the chance I needed to talk with Alice.

"Alice?" She didn't move or respond. I tried again. "Alice? I'm okay now. Thank you."

That seemed to snap her out of her maternal process as she blinked several times before looking into my eyes.

"B-Bella? Are you…" She blinked again, apparently registering what had just happened. "My God, I can't believe I almost…"

I touched her shoulder. "You didn't. It's okay, Alice. Thank you for helping me. I could've taken him, though."

Her face darkened as another rumbling growl came from her chest. "He _touched_ you. He will never touch you again, I swear it," she hissed.

"Thanks, Alice. I think we should get to the cafeteria, now. The others are probably worried."

She nodded her head in agreement and slowly stood, helping me up as she did.

"Is your hand okay?" she asked, glancing down at it concernedly. I nodded. "How'd you hurt it? And your knee, too."

"I'll tell you in the cafeteria, okay?" I offered. She bit her lip, but reluctantly nodded.

We walked off with each other towards the cafeteria. I drew attention to myself simply by being near Alice, but right now, after what had just happened, I wasn't about to let it get to me. My knee was feeling better now, as was my hand. The sad part was that I hadn't intended to actually hurt myself; I merely had wanted to act in order to grab her attention. Either way, it worked.

It didn't take long for us to get to the cafeteria. It was huge and full of most of the entire student body. I searched around and found the rest of my family sitting by the side wall, two vacant seats waiting for Alice and I.

"Hey, Bella!" shouted Eric. Alice and I both saw him, Angela and two people I didn't know, likely Katie and Ben, sitting near the entrance of the cafeteria.

I waved back at him and smiled. Alice frowned. "He's the boy from before."

"Yeah, he's nice," I said. "Don't worry, Alice. He has a girlfriend. And the girl with the glasses, Angela, she has a boyfriend."

That eased her a bit, at least. "You're going to say hi to them?"

"Is that okay?"

"Of course," she replied. "I'll be with the others."

She smiled and danced off over to our family's table. I caught a few of their glances as I turned and walked towards the table where Eric and Angela were at.

"Hey Bella, this is Katie, my girlfriend," Eric introduced, indicating the girl next to him. She had short red hair, several freckles and light blue eyes. Something about the way she smiled reminded me a bit of Amara.

"Nice to meet you," she said, extending her hand. I smiled in turn and shook it. I swore I could feel Alice glaring from where she was sitting, idly glancing over to see I was indeed correct. Her eyes were narrowed and focused on Katie's hand, which I released once the handshake was complete. She smiled and seated herself next to Eric.

"And I'm Ben, Angela's boyfriend," the other boy said. He had short black hair, dark brown eyes and was surprisingly shorter than Angela was. Now I knew why she mentioned height when she had talked with me earlier. I shook his hand as well, again feeling Alice's glare, not on me, but on his hand. It faded once I returned my hand.

I swear, she really needs to work on that jealousy thing.

"So, are you sitting with us, Bella?" Katie asked.

I smiled politely and shook my head. "No, sorry. I'll be sitting with my family."

She cocked her head to the side confusedly. Eric frowned. "Didn't I mention that she was the new Cullen?"

Her eyes widened. "Oh! Well damn, lucky you. Maybe someday you could sit with us, but I won't force you. Nice meeting you, Bella."

I nodded and, after hearing my stomach growl, turned to walk towards the table with my family.

Once again, however, my poor luck got the better of me. No sooner had I turned and started walking did I careen into someone yet again, causing me to fall backwards.

I was _really _starting to get sick of falling all the damn time.

"Watch where you're going, bitch!" hissed the person I'd bumped into. Shit. It _had_ to be Lauren.

The blonde haired bitch had fallen as well and was on her feet, looking at me with disgust and irritation. I noticed Alice storming over towards out of the corner of my eye and stood up, only to be pushed back down again by Lauren. I heard clattering behind me from Eric and Angela's table and whispers and gasps all around me. I glared at Lauren, who glared right back.

Alice was there in an instant, letting out a brisk snarl that made Lauren jump backwards.

"You bitch, I'll-" Before Alice could finish, Jasper walked up and placed a hand on her shoulder, releasing a powerful wave of calm into her. Lauren started walking away, only to be stopped by Amara, who grabbed onto her shoulder and forced her to turn around.

"Apologize to my _sister_," she commanded, pointing Lauren at me. "Now."

"S-s-sorry…" Lauren muttered, looking like she was about to wet herself.

Amara didn't look too convinced, but Jasper caught her eye. She scowled, but released Lauren, who scurried off. Amara took Alice while Jasper came over and helped me up, dusting me off once I was standing.

"Thanks," I murmured.

"Any time," he replied. "Now then, let's sit you down."

The four of us walked at a rather brisk pace over to our table, sitting down just as fast. All eyes in the cafeteria were upon us, some with fear, some confused, some annoyed, some worried and others intrigued. The whole cafeteria was silent, though, save for the noises of our chairs. I sighed and lowered my head, just staring at the empty spot in front of me.

Eventually people start chattering and eating again, which, along with Jasper's gift, helped ease my growing anxiety. I glanced to my left and saw Alice hanging her head ashamedly, pouting as she stared at her lap. I gently placed my hand on top of hers, stroking the top of it with my thumb. That registered a small smile from my beautiful pixie, which made me happy. I couldn't stand seeing her upset or sad, after all.

"I did it again," she sighed, shaking her head. "I let my instincts control me and almost lost it. I almost exposed us, too. I'm sorry."

I squeezed her hand. "Alice, it's okay. You can't help it."

"No, Bella, that's not an excuse. I try to, I really do. I just can't. It's like this urge I have to protect you. To guard you from anything and everything around that can hurt you in some way. I can't stand seeing you hurt, so I let my instincts take over. It's hard, though, to control them," she explained, running a hand through her hair.

"Bella's right, Alice. It's not your fault," Jasper said softly.

"We've gone through it before, remember?" Amara pointed out.

Emmett chuckled. "Besides, did you see the look on that girl's face? Priceless! Besides, she deserved it anyways. No one messes with one of us and gets away with it, right Rose?"

Rosalie snorted. "I hate that little bitch anyways. She thinks she's the most popular and most beautiful girl here in Washington. She is sadly mistaken in that theory, since we as a whole surpass her in beauty. As far as popularity, that doesn't matter to me. It's unimportant."

"Well, we've officially drawn the attention of the entire school," Edward mused, gold eyes full of mirth. "It certainly beats having another dull lunch hour, that much is certain."

"I don't see how it's funny, Edward," Alice grumbled.

"She looked like she was about to wet herself," I said, snickering slightly.

Edward, Emmett, Jasper and Amara all laughed in unison, their musical laughter filling the cafeteria like an angelic symphony. Even Rosalie cracked a small smile. Alice too, for that matter, smiled a little. I was happy for that much.

My stomach growled again, louder this time, which made them all laugh harder and me blush. Alice smacked her forehead and shook her head before pushing her tray of food in front of me, smiling at me.

"Here, this is for you," she said.

"Thanks," I replied.

For about five minutes, I ate in silence, listening to the amusing banter my siblings were partaking in around me. Emmett was talking about an incident that happened during his gym class when someone's pants dropped while running, which he found hilarious. Amara and Jasper talked about having fun with several of meaner students in their art class, combing Jasper's gift with Amara's dirty tactics. Edward let us in on some of the thoughts of the students in the cafeteria, which didn't sit too well with Alice or I.

He scowled and inclined his head to the right before sighing. "You'd better watch out, Bella. It looks like there are a few boys here who are already interested on getting to know you better. I can hear them running plans through their heads on how they can talk with you, ultimately so they can ask you out."

I blanched. "Seriously? They don't even know me and already they're going after me?"

Edward sighed and nodded. "They think that since you're new in our family that you're "available". Plus, they want to be known for dating one of the "illusive Cullen family" for themselves. There's barely any attraction, it's just mindless entertainment and pointless social standpoints that they care about. It's sickening."

"Men these days," Jasper growled, shaking his head. "They have no sense of etiquette."

I heard an odd, snapping noise and saw Alice crushing a fork. It didn't look like a fork anymore, though, but more like a bendy straw. Her eyes were a violent black as she curled her lip back, hissing angrily. Edward's eyes widened.

"Oh no…" he breathed.

"What? What's wrong?" Emmett asked.

"Alice?"

She was up in an instant, whirling around.

"Alice!" Jasper whisper-yelled, trying to send calming waves toward her.

"Alice, what's wrong?" I asked, reaching out to her. She didn't answer. "Edward?"

He grimaced. "She had a vision-"

"They_ touched _you," she hissed. "They're going to try and take you away from me."

I stood up and cupped her cheeks, forcing her to look at me. "Alice, I'm yours, remember? No one will take me from you, understand. Calm down. Don't let your instincts control you, Alice, okay? I know you can do it. Just calm down a bit, okay?" I asked, speaking as softly and tenderly as I could manage.

Her face softened for a moment, but it evaporated quickly. "Yes, you're mine. But _they_ don't know that."

I didn't have a chance to ask what she was getting at or ponder her meaning.

Seconds later, her lips crashed against mine. Her cool, soft lips moved against mine with the same amount of love and passion as they always did, but there was something else behind it too, something I couldn't quite put a finger on. Desire? Not lustful desire, no. A different kind. I couldn't think on it, however, because of how amazing it felt to have her kissing me the way she was. It was…intense, yet so loving and sweet, which surprised me considering her mood.

I moaned softly as she pressed my back to the wall, her icy lips remaining at the same pace. I could feel every eye of every student on us, but there was a part inside of me that told me to ignore them. Alice was what mattered. Not them. Making Alice happy. This made her happy, so I needed to focus on this. Her kissing increased in both speed and passion as she pressed me against the wall. My mind was everywhere at once, trying to absorb the pleasure and yet trying to listen to the gasps and whispers all around me at the same time.

Then she did something that surprised me. I hadn't even been able to grasp what was happening when her tongue thrust into my mouth, moving about at a slow pace. Her tongue was as cold as she was, causing me to shudder, but it was so soft…

I was going insane, my heart pounding in my chest and my face turning red. This was the most intense she'd ever kissed me before. What amazed me, though, was that there wasn't any lust in her kissing. There was just love and tenderness. At a very fast pace.

Part of me loved this; the other part didn't know what to think.. I was distinctively aware that our siblings were watching with wide eyes, trying to figure out wha to do. Well, Edward and Jasper were. Emmett was enjoying the show, Rosalie had her nose crinkled and was looking elsewhere and Amara was just trying not to laugh.

Eventually my need to breathe became more and more prominent. I couldn't break away from her, though. And she wasn't stopping.

"Alice," I whimpered against her lips.

She stopped for a moment, which was her siblings had been waiting for. Edward was on his feet, pulling her away from me while Jasper was sending out waves of calm from where he sat Emmett, Amara and Rosalie sat, tensed and looking around. I quietly gasped for air, too dazed to move or think after that intense kissing. I mean, _damn_, where did that even come from?

Everyone in the cafeteria was stunned, gaping at the scene with wide eyes. Disgust, horror, attraction. I could see it all on the faces of the students as my face became redder and redder in embarrassment.

Alice hissed at her brother, trying to break free from his grip. "Alice, stop this," he commanded softly. "Do you realize what you're doing? You need to do what Bella told you. Calm down and think, Alice. You're letting your instincts control you. Stop and think for a moment."

Alice actually listened to her brother's words and stopped. I could see the gears turning in her head as the realization sank in. Her eyes widened and gazed at me.

"Oh God…" she breathed. "I'm so sorry…" She looked at Edward, who released her, then sped off at a slightly-too-fast human speed out of the cafeteria.

I was about to follow after her, but Edward stopped me. "She'll be okay, Bella. She just needs to calm herself down is all. Go ahead and sit. You can leave in a few minutes."

Damn it.

I grumbled, but sat back down, hiding my face in my hands.

"That was hot," Emmett snickered, only to be smacked by Rosalie. "What? It was!"

"Emmett," Edward warned. "Leave it alone."

"She's embarrassed enough as it is, Emmett," Jasper agreed.

Emmett groaned. "Alright, alright, sheesh!" He held his hands up defensively for a moment before turning to face me. "I'm sorry, Bella," he said apologetically.

I didn't respond, I just closed my eyes and sighed quietly. I could hear the whispers around the cafeteria, some louder than others.

"Oh my God, did you see that?"

"Dude, that shit was hot, man,"

"Gross."

"I so knew that Alice was a lesbian."

"Aren't they, like, sisters?"

"Ew!"

"That's just wrong."

I ground my teeth together and pushed away the violent thoughts popping into my head. I didn't want to hear any more of this garbage. They had no right to insult us. They didn't understand the bond we had. Stupid, close minded assholes, the whole lot of them.

Fuck them. Fuck them all.

I stood up and grabbed my backpack. "I'm going to see Alice," I whispered.

The others nodded.

"See ya," Amara stated.

"Later," Emmett added.

"Feel free to punch someone in the face, if you'd like," Rosalie snorted.

Oh, I will.

I speedily walked out of the cafeteria, doing the best I could to ignore the plethora of looks I received from the entire student body. Oddly, though, I did glance over at the table where Eric, Angela, Ben and Katie sat. Part of me hoped that they wouldn't be disgusted or glaring. And to my surprise, they weren't.

In fact, all four of them waved at me. I gave a brief wave before walking out the door.

I spent a few good minutes finding my next class, which was Biology. I had the class with Alice, and I was hoping that she'd be there. I wanted to talk with her. Talking with her always made me feel better, and right now, that was what I needed most. Just being with her would be enough.

After a minute and a half of searching, I found the room and walked inside, happy to find that the room was vacant, save for one person: Alice. She was sitting in a desk near the window, staring outside with a somber look on her face. It killed me to see someone so beautiful look so damn sad. I wanted that look gone.

I walked over to the desk and plopped my backpack on the floor before sitting next to her.

"Alice," I murmured softly, touching her shoulder.

She sighed. "I'm sorry, Bella. I'm really, really sorry. I've made a fool of myself and I've embarrassed you." She hung her head, looking both sad and ashamed, literally breaking my heart. Alice looked like a broken angel. And I hated it.

"Alice, I-" She held up a hand to stop me.

"Please, let me finish first. You can say your part in a moment, I promise. I just…I need to get this off my chest. I want you to understand, Bella, so that you're not upset with me for what I've done. Okay?" I tried to speak again, but she shook her head. "Can you just answer me first?"

I bit my lip and nodded. "Okay."

"Thank you, Bella."

Alice leaned back in her seat and stared at the ceiling for a moment before starting.

"Bella, I want you to understand the reason why I do the things I do. It's not that I'm trying to embarrass you or make us a public spectacle. Truthfully, I had wanted for us to make ourselves known, but I never intended it to be like this. I wanted to take it in steps, you know? But then I had a vision of people flirting with you, trying to ask you out. I just…when I saw that, I became jealous. But it wasn't just jealousy. I felt a need to guard you from them, to show that you were _my _mate and that they couldn't take you away from me."

"I hated it. I hated feeling like everyone around me was out to take you from me. I tried to fight it, but the urge to protect you was too strong. I needed to protect you, Bella. That's why I kissed you. My mind told me that showing some form of public affection would show them that you were mine and that they couldn't have you. Part of, I'll admit, wanted more, but I was able to fight that off. It got a little out of hand, I'll admit. I hadn't meant to make it such a display, but I couldn't stop. You just have that affect on me, Bella. I can't help myself sometimes."

"Esme explained to you a bit about maternal instinct, right?" she asked.

"A bit, yes," I replied.

Alice sighed. "Most of what happened was based on my instinct. We have a constant need to protect our mate and that's what I was doing. I understand that you might think me kissing you was an odd way to protect you, but in my mind, I registered that as the only way I could keep you safe. Like I said, though, I'm really sorry it got out of hand. I'm not used to these feelings. I've never felt such an overwhelming desire to protect anyone like this before, nor have I ever felt the desire to blatantly make out with anyone in front of a mass of people."

She looked down back at me, her eyes smoldering with truth.

"Alice, I'm not mad at you," I stated.

Her eyes widened. "You aren't? But…I just-"

I cut her off by pressing a fingertip to her cold lips. "Alice, stop. You don't have to apologize for anything. I'm just a little…dazed, I guess. I didn't expect to have my back against a wall and you French kissing me like that is all."

She cocked her head to the side. "French kissing?"

"Yeah, when you did that thing with your tongue…" I shuddered as I remembered the pleasurable feelings it gave. "I have to say, though, you're a damn amazing kisser, Alice. I can't believe you were holding out on me this whole time until today."

Alice shrugged rather sheepishly. "Sorry. I don't want to accidentally bite you or something that would cause you pain. Today was an accident, though. I'm just glad it was stopped before things got worse," she murmured, running a hand through her hair again.

"Worse?" I asked, confused.

"Well, there was this one time with Emmett and Rosalie and they, uh…" She paused for a moment and sighed. "They ended up having sex in front of the entire student body one year. It wasn't here, thankfully, but we did have to move rather quickly after that display. Jasper and Amara had a similar incident, which was only made worse by Jasper's gift. Let's just say that I had to leave the area for a while until they were finished. We ended up moving because of that, too. Edward hasn't had that experience, lucky for him. He's always known ahead of time what's about to happen and usually leaves beforehand…"

"I don't think I understand," I said, furrowing my brow. "How is that related to the whole mate thing, exactly?"

Alice actually smiled a little.

"Mating is a very important part of our lifestyles," she explained. "It helps establish our physical bond together as well as a connection, I guess you could say. I don't fully understand it myself, honestly, since my past experiences have been…well, of a different variety. From what Carlisle and Esme have told me, though, when we mate, we give each other our full self, physically and spiritually. It's supposedly one of the greatest experiences we can undergo, not just in the sense of pleasure, but in the way that we can, you know, grow closer to one another. It isn't just sex; don't let what Emmett or Amara say make you think that. There's more to it than that."

I was curious about what she meant about her past experiences. Had what Amara told me not been as much of a joke as I had thought? Had Alice been with someone before? No, no, she said that I was her first mate. Then again…

"Sex is a natural part of our maternal instincts, Bella. Not only that, it's a natural part of our lives as much as it is a part of the lives of you humans. The difference is, as I said before, there's more depth to mating for vampires. Anyways, I'm getting off topic. Like I told you, I'm sorry that I got so out of hand. It wasn't the first time I've let my, er, instincts get the better of me in that way. I just hope it will be the last for a while. I don't want to cause us to move again, that's for certain. We've only been here for a year so far, and moving is s such a bother."

I blinked. "What do you mean it wasn't the first time? You've had similar experiences?" I asked, curious.

Alice bit her lip. She looked like she'd be blushing if she could as she fidgeted nervously with her fingers.

"Well, never any sex, no. But, uh, there was this one incident…"

"And…?" I urged. I was curious.

Alice bit her lip, making an adorable embarrassed face. "I got caught, er, pleasuring myself one time at school," she admitted sheepishly, her voice growing quieter with each word until I almost couldn't hear her. Almost.

My jaw dropped. "You what?" Had I heard her right?

"You heard me," she mumbled.

I tried very hard not to laugh. I had no right to it, but I couldn't help letting out a small giggle. Then I full out laughed, despite my best attempts not to. She glared at me for it, which helped calm me down a bit. Still, though, how can I _not _laugh at that?

"It's not funny," she huffed, crossing her arms.

"I'm sorry, Alice," I giggle-snorted. "I just can't believe that would happen to _you_ of all people. I mean, didn't you see what would happen? And why were you doing that in a public place of all things? I could see Emmett, but you?"

"I'm not speaking to you," she grumbled, turning her head elsewhere.

I calmed myself down fully. "Aw, please?" She shook her head furiously, not looking at me. I rested my chin on her shoulder and gave her my best puppy dog eyes. If she could do it, then so could I. Alice tried hard not to look at me, clenching her jaw as tight as possible. But I could see the resolve in her eyes fading as I continued to stare at her. She squirmed around for a moment before her eyes painstakingly looked at me. The moment she saw my face, her resolve was gone.

"Aw!" she cooed, kissing my pouting lip. I smiled against her lips, pleased. "Damn it."

"So you'll tell me?"

"Fine, but you owe me," she grunted. I smirked. "Really, Bella, it isn't that much of a story. I was just, um, bored one day while I was in the library, and I, er, found some interesting images…" She bit her lip again, the embarrassment written all over her face.

I was trying not to laugh anymore. It wasn't easy. It was becoming painful not to laugh, but I managed to stifle my giggling. Alice noticed this and harrumphed.

"Look, I was too preoccupied and I got caught. It was incredibly embarrassing and my whole family gave me crap for it. I wasn't in trouble or anything, but they all teased me for about a year. That's when Emmett and Rosalie had their incident, so I was able to get my revenge for all the teasing." She smiled at the last part, a glint in her eyes as she spoke.

I couldn't handle it anymore, I burst into laughter. It was too much. Finding out that Alice, my graceful, future seeing vampire, had gotten caught doing something like that in a public place was hilarious. That, her adorable facial expressions and the way she looked when she said she had gotten her revenge, was too much. My sides were hurting from all my laughter, but that didn't bother me. It was way too damn funny.

Alice scowled at me at first, but eventually she joined me, her sweet, musical laughter filling up the room as we sat together. It was still lunchtime, though it was nearing the end. A few more minutes and students would start piling into the class. That didn't matter, though.

Our laughter slowly died down before we both gazed into one another's eyes, smiling.

"So you forgive me?" she asked, resting her forehead against mine.

"Forgive you? For being an amazing kisser? Sorry, Alice, but I don't think I can ever forgive you for that," I teased.

She rolled her eyes. "You know what I mean, Bella. I've pretty much ruined your chance at having a reputation here."

"I live with a family of freaky vampires," I pointed out. She stuck her tongue out at me, which made me giggle. "I don't give a shit about reputation. I don't care if the entire student body makes fun of me, either. I care about you, Alice. And I care about my family. If people have a problem with us being a couple, they can fuck off. That's how I see it."

She smiled warmly at me. "I think you've been around Amara for too long," she giggled. "But okay, if you're sure you're comfortable-"

"With what, making out with you? Alice, if you kiss me like that from now on, I don't care if we're in front of the fucking president, I'll be comfortable. Just, you know, give me a bit of a warning so I know when it's coming, okay?" I asked.

"Okay," she replied, laughing.

I smiled, reveling in the sound of her laughter. She cupped my cheeks and pulled me into a loving kiss, which we held for a minute and a half. The lunch bell rang, then, and I knew it wouldn't be long before class started.

I noticed Alice had a very evil smile on her face as seemed to ponder something.

"What?" I asked. "What are you thinking?"

"Well, I was just thinking that, since you hate PE and all, we can make it a little more entertaining," she said, smirking wider with each word.

I was confused. "How so? It's PE?"

"Not necessarily the class itself. But _we_ can have some fun with each other."

"Um…"

She leaned in closer to me. "You want to make out with each other in the locker room?"

I blinked several times before laughing. "Are you serious?"

Alice cocked her head to the side, looking at me like I was asking something stupid.

Oh. She _was_ serious.

I thought about it for a moment.

Why not?

Besides, it might be entertaining.

She beamed when she saw my decision and looped her arm around me. The students started to pace in, their eyes a mixture of things when they saw us, sitting together with big grins on our faces. I blushed slightly at all the attention, but with Alice, I felt naturally safe.

"My guardian, huh?"

She giggled. "Something like that."

**A/N: Okay, I realize that probably wasn't what you guys wanted to happen to Mike. Understand that Alice couldn't do anything too extreme without consequences. He'll get what's coming to him eventually. All the main haters will.**

**And I also realize that that little scene may have been a bit over the top. Bear with me on it. I think it helped explain the point I was getting across. Plus, it's hotness for you hotness lovers out there.**

**Review if you wish. I always appreciate it if you do. Thank you to everyone for making last chapter my most rated yet!**


	27. Problems

**Disclaimer: Smeyer owns Twilight and all Twilight characters. I own OCs and to an extent, some of the original ideas, I guess. Boom chaka laka.**

**Problems**

Biology was, for the most part, boring. The only saving grace was of course sitting next to Alice and getting the chance to goof off with her. So far, my first day had been a mixture of good things—meeting a few people who were nice and finding out that I shared three classes with my graceful pixie, plus the kissing—and some bad things. The bad things, of course, seemed to outweigh the number of good things.

Everyone was staring at us. They knew that I was the newest addition to the Cullen family and that Alice and I were together. Most of the girls in my class looked disgusted, obviously offended by the fact that we were lesbians. Some of them didn't look disgusted though, more so disgruntled or annoyed. Only one girl didn't seem to bothered by it. The boys, on the other hand, all looked like a stereotypical high school boy did: turned on. That irritated me more than the glares the girls were giving me. It irritated Alice too.

Throughout class, between holding hands with Alice under the table and half-listening to the teacher, I spent a good portion glaring at anyone, boy or girl, who looked in our direction. Alice did as well, which, combined with my glare, was amazingly enough to cut the stares in half. One boy even looked like he was about to start crying as he turned his attention to the teacher.

Alice was out of her seat seconds before the bell rang, holding a hand out to me. I smiled and accepted it, intertwining my fingers with hers as we walked off together, ignoring the glaring and gawking we received as we left the class.

"That was kinda fun," I admitted. "The class was boring, though."

She sighed. "Class has no meaning to me with you around, Bella. Truthfully, I hated not being with you in my earlier classes. All I could do was think about you the entire time. I'm glad I have my gift and a supremely good memory."

"What other classes do you take?" I inquired.

"Art and dance," she replied. "I love them both because they're my favorite subjects, but paying attention was hard when I had you on my mind. I almost got in trouble in art for drawing a picture of you, actually, but I was able to put it away."

"You drew a picture of me? Can I see?"

She winked. "When we get home, sure."

We turned a corner, idly passing by a group of who I'm guessing were seniors. They had the same exact looks on their faces that everyone else had. One of the boys even looked upset, jealous even. I smiled to myself at the thought when something else came to mind.

Alice's earlier suggestion of us making out with each other. I thought more on it and realized that I wasn't as comfortable with it as I had originally thought. In fact, I was worried we'd get into trouble because of it. I don't want to get into trouble on my first day and I sure as hell don't want Alice to get into trouble. That would make me feel even worse. I can already imagine Esme and Carlisle not being fully pleased about what had happened earlier.

"Bella, what are you worrying about?" Alice asked, breaking me from my thoughts. "I can see that you want to talk with me about something, but you haven't made a decision yet. What's wrong? You know you can ask me anything."

"I was just thinking about, uh, what we talked about earlier. I'm not sure if-"

"You aren't sure if you want us to kiss in the locker room," she finished, stopping dead in her tracks. I grimaced, fearing I'd upset her. She didn't look upset, though, or hurt. Alice cupped my cheeks and forced me to look into her eyes. "Bella, that's okay. I'm not mad at you. I would never want to force you into doing something that you weren't comfortable with, alright? It's no big deal. Besides, I think we've brought enough attention to ourselves. Or rather, I have."

She frowned, a bit of frustration flickering in her eyes.

"What's wrong?" I asked, touching her shoulders.

"Oh, I just got a vision that one of the students went to the principal about what happened earlier," she sighed. "Carlisle and Esme are going to be called about it later this evening and the principal is going to request that we meet with her sometime this week. I can't see when, since she hasn't made a decision on the day, but I know that it will happen."

"Oh joy," I grumbled. "You're not going to get into trouble, are you?"

"Not with Carlisle and Esme, no," she laughed. "They would never be upset over something so trivial. Now, had I actually ripped off Mike Newton's arm, then, yes, I would most likely be in a heap of trouble."

I cringed when I remembered the earlier incident with Mike Newton. Alice noticed this and nodded her head sheepishly.

"Yes, I did screw up with that, I'll admit. I was just so angry. I saw him groping you and I just blew up. I'm lucky you were able to get my attention, otherwise I may have very well dismembered him for touching you like that. Hopefully, he'll learn his lesson and stay away. But if he doesn't, I don't know if I can keep myself under control," she growled, shaking her head at the memory of Mike Newton no doubt.

"You will," I said softly. "You won't lose yourself, Alice. You've proven that time and time again. Besides, you aren't the only one who wanted to rip someone into pieces today."

She seemed puzzled by that as she appraised me. "What do you mean?"

"Oh, that bitch that ran into me in the cafeteria, Lauren or whatever her name is. I met her in the bathroom earlier and she insulted me by saying that I couldn't be in your family because I wasn't attractive enough," I started. I was about to continue when Alice's face darkened ominously.

"She _what_?" Alice hissed, eyes suddenly darkening.

I nearly smacked my forehead, forgetting the whole mate protection thing.

I clutched her shoulders as tight as I could without hurting myself. "Alice, Alice calm down, it's okay. It was nothing."

"Nothing? _Nothing_?" She shook her head, hissing quietly as she bared her teeth. "Bella, her insulting you isn't _nothing_. How _dare_ she say that you? That little bitch…"

"Alice, remember what happened earlier? What you said earlier?" I reminded her.

That seemed to register in her brain as she closed her eyes and sighed. "You're right. I'm getting worked up again. I'm sorry. But I'm not dropping this," she warned. "Nobody insults _my_ Bella and gets away with it, that's for damn sure."

I nodded in understanding, not wanting to speak of the subject anymore, and pulled her along towards our final class of the day. PE. I dreaded PE, but at least with Alice there it wouldn't be as shitty. I hoped.

When we walked into the locker room, we received the reception I knew we would. Grunts of disgust, glares and a load of whispering echoed throughout the entire room as we walked to the teacher's office. Alice hissed and glared at anyone who was close, but otherwise kept her mouth shut and her hand firmly—yet gently—laced around mine as she guided me into the office.

PE sucked. Plain and simple.

The sport we were currently playing was volleyball, which I loathed. I was reminded of the multiple injuries I had sustained while trying to play it in the past, not to mention the injuries I had caused. Only four times had I been able to magically play without hurting myself or anyone else. I even managed to win once. Other than that, however, my time with the sport was spent trying to avoid the ball at all costs.

Thank God for Alice. She sweet talked the teacher into letting us be on the same team, which I was eternally grateful for. She played for the both of us, impressing me with how graceful she was. Truthfully, I spent more time watching her move, the way she glided across the floor was stunning to watch, than I did the ball. Not once was I hit, even though the team we played against attempted to do just that. One boy even tried throwing the ball at me, but Alice was there, snatching it in midair and throwing it right back at him, nailing him in the groin.

I laughed as she downright sneered at him, clearly pleased with herself.

When the bell rang, Alice wrapped an arm around me protectively and led me downstairs amidst the group of disgruntled girls. Her arm never left me save for the few seconds it took for us to change. Once we were done, the two of us left as fast as we could. I was ready to be done with school forever, but I knew that this was just day one.

The joy that I felt when I saw my siblings outside surprised even me. I hadn't realized how much I'd missed them until I saw them again. Being with Alice was the greatest ever, but it just wasn't complete without the rest of my family, even if Rosalie didn't like me too much. I missed Carlisle and Esme too, so I was glad I'd be home soon. Home, I was looking forward to.

As we neared the cars, though, I noticed that the others didn't look to be in the best of moods. Then again, Rosalie was never in the best of moods, but she seemed to be a bit more flustered that usual. And that's saying something. Alice's face darkened as we neared them. I gulped, knowing something must be up. But what?

"Alice," Edward greeted.

"Edward," she greeted back.

"Let's cut to the chase," Rosalie grunted. "We heard about what happened with that Newton boy, Alice. Would you kindly tell us why he was sent to the hospital with a fractured arm?"

Alice and I both grimaced in unison. I was confused, though. Hadn't she told them?

"No, she didn't," Edward replied. "I heard several students thinking about it. Apparently Mike Newton had gone to the nurse because of his arm. Then they called the hospital because of how badly injured it was. He told them that he had fallen on it the wrong way, which they believed thankfully. I'm rather surprised he hasn't said anything about what really happened, honestly."

Alice sighed. "It was an accident, Edward. I was really upset and I sort of lost control. Bella was able to help snap me out of it before I could do worse damage, at least. I know what I did was wrong, but damn it, he groped her! What was I supposed to do?"

Edward's eyes widened. "He did?" He looked at me. I remembered what had transpired, which made Edward's eyes darken. "That does change things a bit. And I can see that your maternal instincts were telling you to defend your mate."

"You should've punched the dude's lights out," Emmett snorted.

"I'd have done worse than that," Amara growled. "Just like that bitch from the cafeteria."

Jasper sighed and sent out a wave of calm to all of us. It was a much needed calmness that I welcomed as I recounted today's events in my head, forgetting that Edward could read my mind for the moment. It had been a crazy day, to say the least. When I looked up, I noticed Edward giving me a thoughtful look.

"What?" I asked.

He shook his head. "Nothing. I was just thinking about something you thought. Don't worry about it, it's no big deal," he said, glancing at my left hand for a moment. "Is your hand feeling better, by the way?"

I glanced down at it myself as Alice laced our fingers together. "Yeah, actually, it is. Why?"

He shrugged. "No reason. We'd best be going, then."

Alice nodded. "Esme is going to get that call I mentioned in one minute and thirty two seconds."

"Oh. Alright then, let's go."

We all got into the vehicles we had gotten in, Alice and I jumping into the back of Amara's car while Emmett and Edward got back into Rosalie's. This time Amara took off before Rosalie, smiling in the mirror as she stuck her arm out the window and flipped her off. Jasper, Alice and I all laughed at the face Rosalie made as she sped up, turning our drive home into a race.

Amara won the race, of course, despite Rosalie's attempts at passing us. She was beaming as we drove into the garage and got out, Alice, like always, opening my door for me. Inside the house, an eager Esme was bouncing on her feet as she waited for all of us to clamber into the house, clearly wanting to know how my day went.

"How was your first day, Bella?" Esme asked excitedly.

"It was…" I mulled over an appropriate word to sum it up. "Interesting." Lame, yes, but I couldn't think of anything else.

Esme frowned. "Come now, dear. You have to tell me more than that? Did you make any friends?"

"Yeah, I did," I replied. She smiled at that, urging me to continue. "Well, I met this boy named Eric, he's a bit nerdy, but he's nice. And I met a girl named Angela. She's shy, but she's also really nice too. They introduced me to their respective partners during lunch, too."

"That's wonderful, Bella!" Esme said delightedly, hugging me.

I hugged her back until I felt Alice tense next to me.

"I don't like it," she growled. "I don't want them trying to take you from me."

"Alice, don't be ridiculous. They both have someone already," I pointed out.

She bit her lip and shook her head furiously. "But they can still try and take you!"

"Alice, that's enough," Esme said. Her tone was motherly, but gentle. "No one is going to try and take Bella away from you. But you must remember, dear, that it is her choice whether or not she wishes to stay with you as much as it is her choice whether or not she has friends. You cannot force her to do something against her will, Alice, and I certainly don't want you to keep her from having other friends."

Alice crossed her arms and pouted.

"Besides, young lady, I believe you have some explaining to do? I recently received a call from the principal about an incident at lunch? And Carlisle called and mentioned that a boy from your school was sent to the hospital earlier today with his arm nearly in two?"

Alice eyes narrowed for a moment before she pulled me into her arms.

"He_ touched_ my Bella!" she shouted angrily. "He_ groped_ her, Esme! What was I supposed to do, let him defile her that way? _And_ he was trying to ask her out, to take her from me!"

Esme gasped and looked at me. "He touched you inappropriately?" she asked. I nodded. She narrowed her eyes and let out a low growl. "Perhaps it is best that he was punished the way he was, then. However, I do want you to try and control yourself, Alice. We don't need any accidents. Am I understood?"

Alice hesitated for a moment. I wrapped my arms around her and hugged her as tight as I could manage, kissing her shoulder. Alice's body finally relaxed as she embraced me warmly and rested her head on my left shoulder.

"Yes, Esme. I'm sorry I let it get out of hand."

Esme's face softened up as she smiled. "Thank you, honey. I just worry about you is all." She paused for a moment and blinked. "Oh! What is the story about the call I received from the principal? She said that several students came in and complained about you and Bella showing some inappropriate behavior in the cafeteria?" I was surprised to hear a bit of mirth in her voice as she asked. What was she implying?

Alice scoffed. "It wasn't inappropriate. I just, you know, kissed Bella is all."

"Kissed her? You two were making out against the wall, for crying out loud!" Amara snickered.

I blushed into her shoulder as Alice sighed. I heard Esme giggle, which confused me.

"Ah to be young again," Esme joked. I turned slightly and looked at her, utterly lost now. Esme chuckled at my expression and waved it off. "It's no big deal, Bella. I'm sure Alice has told you that the others have had far more embarrassing instances in the past. I don't see a problem with the two of you showing each other your affection in public. That doesn't bother me. I do, however, hope that Alice can learn to control her jealousy problems and that temper of hers. You will work on that, right Alice?"

Alice nodded sheepishly. "Yes, ma'am."

Esme rolled her eyes. "Oh, stop that. You know I could never be mad at you, Alice."

She walked over and gently kissed Alice's forehead. I felt a surge of something at the sight. Anger? Jealousy? Wait, why was I jealous? Esme Alice's mother, my mother. All she was doing was giving her a light motherly peck on the forehead. There's no problem with that. Is there?

For some reason, I felt the urge to growl at her.

Alice was my mate. No one else can touch her but _me_.

But Esme is the alpha female, the mother. My mother. She only means well…

She touched my Alice. Touched her. That isn't right!

I closed my eyes and told the voice in my head to shut the fuck up. I was sick and tired of constantly getting these weird, uncontrollable thoughts. Like with today and my desire to rip off Mike Newton's head. Then again, he probably deserved it. Argh!

Esme looked at me and frowned. "Are you okay, Bella?" she asked.

Was I okay? I don't think so.

"Bella?" Alice asked, gently nudging me.

"I'm fine…" I murmured. My face felt hot. Everything around me started to blur.

Okay, maybe I'm not fine.

"Bella!" Alice shouted. But it was a distant shout as everything faded to black. The last thing I remember was slumping into Alice's arms as I fell into unconsciousness.

I'm not sure how long I was unconscious. I really don't.

I do, however, remember hearing my name being called, again and again.

What the fuck…

Ow. I feel really, really weird.

I slowly opened my eyes and saw that I was in a room that both looked and smelled familiar.

Oh, wait. This is Carlisle's office. I recognize the dark walls, the various paintings, that distinctive smell that fits on Carlisle. It's very old fashioned, but very comfortable in here, both by the way it looks and especially the way it smells.

Why am I in his office? And what the hell am I laying on, exactly?

I blinked several times until my eyes were better adjusted to the room before stirring, finding that I was lying on a bed of some kind, my head propped up by a rather comfy pillow. I looked around and saw that I was in the center of the room, a clipboard with some notes sitting on the desk, which was to my left. Where in the world…?

"Bella!"

I knew that voice instantly and turned a little too quickly to my right, causing a slight pain to shoot through my neck. I cringed as I felt Alice next to me in seconds, wrapping her arms around my neck and pressing her forehead next to mine. I could see her beautiful honey colored eyes boring into mine with concern and love, making me forget where I was and what happened.

It was odd. I felt like I hadn't seen her in ages. I wrapped my arms around her waist and pulled her closer to me, pressing my lips to hers. We kissed for a good minute or so before she pulled back, rubbing her nose against mine.

"God, I was so worried," she murmured, kissing me again. "Are you okay?"

I gazed into her eyes without responding for a few seconds before sighing. "I think so. What happened?"

Alice sighed. "You blacked out, Bella. Out of nowhere," she explained. "You scared the crap out of me. I don't know what happened or why. I was so worried…"

I cupped her cheeks with my palms and kissed her softly. "I'm okay, Alice. I'm okay," I murmured, rubbing her cool cheeks. "How long was I out for?"

"Two hours," she replied. I gaped at her. Two hours? Damn.

Alice sat up and pulled me up with her so that I was sitting on her lap. I nuzzled into her cool shoulder as I curled into her. Cold and hard she may be, but damn if she wasn't the most comfortable thing in the world.

She held me for a few minutes before I heard a quiet throat clearing. I peered over her shoulder to see Carlisle standing in the door way, looking on with lighthearted amusement.

"May I come in?" he asked. "Or am I disturbing you?"

Alice grumbled at first, but eventually nodded. Carlisle smiled and walked towards us, stopping at his desk to read over the notes on his clipboard for a moment, his eyes alight with thoughtfulness and curiosity.

He turned towards me. "How are you feeling, Bella?" he asked, concern etched into his voice.

I ran a hand through my hair. "Fine, I guess. I don't even remember what happened."

"What do you remember?"

"Well, I was listening to Alice and Esme talk, then everything just got blurry and I fell unconscious. I can't remember anything other than that."

Carlisle nodded in understanding. "I see. Alice, tell Bella what you told me, would you?"

Alice cringed. "Well, uh, Bella, you were writhing around a lot. You looked like you were in intense pain and your heart was beating really fast. The others had to leave because of it. I did too, since I couldn't control myself fully. Did you feel any pain at all?"

I cocked my head to the side and thought about it. "Not really, no."

Alice looked worriedly at me while Carlisle stroked his chin.

"Hm. That's interesting, if I may so say. It is a tad strange, but perhaps you felt nothing because you were unconscious. That reminds me. Bella, Edward tells me you've been experiencing odd behavior lately. Is that true?"

I bit my lip and nodded sheepishly. Alice frowned. "Wait, what do you mean?" she asked.

"It's, um, a long story…" I murmured.

She put her hands on her hips and scowled. "Bella, I do wish you wouldn't keep things from me. I told you that you can talk with me about anything, remember?"

I nodded. "I know, I know, Alice. It's nothing to worry about, I promise. I've just been feeling a little weird lately is all, you know? I figured it was just the whole mate thing rubbing off on me."

"Would you explain?" Carlisle asked, appraising me with placid eyes. I could tell he was curious, too.

"At school today I got extremely angry when that Mike Newton guy talked about Alice in class, and then afterwards when he tried talking to her, because I knew he was going to ask her out. That really upset me and it made me want to hurt him badly. Then there was an incident in the bathroom with this girl, Lauren. She made me mad to. I've just had some jealousy and anger problems, but not to the same extent as Alice's."

He nodded again, absorbing what I'd told him. "There's more, isn't there, Bella? There's something you aren't saying, for one reason or another."

My eyes widened. How did he…?

Carlisle noticed my expression and chuckled softly. "Bella, I've been around for over three hundred years. I've learned how to read people very well, even without having the gifts of my children. I can tell by your eyes that there are things you've kept secret. I'm not pressuring you into telling me. It's your choice whether you do or not. I just wish to be able to help you in any way I can. You are my daughter and as such, your health and welfare are important to me."

I turned to look at Alice, who rested her forehead against mine, eyes smoldering.

"Bella, I love you. I want you to be comfortable talking with me about anything."

Did I want to tell them?

It might be best. Maybe Carlisle knows what's wrong with me.

"Alright," I murmured. I moved my hands forward, Alice automatically lacing her fingers around mine. "For starters…" I looked up at Carlisle. "Do you remember the other day when we went to see that Jenks guy? And he cut himself?"

"Yes," he replied, sitting down as he listened intently.

My lips twitched. I can't believe I'm going to admit this. I feel so…weird.

"I, er…I could smell his blood." Carlisle nodded, urging me to continue. "I…I _liked_ it."

Alice's eyes widened as Carlisle's narrowed. "Go on," he softly urged.

"I liked the smell of blood. That's not normal for me, Carlisle. I used to hate it. It always made me nauseous when I was younger. Yet when he cut himself and I smelled it, I actually liked it. And then there was that time in the forest yesterday." I turned and faced Alice. "It was the same thing. I didn't smell it at first until the wind blew, but when I did…and then I tasted it and I liked the taste too. At first, anyways. Then it made me sick…" I trailed off and looked down at my hands, uncertain who to look at or what to say next.

It was silent for a moment. I chanced a glance to look at Alice first. She looked stunned. Her eyes were wide and her mouth open in a small "o" as she studied me, confused, concerned and intrigued in the same. Carlisle looked lost in thought, his brow furrowed as he seemed to stare off into the distance.

Then he moved behind his desk in a flash and scribbled something down on a piece of paper.

"Bella, I'd like to ask you something," he said as he blurred back in front of me.

"Sure," I mumbled.

"I would like to, if you'll allow it, take a sample of your blood. I have a theory, but I'd like to test it out first. It's your choice, of course and I don't want you assuming it's something you need to do. Okay?" he asked, his eyes warm and compassionate. I nodded. "Good. I'll give you some time to think it over. Remember, it's your choice."

"I will," I told him as I swung my legs over the bed.

I wasn't sure what I wanted right now.

I left Carlisle's office, Alice following after me. I walked into her room, not thinking or caring, and plopped face down into her bed. My head was spinning with worry and thoughts. What was wrong with me? Why did all of this stuff suddenly start happening? It made no sense.

All the shit that's been going on with me lately…

The fact that I liked the taste and smell of blood, the snarling and hissing, the mood swings, the violent thoughts, the fact that I could hear better, the random fatigue.

It was almost…

Vampiric.

What did that mean? I buried my head into Alice's pillow and breathed in and out several times.

Her smell always helped relax me. It was so rich and sweet, it did wonders for me.

I felt the bed sink and a pair of arms wrap around me as Alice pulled me into her. I turned and buried my face into her chest, nuzzling into her and holding her tight. She didn't speak, she merely held me as tight as she could without causing me pain. I felt her rest her head on top of mine as I nuzzled into her, kneading my fingers into her back.

Then I felt moisture. It took me a moment to realize that I was crying. And I didn't know why.

I was so lost, so fucking confused. I didn't know what to think or do.

I hated it. I hated feeling this way.

I just cried. That was all I could do. I cried on Alice as she hugged me, her love radiating off of her as she rubbed my back soothingly with one hand and my head with her other. She whispered 'I love you' into my ear again and again, but otherwise remained silent save for her soft cooing.

I'm not sure how long we lay there together. She started to rock me gently as I cried, which further soothed me. Eventually, I ended up falling asleep in her arms. Even with all the shit running through my head and all the problems I'd face today and the problems I feared would come, I felt safe in her arms. They were my haven.

As I slept, I dreamt. It was a peaceful dream of just the two of us together. Nothing more, nothing less. Just us.

When I awakened, Alice was gone, but I was still in her room, tucked into her bed.

I slowly sat up and yawned, stretching my arms out. I heard a knocking on the door before Alice danced in, twirling several times before plopping on the bed next to me.

"Morning, sleepyhead," she cooed, leaning in to kiss me.

My jaw nearly unhinged. "Morning? It's the _morning_ already?"

She nodded. "Yup. You slept rather soundly throughout the whole night." Her face grew sad, then as she rested her forehead against mine, gazing into my eyes. "I'm sorry I wasn't here when you woke up. I wanted to be, but I needed to hunt. Sorry."

I blinked. "Its, um, it's okay," I murmured. "I just…I can't believe I slept for so long."

Alice looked at me concernedly. "You've been sleeping a lot lately, longer then you say you're supposed to. Do you think it has something to do with the other things that have been going on with you?" she asked.

I shrugged. I hadn't thought much on the whole thing. Too much thinking is bad for Bella.

"Bella…"

Alice looked so sad. I could tell it hurt her that I was hurting and that in her mind, there was nothing she could do about it. That wasn't true.

I reached over and squeezed her hands. "Alice, it's okay. As long as I've got you with me, I'll be fine. Try not to look so sad, okay? I hate seeing you sad. It makes me sad. And then you get sadder and it just doesn't turn out good."

She thought about that for a moment before kissing me. "Alright, I will," she murmured against my lips before kissing me again.

"Good," I said, standing up as she bounced off the bed.

"Oh, that reminds me." Alice disappeared for a few seconds before blurring back in, a folder in each hand. "Choose a hand."

I furrowed my brow in confusion, but shrugged again and chose the one in her right hand.

She lowered her left hand and handed it to me. I opened it up and saw several pieces of paper, all with my name at the top. I didn't remember writing all of this, though. What the hell?

"It's your homework," Alice chirped, as if reading my mind.

Wha-oh fuck! I completely forgot about school. Argh!

"Wait, did you do all of this?" I asked, scanning the sheets over. The writing looked exactly like mine did.

She beamed. "Yes ma'am, that I did. It was easy, actually. All I had to do was copy your style, which wasn't all that hard. And for the homework itself, it was all basic stuff. I do suggest that you try and study a little, since you'll need to learn_ something_ before the year ends," she teased.

"Alice…"I whined. "You didn't have to do all of this for me."

She scoffed and put her hands on her hips. "Well I wasn't going to wake you up to do it, now was I? It's no big deal Bella. It only took a few seconds. Honest. I already knew half of it by heart anyways from doing the same thing in the past."

I tried to protest, but she cut me off with a finger to my lips.

"No more. I won't argue with you over this, Bella. Taking care of you is my main priority, regardless if it's doing your homework, writing your notes or tucking you in at night. I don't want to hear complaints, because I'm going to do it whether you want me to or not." Her voice was firm, yet gentle as she spoke. I clamped my mouth shut as she handed me the other folder and took the one with my homework in it from me.

I opened it and gaped when I saw it was a beautifully drawn picture of the two of us, holding hands and sitting under a tree. Everything was perfectly illustrated a detailed, from the flowers in the grass below our feet to the lines in my hair. It was amazing. I swear, this alone put the Mona Lisa to shame, big time.

"It's wonderful…" I breathed.

Alice beamed and pulled me into a hug. "Thank you," she whispered into my ear. "I can't help it if I have amazing inspiration."

I blushed into her shoulder as I heard several groans and chuckles downstairs.

Alice kissed my shoulder before pulling apart. "Now off with you to go get ready, silly human."

I was the one groaning now. More school.

Alice laughed at my expression before capturing my lips once more and dancing off. I sighed and collected myself before trudging downstairs for breakfast. I devoured the bacon and eggs that Esme made, loving every second of them, before darting upstairs to shower. Once I was finished, I quickly dressed and got back downstairs.

Alice hadn't offered to do my hair this morning. Was she still embarrassed over what happened last time? I hope not.

When I saw her, though, she seemed relatively excited. I also noticed Carlisle was still here.

He smiled at me and beckoned me over. "Ah, Bella. I apologize for not giving this to you before, but I never had a chance to. Here is your gift from me." He stretched his hand out and handed me a small box, neatly wrapped as the others had been.

I opened it and gasped when I saw that it was my own cell phone.

Alice giggled. "We all have one for ourselves, so we only thought it right to give you one."

"T-thanks, Carlisle," I said, hugging him. He happily hugged me back for a moment before I pulled away.

"I'll be off, then. Feel free to call me if you need anything," he said while looking at me.

I nodded at him. He smiled, kissed Esme on the cheek and blurred out the door. I heard his car rev up before watching him drive off seconds later. Alice snatched my phone from my hands and speedily began doing something to it. I frowned as I watched her blurry fingers pressing buttons for about a minute or so before she grinned and handed it back to me.

"There. You now have all of our cell numbers," she said.

I blinked. "Oh. Thanks." She smiled at me as I smiled back. We stood there, staring into one another's eyes, just enjoying the warmth.

"Hey! Quit that stuff, we gotta go!" Emmett boomed. We glared at him in unison, causing him to laugh. "Hey, don't be like that. It's hot and all, but we don't wanna be late for school, now do we?" he asked, smirking.

Alice and I both growled at him, which only made him laugh harder.

"Behave," Rosalie grunted, lightly swatting his arm. He pouted playfully at her in response.

"All of you be good now," Esme said, smiling at each of us. "And I think it's wonderful that you've made some friends, Bella. You should see if you can get together with them sometime."

Alice looked horrified. "What?"

Esme sighed. "I think she should experience friendship with others, Alice. It would be good for her. That doesn't mean you can't experience it with her."

She considered that for a moment, though I could tell she still didn't like the idea.

"Jealous," I giggled.

"You're one to talk," Edward snickered.

"Shut up! At least I have a girlfriend!"

Everyone—save for Edward, who grumbled something under his breath—laughed at that as we all said our goodbyes to Esme and walked outside. Alice and I carpooled with Jasper and Amara again, while Edward and Emmett jumped into Rosalie's car. The two vixens glared at one another as they reignited the race from before and took off at the same time.

I didn't think too much on it. I merely rested my head on Alice's shoulder and held her hand, trying to think about school. The first day is usually always the worst, right? Well, I could definitely tell that today would be worse, especially now that everyone was aware of who I was and that Alice and I were together.

We arrived at school early as we had yesterday, Amara and Rosalie tying in their race, neither of them being too happy about it. We weren't the first ones there, amazingly enough. More students had arrived early today, for some reason. Not that I really cared.

I did, however, notice some familiar faces.

Mike Newton, for one thing, was here. He was sporting a cast on his right arm, which he lugged around with a pathetic look on his face, clearly trying to garner sympathy. Walking by his side like a faithful golden retriever was that shrill voiced blonde girl from the day before, who looked like her puppy had been stolen. Surrounding them was a small mob of four other students, one I recognized as that bitch Lauren. I didn't know the others, though.

No sooner had Alice and I stepped out of the car did that whole group turn and look at us. Lauren and that Jess girl glared at us, Jess especially. Mike had a half glare, half wary look. The others, all boys, hooted and hollered amongst themselves. I crinkled my nose in disgust and was tempted to flip them off. I decided against it, though. Not yet, at least.

To further piss them off, I laced my fingers around Alice's, who seemed more than happy to. We walked with the others surrounding us, all of them actually glaring back at anyone who shot us a look. I smiled, feeling rather safe surrounded by Alice and my siblings. It was a good feeling, really. I knew it wouldn't last, but for the moment, I was enjoying it.

Second day, here we go.

**A/N: Patience, people. Patience. Bella's more aware of her problems. And the next few chapters is when it all comes to fruition. Bada bing.**

**Off topic stuff. First off, I have a revamped banner posted on my profile and a revamped picture of Amara, thanks to AleinWonderland.**

**And I'm continuing my quest in making a Blood Solstice soundtrack. Which is working decently well, I'd say. I'll post that when it's finished.**

**Other then that, keep the patience and I love you all for your reviews and your reading.**


	28. Blood

**Disclaimer: I can't own Twilight since Stephanie Meyer does. I own Amara and all other OCs, however. It'd be cool if she were in the movies, don't you think?**

**Blood**

Math. Ugh. So damn boring. Dull, dull, dull.

I groaned to myself as I sat and listened to the teacher yak about fractions. Alice was sitting next to me, giggling at my humorous antics, though I hardly saw how being bored was humorous.

I scowled and tore off a piece of paper and started scribbling on it. Passing notes with Alice was the only saving grace I had. And we were both pretty good at it. Alice knew when to write and was skillful at keeping it hidden. The best part? She would give anyone who thought about telling on us the death glare, which wasn't often despite the number of eyes that seemed glued to the two of us. I didn't think two lesbian lovers in class was _that_ interesting.

_**How can you stand this?**_

I wrote on the piece of paper. I slid it over to Alice, who giggled quietly and started writing her response.

_**It's easy, really. I have you here.**_

I rolled my eyes.

**_I meant having to sit here, hour after hour, listening to them blather about crap you already know._**

_**I usually distract myself, truth be told. It does get annoying, I'll admit. I learned all of these things decades ago. But I deal with it, because it's a necessary evil to keep our lifestyle intact.**_

**_So how many times have you graduated high school?_**

She laughed rather quietly as she scribbled her answer down.

**_I'd say about twelve times. I've also graduated from college about five times._**

My jaw dropped as I read that. I heard Alice giggle beside me at my reaction.

Holy crap. I could not imagine going through high school and college so many times. How were they not going insane for crying out loud? I'd be tearing my hair out if I were forced to go through that kind of horror.

**_How the hell did you manage that? I'd go crazy if I had to repeat high school over and over again._**

Alice shrugged.

**_It's not too bad, actually. We get bored easily, but we can also be entertained easily too. And thanks to our senses being so good, we can actually get away with goofing off when no one is looking. Emmett introduced me to handheld video games a while back. They saved my life, let me tell you._**

**_You must've shared classes with the others in the past, right?_**

She smiled a little and shook her head.

**_In the past, yes. I once took a cooking class with Emmett and Rosalie. I did it because I thought it would be interesting, while Em and Rose took it by mistake. I remember we were on a team one time and we had to bake a cake. None of us knew how, so we just started throwing things together. We ended up nearly setting our kitchen on fire. It was hilarious!_**

I couldn't help giggling a little myself as I read her note. I could imagine that, too. Them throwing random ingredients into boiling water, utterly lost as they tried to figure out what went where. God, how I would've loved to see that.

**_Didn't you guys have recipes?_**

**_Recipe schmecipe. Alice Cullen doesn't need a stinking recipe. Then again, I guess it wouldn't have hurt to look at them, had we kept ours. We all made paper airplanes out of ours since we had no clue what they were. Then we threw them across the class when no one was looking. Rosalie's won, damn it. Still, it was fun._**

I snickered some more.

**_I wish I could've been there to see it._**

_**You would've been laughing like mad, that's for certain. Everyone else was. We all got kicked out of the class because of the mess we made, but it was worth it. I've started taking lessons from Esme, though. She's a much better teacher since she knows what she's talking about.**_

I thought about Esme teaching Alice how to cook. The idea seemed funny, really, especially since they'd probably spend more time goofing off with each other. Esme may be a wonderful mother, but she was just as playful as Alice was. Alice must've read my mind, because she smirked and nodded her head in agreement.

**_I'd have thought that vampires would remember basic stuff on food from being a human and all. Is it that easy to forget?_**

Alice's face grew somber as she replied, which worried me.

**_I don't remember my human life. I'm the only one in the family who doesn't. The others remember most or all of theirs clearly. I don't, though._**

I internally kicked and cursed myself for forgetting that. Damn it. Why was I so stupid?

_**Alice, I'm so sorry. I forgot and-**_

I was cut off when Alice reached over and snagged the paper from me and started writing.

**_Bella, don't apologize, love. It's okay. I'm not mad at all. Please don't feel bad about it._**

**_I just wish I could help you. Somehow. After everything you've done for me, I owe you some-_**

Again she swiped the paper from me, shaking her head as she did.

**_Bella, you owe me nothing. Nothing, do you hear me? You've done more than anything by choosing to be with me, which is a dream come true enough as it is. I love you with every fiber of my being. And as long as I can bring you happiness, then I'm satisfied._**

I sniffled a little as I read that.

_**I love you too, Alice. You mean the world to me. Of course you bring me happiness, why wouldn't you? I just…I want to be able to help you somehow with finding out more about yourself, you know? You deserve that much.**_

Alice smiled endearingly at me for a moment, her eyes shimmering with warmth and love. She leaned in and pecked my cheek when no one was looking before writing her response.

_**I've gotten more then I deserve by having you, Bella. But I appreciate the thought. You are too sweet. But please, don't worry about it. I think it best that we stop now. The bell will ring in another minute. I love you, though.**_

_**I love you too, more than anything else in the world.**_

We spent the remainder of class staring into one another's eyes, holding hands under the table, ignoring all of the whispers, staring and grunts around us. Then the bell rang and we rose together before exiting the class.

She walked me to my next class, our hands still clinging together. We let go once I was in front of the door. I pouted at her. She sighed.

"I know, I know. I don't like it either. I'll see you at lunch, okay? Try not to get yourself into too much trouble, okay?" she asked.

I smirked. "I'll try not to."

She leaned in to kiss my cheek, but I moved so it was my lips instead. We held it for a moment before breaking apart, grinning at one another. Then she reluctantly turned and danced away as I sighed and clambered into the classroom.

I was met with a wave of tension and resentment. Mike was sitting in his usual seat, clutching his arm like a baby its bottle, glaring at me. Even when he was glaring, he was still checking me out, which pissed me off. I ignored him and waved to Eric, who smiled and waved back. At least there was one person who wasn't a douche in this class.

I sat next to Eric and smiled at him. "Hey Eric," I greeted.

Eric grinned. "Hey yourself. Gotta say, you sure know how to make an entrance into the school," he chuckled.

I sighed. "Yeah, tell me about it. I bet it's the hot topic of the week."

"Yeah, pretty much. Well, it'll probably be the hot topic for the next month and a half, if anything."

"_That_ long?" I asked, appalled. Eric nodded. "Shit…"

"I know what you mean. But in a small town like Forks where nothing big happens much, you gotta see why this would be big news. Especially for all the gossip freaks, which we have loads of here. Oh, speaking of that, can I ask you something?"

"Sure, why not."

He leaned in slightly closer to me and cupped his mouth. "Is it true that Alice did that to Mike's arm?"

My eyes bulged. "How did you…?"

"Well, Jessica Stanley sort of got it out of him. She's been spreading rumors about it since this morning. She's been talking a lot of crap about Alice lately, for that matter."

I ground my teeth together. "Like what?" I asked.

Eric ran a hand through his hair. "She's mostly been insulting her again and again. Everyone knows that Jessica hates the Cullens. She's part of a big group of popular kids that rip on them all the time. Now that you're here, you'll probably be her next target. But for now, she's on a warpath of insults on Alice."

My hands curled into tight fists as I gritted my teeth.

That bitch was insulting my family? _My_ Alice? Oh _hell_ no. That's going to stop.

"She's been pretty much nonstop since yesterday, too. I'd tell Alice to be careful, if I were you."

I almost scoffed, but I held it in. No reason to insult Eric. "Will do," I grunted.

"Oh, hey, that reminds me. It's supposed to warm up next week and be nice and sunny," he said, grinning.

Wait. Sunny?

Crap. That meant that Alice and the others wouldn't be at school. Come to think of it, what was I going to do? Would I be forced to go without them?

"Bella?" Eric asked.

I blinked and turned to him. "Huh? What? Sorry, I was, er, lost in thought."

He smiled and shrugged it off. "No big deal, it happens. Anyways, Katie, Angela, Ben and I were all planning on hitting up La Push sometime next week when the weather's good. You wanna go?"

I thought about that for a moment. Why did the name La Push sound so familiar?

Oh!

That girl, Leah. She lives there. I cringed when I remembered that day. It wasn't the most pleasant experience.

"Um, I dunno," I murmured, scratching my head. "Can I get back to you?"

"Of course," he replied, grinning. "No pressure, really."

"Can I ask why?"

He frowned in confusion. "Why what?"

"Why you're inviting me. I mean, I'm new here and, you know, the whole me being a lesbian thing. Doesn't that bother you?"

Eric chuckled. "Are you kidding? Why would it bother me? Look, Bella, I know you're new here and all, but that's no reason to treat you differently. And so what if you like girls? Katie's bi and my sister is gay. It doesn't bother me one little bit. Besides, you could invite Alice along."

Huh. That was a good point. Wait, no. If it was sunny, she couldn't go. Damn it.

"Okay. I'll get back to you on it."

He grinned and nodded before the teacher cleared his throat and began class. The first half of class was dull and uneventful. I half listened, since I hated math with a passion. If anything, Alice would know what my assignment was if I didn't pay attention anyways. But then the teacher did something that surprised me.

"Alright, class. We're going to be doing group assignments now. I'll call your names and you are to work together to complete all the problems. Now then…" He started calling out pairs of names. My eyes widened.

Dear God, not Mike. Not Mike. _Please_ not Mike.

"Mrs. Cullen and Mr. Newton…" the teacher called out.

FUCK!

Damn it, damn it, damn it! Why me? Why?

I heard several whistles and whispers as Mike slowly stood up. Eric gave me a sympathetic look before standing up and going over to his partner as Mike trudged towards me.

Mike moped as he begrudgingly sat down next to me, leaning away from me as if I were about to rip his head off. Actually, that sounded like a good idea. A very, very good idea. No, wait, that would only put me in jail and ruin my family's lives. Can't do it, nope. Darn.

"So…" Mike mumbled. "I can't really write."

I rolled my eyes. As if it was _my_ fault.

"Whatever," I grumbled. I started looking over the problems. Some were hard, but not all of them. I could do most of them without too much trouble. Just because I hated math didn't mean I didn't know how to do math, after all.

"You and Alice, huh?" Mike asked.

I gritted my teeth. Was he seriously going to do this? Son of a…

"Yeah, what of it?" I snapped.

He gave me a defensive pout that only annoyed me more. "You don't have to get so touchy. I was just, you know, asking is all."

I snorted. "After what you did yesterday, you have no right to get on my case."

"What _I_ did? _She_ broke my arm!" he hissed.

"You deserved it," I retorted.

"Look, I'm sorry for what happened. It was an accident, I swear," he claimed.

I rolled my eyes. "Uh huh, sure it was. Then why do you keep staring at my ass?"

He blinked and looked down at his desk, not answering. I smiled inwardly since I had caught him red handed checking me out. Again. On the outside, though, I frowned and went back to scribbling down answers to the problems.

I could feel Mike still staring at me. Or rather, feel him staring downwards. It irritated me to no end that he was gawking at me like that. I really wanted to punch him. Better yet, I wanted to stab him with my pencil. Ugh.

Out of my peripheral, I watched Mike slowly extend his hand. I could hear a bit of chuckling in the background, so I knew he wasn't just reaching. That bastard. I was about to spin around and snap his arm in two when the door opened. An odd feeling came over me. It wasn't the feeling I got when Jasper was around me. This was different.

Suddenly Alice bounded into the room, dancing over to the teacher with a pile of papers in her hands. Mike's hand stopped dead in the air as his eyes widened. Practically every student clamped their mouths shut as they watched the silent exchange between Alice and the teacher as she handed him the papers.

I couldn't help beaming.

Alice turned slightly and met my eyes, smiling wide at me. Then she turned back to the teacher.

I heard several students starting to whisper amongst themselves, and as usual, it was about us.

"I can't believe Cullen's a lesbo," grumbled a boy.

"She is so weird," one of the girls murmured.

"Dude, we should video tape them making out," a boy chuckled. I nearly vomited at the thoughts of what he would do with something like that.

"Freaks," muttered another girl.

I knew Alice could hear them. I knew they made her angry. Even though there was a cheerful expression on her face, I could see her eyes. They were swirling with rage. Not only that, but I could see that her body was tensed up. She was doing everything she could to keep calm and not rip the heads off of everyone in class.

"It's okay, Ali," I whispered, knowing she heard me.

I saw her blink and glance at me, her eyes smoldering. I smiled reassuringly at her before she turned to finish speaking with the teacher. I wasn't paying attention to what he or anyone else was saying, I was only watching Alice. She nodded briskly before turning on her heel and starting towards the door.

As she did, though, she turned and glared at Mike. And when I say glare, I mean a ten-times-scarier-then-Rosalie death glare. Mike shrank back into his seat as her eyes bored into him before lightening up as she exited the room. Mike looked petrified for about two minutes, blinking profusely, but neither speaking nor moving.

I nearly laughed, but I managed to keep myself from doing it as I focused my attention on the assignment. Four problems down, five more to go. Then I was done, and then Mike could go back to his desk and I'd be free from him.

Eventually Mike sat up and mumbled something to himself. I didn't catch it because I wasn't paying attention, though I swore it was an insult. Still, I paid him no mind as I finished another problem on the sheet.

"What is her deal?" he muttered, more to himself then to me.

I scoffed. "Like you don't know."

"What? All I did was talk to you," he drawled.

I shook my head at him. "Talk? Dude, you fucking _groped_ me!"

"Shh! Not so loud," he begged. Oh hell no.

"And why not? Why shouldn't I talk shit about you? Look at what your little _girlfriend_ is doing with her rumors," I growled.

Mike blinked and stared at me queerly. "Girlfriend? What girlfriend?"

Was he seriously that dense?

"That Jess bitch you were hanging around with," I replied.

Mike groaned and rubbed his forehead with his good hand. "Jessica Stanley is _not_ my girlfriend. I don't care what she says or what anyone else says. She's not my type."

"I wonder why…" I muttered sarcastically.

He gave me a once over and smiled that creepy-ass smile. "She doesn't have the full package in my opinion. She's cute, but she's way too damn annoying. And not big enough, if you know what I mean." He winked at me as he finished. I almost gagged.

I turned away from him and continued on the problems. Screw you, you creepy, perverted jackass. I want nothing more to do with you. For the rest of the class, I tried very hard to ignore Mike's existence. Yeah. Impossible.

"So why'd the Cullens adopt you?" he asked.

I gripped the pencil tightly with one hand and clenched my other hand tightly under the table.

"Why does it matter?" I asked. "What do you care?"

He scowled. "I don't. I was just curious. It just seems a little weird is all."

"How so?" I growled, not really caring. I hoped he got the hint. Nope.

"The Cullens are freaks," he responded. "I mean, yeah Alice is hot, but she's a freak too. I only wanted to ask her out for the hell of it. I can't see why anyone would want to be with-"

He didn't get a chance to finish because my hand was around his throat in an instant, crushing down on it. A deep, ferocious growl rumbled from my chest, loud enough for only us to hear since everyone else was chattering away. Mike's eyes widened as I tightened my grip, baring my teeth venomously at him.

"You will _never_ speak of her again," I seethed. "If you so much as say _one_ more word about her or _any_ of my family, I will rip your _fucking_ head off." Each word was quiet, but full of rage and threat. Mike trembled under my wrathful gaze. "Do you understand?"

He nodded furiously, quivering as he did. I released my grip and returned my hand to my side.

Mike coughed quietly. I noticed several students watching with gaping eyes. Shit. They didn't move or say anything, though, they just gawked. I glared at them, trying my best to threaten them into submission. It seemed to work since they stopped staring and went back to work, though they were whispering furiously amongst themselves.

I licked my lips and went back to work.

"Shit, what is your deal?" Mike hissed when he could breathe again. "Do all you Cullen girls have anger management issues or some shit?"

I was about to reply when I actually stopped myself and thought of his words.

My temper had been pretty bad lately. I mean, I never used to be the violent type, yet all of a sudden here I was choking someone in the middle of class. Of course, only a few people saw since everyone else was huddled together in their own little groups, but still.

"I don't know…" I murmured, staring down at my desk.

Mike harrumphed and rubbed his neck. "Whatever."

I chose to ignore him as I finished the last problem on the worksheet. I slid it over to Mike.

"Here, since I did all the work, you can go give it to the teacher."

Mike scowled. "Why should I?"

"Because I'll break your other arm if you don't," I threatened, narrowing my eyes at him.

Mike gulped and snatched the paper before shuffling up to the front desk. I snickered. That was kind of fun…

Whoa there, girl! Bad! What the hell is wrong with me? Threatening is not my style. Damn it, I really wish I knew what was going on with me. This is really starting to get on my nerves. Ugh. I should've just let Carlisle take the blood test already. Then maybe I'd know for certain what was going on.

I groaned. I needed to get my mind off of things. I got an idea, then and reached into my pocket to pull my new cell phone out. I figured Alice would see this ahead of time and I hoped that she would be able to text me.

No sooner had I turned my phone on did it make a quit rumbling noise. I opened it and saw that I already had a text message. From Alice, of course.

_It took you long enough!_

I smirked and texted her back. This was my first time texting, but it wasn't hard since I'd seen it before. Plus, it's just typing. How hard can it be?

_Sorry, my mind was elsewhere._

It didn't take long for me to get a response. I could feel Mike's eyes on me, but I chose to ignore him. He didn't matter to me right now.

_Newton isn't bothering you, is he? I swear if he is…_

_He was, but I shut him up. Don't worry about him. I'll punch him if he tries anything._

I could see Mike trying to peer over my shoulder, as if he knew I was talking about him. I turned more to the side so he couldn't see, which made him grumble.

_He'd better leave you alone or else._

I could almost imagine her growling as she wrote that, which made me giggle. I was about to text her back when the bell rang. I was a little surprised by that, but then again, I hadn't been paying much attention. I grabbed my bag and walked off, breezing past everyone as I exited the class.

"Hey, Bella, wait up!" Eric called.

I stopped momentarily as he caught up to me. "What?" I asked, confused.

"Oh, I just wanted to walk with you is all. Is that okay?"

I worried about Alice seeing this and becoming jealous. But I couldn't just say no.

"Um, sure," I replied.

He smiled as we sauntered to our next class. We met Angela along the way, who silently joined us as we walked into class. We all talked amongst each other for a few minutes, mostly about our classes. Eric brought up La Push again, which Angela said was a nice place to go. I told them I needed time to think about it.

In reality, I wanted to go, because it would be nice to make friends. But I didn't like not having Alice with me. And because it would be sunny, she'd be forced to stay near the house. Plus, I recalled the odd way Rosalie had talked about Leah back at the mall. There was something going on there that they knew and I didn't. I didn't like it, so I figured I would ask about it. Maybe at lunch I would ask Alice.

Class started then and droned on for the hour. I hardly paid attention, more immersed in my own thoughts. I couldn't stop thinking about what was going on with me. There was so much going on and none of it made any sense to me.

Everything…

It all seemed vampiric. But why? Why was I acting like a damn vampire? That just wasn't normal. Then again, I guess I'm far from normal, especially since my _soulmate _happens to be a vampire. I just don't get it though. And it's scaring me.

What if I snap? What if I do something dangerous? What if I hurt someone severely? I almost broke Mike's neck. I mean, he may be a jerk, but even he doesn't deserve that. That worried me. I didn't want to hurt anyone that didn't truly deserve it. I didn't want to…to kill them.

I cringed when I thought of that; killing someone because of all the weird shit going on with my mind and my emotions. I shuddered quietly, trying to push those thoughts out of my head. They just kept coming back, though. What is wrong with me?

"Are you feeling okay, Bella?" Angela asked quietly.

"I…what? Oh, yeah, I'm fine. Why?"

She frowned and looked at me concernedly. "You're shaking, Bella."

I was? I hadn't even noticed. I glanced down and sure enough, my hands were trembling. I felt a little lightheaded too.

"I think I need to go to the bathroom…" I grunted.

I stood and moved over the teacher's desk and asked if I could be excused for the bathroom. I got an 'okay' and a wave, so I speed walked out of the room. I was feeling dizzy again, but I didn't think I was in any danger of fainting. If I was, Alice would likely be there in seconds anyways.

I made my way into the bathroom, not caring if anyone was in there, and turned the water on before splashing my face with it. I repeated it again and again and again until my face was drenched. I just…I felt so weird. I felt like I was burning up, but it was a weird burn. And then, no sooner after it had started did it stop. The burning was gone. My body didn't tremble anymore. I blinked several times to adjust my sight as I wiped my face up.

What the hell. What is going _on_ with me?

Deep breaths, Bella. Deep breaths. Calm yourself.

"Whoo…" I breathed.

Once I had gathered myself, I turned on my heel and left the bathroom. Thankfully I didn't have a run in with that bitch this time. The rest of class went by quickly. Both Eric and Angela asked if I was okay, to which I said I was fine. I wasn't, but they didn't need to worry about. I had a feeling Alice would probably be worried enough as it is.

Then something happened.

There were ten minutes left before the bell would ring and I would be able to leave and see my family. I hated that long wait because it felt like an eternity. As I sat slumped over, playing with my pencil, a familiar scent hit my nostrils.

Blood.

I grimaced and looked around, confused and worried in the same. That's when I saw a student in the back lifting off a bandage. A small drop of blood fell from the covered wound, meaning that it had most likely been recent. The smell of blood pummeled my nose as it had in the past, strengthening as the seconds ticked by. I was becoming nervous as the scent became stronger.

The worst part? It was starting to smell good.

I couldn't take it anymore and grabbed my things together before practically sprinting over to the teacher. Mrs. Nova was reading over some notes at her desk, oblivious to the problems ailing me.

"Mrs. Nova, I'd like to be excused," I whispered.

She furrowed her brow and scowled at me. "And why is that, Mrs.…?"

She didn't know my name? Stupid cow…

"Bella Cullen," I murmured.

Her eyes widened partially before she sighed. "Very well, you may go, Mrs. Cullen."

I smiled at that and, after a brisk wave to Eric and Angela, booked it out of the room. The smell of blood was still in my nose as I tried to take my mind off it, closing my eyes and walking slow while trying to distract myself.

_Don't think of blood, don't think of blood, don't think of blood_. I chanted to myself over and over again. Damn it, why is this so difficult?

It seems that, being me, it is rather impossible not to cause some sort of problem each day. Because once again, I failed to pay attention to what was in front of me and ended up running into someone. Again. Oh, how I loathe my luck sometimes. At least I didn't fall this time, though whoever I ran into did.

I blinked and looked down to see it was Jessica Stanley; the girl who Mike claimed_ wasn't _his girlfriend.

"You…" she seethed, glaring at me as she stood and dusted herself off.

"Sorry," I mumbled half-heartedly. As if I really cared.

I tried to walk off, but she stood in front of me, hands on her hips. I was beginning to grow a bit more irritated by her. I didn't need this. I needed to get to the cafeteria and stop thinking for a little while. This skirt wearing bimbo was making it hard to do.

"Where the hell do you think you're going, dyke?" she hissed.

Ooh, she's insulting my orientation. _Scary_.

I rolled my eyes at her blatant insult. "Nowhere _you_ need to know."

"Yeah, I bet you and that freak are gonna go make out or some shit like that," she scoffed.

Oh hell no.

"Do _not_ call her that," I growled, taking a step forward. One thing I definitely had over this chick was height. My 5'6 beats her 5'1 any day of the week.

Jessica looked a little frightened, but it dissipated into an angry scowl. She jabbed her finger in my face, practically poking me. Not quite, but it was enough to make me want to break her finger. Or just rip it off, whichever works.

"Your freaky bitch hurt my Mikey!" she shouted, wagging her finger around like I was some child. "You'd better get her to apologize or else!"

I couldn't stop myself from flat out laughing at her. What? What was she going to do about it?

"Stop laughing!" she seethed.

I quelled my laughter for a moment and shook my head. "What are _you_ gonna do about it?" I asked, mirroring my thoughts. I didn't like being like this, but with someone like Jessica, I'd make an exception.

She clearly didn't have a response for that as she gritted her teeth. I tried again to walk off, but again she stopped me. She even_ pushed_ me back.

"Make her apologize or I go to the principal. In fact, I might as well. Your kind shouldn't be allowed here," she grumbled.

I narrowed my eyes. "_Our _kind? What the hell is that supposed to mean?"

She snorted. "What do _you _think? I can't, like, believe Alice Cullen is a _lesbo_. I mean, I know she's a freak, but I never expected her to be gay, too." Her nose crinkled in disgust. "Ew! All those times I had PE with her. Ugh, that is _so_ revolting!"

I twitched. Was she insinuating that Alice would find her attractive? Yeah, right. Hell no. My hands were now balled into fists, clenching them tightly as I tried to erase that thought. It was disgusting to think. Alice is _mine_.

"As if she would ever look at some skank like you," I growled.

Jessica glared at me. "I happen to be hotter then _you_, thank you very much."

Oh, Lord. Here we go with this again. The 'I'm-prettier-then-you-are' crap. _Please_. I gave her a once over and found that there was little appeal to her appearance, whatsoever. Then again, I only had eyes for Alice, so I might be a bit biased, but still.

"Ew, don't look at me like that!" she shrieked. "God, why are all of you Cullens such fucking _freaks_?"

I twitched again. She was _pissing_ me off now. No one makes fun of my family, damn it!

"Stop calling my family that!" I snarled. My fists were clenched so tightly, I felt like I could crush my own fingers if I wasn't careful.

"Why? What are you gonna do, make out with your little bitch girlfriend?" she mocked.

I was trembling now. My body felt…hot. I felt that similar flash of pain in my body. My right arm especially felt pained. It was tingling too.

"Stop it…" I warned.

Jessica saw that she was pushing me and smirked. "Dyke, dyke, dyke!" she sang mockingly.

That did it.

I was seeing red. Literally.

I felt so angry, so fucking _furious_. It was a seething rage.

How _dare_ she insult my family? My coven? My Alice?

No. I won't _let_ her.

Everything just seemed to blur. I couldn't tell what was going on anymore. I could feel my body moving, my mouth opening, but I didn't see. It was all too fast.

But then I tasted something. Blood. In my mouth.

Then an ear piercing scream filled my ears as everything seemed to come back to me. I jumped back and saw Jessica on the floor, clutching her neck and writhing around, screaming.

The blood. It was hers. I had her blood in my mouth.

What…

I clamped my hands over my mouth and almost gasped. In the right side of her neck was a gash, bleeding profusely.

I bit her. I fucking bit her.

I could feel and taste her warm blood in mouth. It tasted of salt and rust and…flavor…

No. No, no, no! This is NOT happening!

Shit! Shit, shit, shit, shit.

I spun around and ran. I just ran. I ignored the bell, ignored the students starting to exit their classes. I forgot my stuff. I forgot Jessica. I just ran.

I dashed into the bathroom, barged into a stall and before I knew it, I wasn't just spitting out the blood in my mouth. I sat there, spewing out what I'd eaten earlier, my mind pulsating with everything and anything at once. It hurt.

I could feel tears welling in the back of my eyes as I continued vomiting until I'd gotten everything out. I closed my eyes and flushed before sitting back, the tears pouring down my face full force.

What had I just done?

_I bit someone. I had actually bitten someone and had their blood in my mouth._

Oh God. Oh God, oh God, oh God…

"Bella?"

Was I hearing my name? I don't know. I'm so confused. So scared…

"Bella!"

I felt cool hands on my shoulders. I looked up through my watery eyes to see Alice staring down at me, concern smoldering from her eyes.

"Alice…" I whimpered.

In one motion I was in her arms, sobbing uncontrollably into her chest.

"It's okay," she soothed, holding me close and rubbing my back. "I'm here."

I sobbed and sobbed and sobbed.

Alice just sat there, rocking me back and forth, holding me tenderly and lovingly.

"Alice," I choked out.

"Shh," she whispered, stroking my head. "Don't speak, love."

I pulled myself away and looked up at her. She looked pained and sorrowful, wanting nothing more than to comfort me and make the hurt go away.

"Alice…" She looked into my eyes. "What's happening to me?"

Her face tensed for a moment. "I don't know," she admitted ashamedly.

She didn't know. I didn't know.

Carlisle.

"Carlisle," I whispered.

She nodded and scooped me up into her arms. I buried my face into her shoulder, trying to breathe in her scent to ease myself. I felt her moving rather briskly. I could hear voices; the whispers and murmurs of students. I blocked them out. I didn't want to hear their whispers. I was sick of hearing their whispers.

"Alice? What's going on?" That voice. Jasper's.

"I can't explain it now," she replied quickly. "I need to take Bella home. Now. I'm sorry, but I need you and the others to deal with what's happened. Can you do that for me?"

"Of course, we'll handle it," he responded. "Be well, Bella."

Then he was gone. No. Then we were gone. I could feel Alice moving quickly, holding me with just her left arm. Her right was in her pocket, pulling out her cell phone. She dialed it and spoke quickly and quietly into it, too fast for me to hear.

"Bella honey, I called Carlisle. He'll meet us at the house. It's okay," she soothed, wrapping her other arm back around me. "Hold on to me, love. We'll be there soon."

I nodded against her and clung tightly to her body as she ran at full speed, away from the school to our house. To Carlisle. To finding out what was wrong with me.

**A/N: Dude.**

**So you impatient people finally get your answers in the next chapter. Bella finds out at last too. I wanted to build it up to this point, which I did.**

**I realize that you all know what the deal is, yes. It is rather obvious. And if it isn't, it becomes obvious in the next chapter. :)**

**Thank you to all of my wonderful readers and reviewers.**


	29. Venom

**Disclaimer: Twilight belongs to Meyer. I take no credit for it or any of its characters. Amara belongs to me, as do any other OCs.**

**Venom**

Trees whipped past as Alice ran, the wind blowing my hair. I had my face buried into her chest, slowly inhaling and exhaling her sweet smell. That, and her arms being around me, were the only things keeping me from losing my mind.

Everything that had just happened flashed in front of my eyes, making me cringe. I felt hot tears dripping onto Alice's shirt as I clung into her as tightly as my arms could manage. Alice's grip around me tightened as her body tensed. I could tell she didn't like that I was crying. Her maternal instincts were likely telling her to comfort me, which she was trying to do.

We needed Carlisle though.

"We'll be there soon," Alice said. Her voice was strained. I could practically feel the agony emanating from her. It made me cry harder because I was causing her pain too.

"I'm sorry," I murmured into her shoulder.

She looked down at me placidly and shook her head. "You have nothing to be sorry for, Bella."

"But I…I nearly killed her. And I'm hurting you."

She shook her head again. "Stop it. You're not hurting me. I'm just worried about you. And as far as that bitch goes, don't worry about her. The others will take care of her. Don't worry, Bella, I promise I'll make sure nothing bad happens. I just want _you_ to be okay."

Another minute passed as Alice's speed began to slow down. I felt her jump into the air once or twice, leaping over rocks I think. I didn't know for certain, I was just aiming to focus on her. Breath in, breath out. That was my mindset right now. Then her speed slowed down even more so. Where we home? Moments later, I heard her open and close a door. Yes. We were home.

"Alice, honey, what happened?" Esme asked. I could feel her nearby.

"It's complicated, Esme. I'll tell you shortly," she replied.

I tore myself away from her chest and peered over her shoulder. Esme's eyes burned with love and worry as she looked at me, noticing my tear stained face and reddened eyes.

"Oh honey…" she murmured, coming over and stroking my head.

"Carlisle?" Alice called.

"I'm here Alice," Carlisle replied, appearing instantly next to Esme. His eyes held the same concern as hers did as he looked at me sympathetically. "Would you like to move this upstairs?"

Alice glanced at me before nodding. "Yes, I want her to be comfortable."

In seconds, we were all in Carlisle's office. The bed was still there too, oddly enough. Alice gently sat me down on the bed, but I didn't want to let her go. She kissed my shoulder and pulled me back into her arms as she sat down on the bed and sat me down on her lip. I rested my head on her other shoulder and clutched her tightly.

"I'm sorry," I whimpered. "I'm sorry…"

Alice rubbed my back with both hands. "Shh, don't apologize. It's not your fault, love."

"What happened?" Carlisle asked softly.

Alice bit her lip and looked at me tenderly, silently asking for permission to tell. I nodded.

"Bella…she had an accident. I only caught sight of it briefly, but she…well, she bit one of the students enough to draw blood."

Carlisle nodded thoughtfully while Esme quietly gasped.

"Bella, would you tell us what happened?" Carlisle asked.

He made it clear I didn't have to, but I knew that I would eventually. I looked at Alice, who squeezed one of my hands for support. I smiled a little weakly at her before turning to face them. Alice helped turn me, but kept me in her arms.

I sighed. "This girl, Jessica, she's a, well, you know, a bitch and all. I ran into her by mistake in the hallway and she started talking bad about me and Alice and the others. I tried to walk off, but she didn't let me. She kept pushing me and it really upset me. Then everything just sort of blurred and before I knew it, she was on the floor screaming with a gash in her neck and I…I…I had her blood in my mouth. I ran to the bathroom to spit it out and that's when Alice came."

I tried not to cry anymore while I admitted this, but I couldn't help letting a few tears fall. Esme came over and embraced me after I'd finished while Carlisle seemed to be lost in thought.

"Carlisle…? I think I'll take that blood test," I murmured once Esme let me go. Or rather, once I let go of her.

He nodded and blurred over to his desk, pulling out a needle. My eyes bulged at the sight. I didn't like needles. I didn't think any sane person did, though. Then again, I guess needles didn't bother vampires since they would just break on their skin.

"Alice, perhaps you should go hunt," Carlisle suggested.

Alice curled back her upper lip and let out a low growl at her father. "No. I'm staying."

Esme frowned a little, but nodded her head. "I think it best that she stay."

Carlisle pursed his lips for a moment before nodding in understanding. "I don't mean to sound cruel, Alice. I am merely concerned for Bella's welfare and for your control is all. If you wish to stay, then you may. Bella, your arm please?"

I shuddered as I extended my right arm outwards. My whole body was trembling.

"It's okay, Bella," Esme soothed, gently rubbing my head.

I felt Alice tense up behind me. I looked up to see her eyes were dark as they watched the needle in her father's hand warily.

"I'm not going to harm her, Alice," Carlisle stated softly.

She clenched her jaw, but made no remarks or movements otherwise.

"Are you ready, Bella?" he asked. I nodded briskly.

He slowly started moving the needle towards my arm. I bit my lip and closed my eyes. I felt Alice press her lips to my neck, then a quick prick, and then a throat clearing. I opened my eyes to see the needle was full of my blood. Esme's wrapped the area where the needle had gone into my skin. I was a little surprised that I had hardly felt it.

"That's it?" I asked, astonished.

He smiled and nodded. "Yes. I'll need to run some diagnostics on it. The tests will be done in about thirty minutes. Please feel free to rest or eat if you need to."

I nodded as Alice picked me up and lifted me off the bed before setting me back down. Her golden eyes were full of worry as she pressed her forehead against mine, staring into my eyes.

"Are you feeling okay?" she asked.

"Not really," I admitted. "But I'm feeling a little bit better. I could use some water or something, though. You know, to wash out the taste from my mouth."

Ugh. The taste of blood. I'd tried to ignore it, which worked out well up until this point. I could still taste it, though. It was lingering on my tongue and it was damn right disgusting. I felt a little nauseated, but since I'd already thrown up, there wasn't anything left.

Esme appeared with a glass of water in her hands, which she handed to me. I thanked her, to which she smiled at, before I drank it down. I hadn't realized how thirsty I'd been until now, too. How odd. It did help alleviate the taste of rust and salt in my mouth, but it still lingered. Maybe some food would help.

"Esme, could you make Bella something to eat?" Alice asked, not taking her eyes off of me. "I'm going to take her to my room."

"Of course," Esme replied, smiling before disappearing.

Alice wrapped an arm around me and led me into her room before gently pushing me onto her bed. She then sat down on my lap and wrapped both arms around my back, pulling me into her. I mimicked the notion and hugged her into me, resting my head beneath her chin, which she rested on the top of my head. We sat that way for a while, just enjoying each other's presence. She sighed rather softly and kissed the top of my head as I nuzzled into her.

"Do you know what's wrong?" I asked.

"No," she admitted. "I wish I did. I mean, I think I might, but I'm not sure." Alice shook her head and sighed. "Why didn't I see this before? How could I have not noticed that you were acting oddly? Damn it."

"I should've said something earlier. I'm sorry."

"Bella, stop apologizing. You don't have to apologize. You didn't know either. I do wish you would've told me, but I should've noticed it too. I can't believe I was so oblivious. I wonder if the others realized it…"

"Maybe Edward knew?" I offered.

She narrowed her eyes and growled. "I swear to God if he did and he didn't tell me…"

I bit my lip. "Maybe he wasn't certain either, Alice. Maybe he didn't want to worry you or me or anyone else."

She didn't respond to that. Obviously, I wondered if Edward did know. If anything, he and Jasper would be the ones to notice with their gifts. While Jasper didn't seem to notice, Edward did. I think he did know, or at least he had an idea of what was going on inside of my head. Why hadn't he said anything, though? I'd have to ask him after he returned from school.

Oh. Shit. School.

What was going to happen now? Would I be expelled? Would the Cullens have to move again because of me? Oh God.

"Bella, why are you worrying?" Alice asked.

"I just…"

"Please stop worrying," she begged, cupping my cheeks. "You have no reason to be worried, I _promise_ you. I will take care of everything, okay?"

I nodded. "Okay, Alice. I'll try and stop."

"Thank you," she said, smiling a little. "Esme is bringing you some food."

A second later, Esme walked in carrying a plate with a sandwich on it. It was turkey with cheese and mayo. Simple, yet still good.

"Thanks Esme."

"You're welcome dear," she replied as she handed me the plate and left the room.

I was about to take a bite when Alice leaned down and breathed on my sandwich, just like she'd done with my cake that one time. I licked my lips as I watched her breath on it, knowing I would be getting a super flavor boost that would for sure eliminate the awful taste in my mouth. Once Alice leaned away, she smiled a little as I grabbed the sandwich and took a bite.

I moaned as I chewed on my first bite. So. Damn. _Good_.

I swallowed and took another bite. I didn't understand how she did it, but I didn't care. This was the greatest sandwich I'd ever eaten. Combining Esme's wonderful cooking—it was a sandwich, yes, but that woman could make a sandwich, let me say—with Alice's flavor empowering breath and my God. All I could taste was Alice's chocolate, strawberry and vanilla breath, which masked the other flavors with their rich intensity.

By the time I'd finished the sandwich, I'd completely forgotten everything that had happened in the last hour. The awful taste was gone now, replaced by the heavenly taste of Alice. I'd have to remember that later on. It definitely helped out.

Alice smiled as she pressed her forehead against mine. I moved my lips forward and captured hers, which she returned rather happily. She gently pushed me down onto her bed and curled into me as her lips continued moving against mine. I moaned again, reveling in the taste and smoothness coupled together with the tingling sensations that kissing Alice always gave me.

The sound of a throat clearing caused her to stop and sit up, pulling me with her. Carlisle was standing in the doorway, a slight amused look on his face that became a serious one when we met his eyes.

"I have the results," he announced. "Please, come into my office."

We both jumped off the bed at the same time and followed after Carlisle as he walked into his office. I was amazed that the bed was already gone, in its place a chair for me. I sat down while Alice stood next to me, one hand resting on my shoulder. Esme appeared in the room as well, curiosity adorning her beautiful features.

Carlisle held something in his hands, which he studied for a moment before setting it down and turning to face us. I couldn't read his eyes. There was surprise, intrigue and something that I couldn't quite put my finger on as he appraised me.

"Well, Bella, you've likely noticed that there is a pattern to what you've been experiencing lately. Edward has informed me of your changing thought process, which he asked that I not reveal to you. He didn't do so to be cruel, he did it more out of personal concern. I noticed your odd behavior before our visit to Mr. Jenks. It was only then that I knew there was something amiss with you. I dismissed it at first, but the more I heard and saw, the more concerned I became. I am glad that you allowed me the chance to take a sample of your blood, because it has indeed confirmed my initial suspicions."

"What is it? What's happening to me?" I asked.

He paused for a moment before responding. "You're changing into a vampire."

I gaped, Esme quietly gasped and Alice's eyes nearly bulged out of their sockets.

"W-what?"

He didn't just say…

Did he?

Carlisle sighed. "You are changing, Bella, into one of us."

"How is that possible?" Alice asked before I could even think.

I was turning into a vampire? What the fuck?

"Think, Alice. Do you remember how many times she's been bitten?"

Alice thought about it before the realization hit her. "Oh my God…"

I, on the other hand, was still confused.

"Wait, wait, wait. I'm turning into a _vampire_? Are you serious?" He nodded. "What the hell?"

"Allow me to explain," Carlisle offered.

"That'd be nice," I muttered. I couldn't wrap my head around this. It didn't make any sense. It just…it wasn't possible. How the hell was I changing? I thought that I had to have a shitload of venom inside of me or something like that. What the hell. Seriously.

"You've been bitten numerous times, correct?" I nodded. "And each time, the venom was sucked from your system, correct?" I nodded again. "I see. That is…interesting. I won't lie to you Bella; I find it amazing that you are still alive after all you've been through. After the number of times you've been bitten, you should be either dead or already changed, yet you are still a human, alive and well for the most part. I must admit, I am surprised that it took this long for your body to begin reacting the way it has."

"What do you mean?" I asked confusedly.

"What I'm saying is that when you were bitten and the venom sucked out, not all of the venom was removed. Some of it remained. It was such a small amount; I'm guessing that had no effect on your body whatsoever. However, each proceeding time you were bitten, more venom was added to that small amount. Now the amount inside of you is enough to begin the changing process. The problem is, it's delayed. Your change is slow for reasons I don't understand myself, but I do have a theory on it."

He stopped for a moment, making sure I was following him. I was for the most part, though I was still confused and shocked out of my mind.

"I believe that, because there was such a minimal amount of venom in your system, your body was able to form immunity to it. That is why you never felt the burning sensation that venom naturally causes, nor why you noticed any sort of change. As more venom was added, though, it slowly started to override the immunity that your body created until the immunity was overridden completely. It merely took this long for the overriding to take place. That is why you have been experiencing all of these things, Bella. You are changing, but at a decelerated rate."

I blinked several times. "I'm becoming a vampire?"

"Yes," he replied.

I was stunned and lost my voice. Alice, on the other hand, spoke up.

"Is there anything you can do to stop it?" Alice asked.

Carlisle shook his head. "I'm afraid not, Alice. Bella's change cannot be stopped. The venom is too far into her system now to be drained. Attempting to do so would only cause her further pain and suffering. I would suggest speeding the transformation up, but I'm uncertain how that would affect Bella. Also, while I know this isn't the best thing to say, I am rather curious to see how this progresses," he admitted. He looked rather ashamed of himself as he said this.

Alice hissed. "You are _not_ using her like that!"

"That's not what he means, dear," Esme defended. "He means he wishes to see how this situation evolves. I can't lie, I'm curious myself. But it is up to Bella whether or not she'll allow us those privileges. Bella?"

I was speechless. I mean…just, fuck.

I'm turning into a vampire. Me, a fucking _vampire_!

That's insane. That's…that's…

"Cool," I breathed. Three pairs of golden eyes all looked at me with surprise.

I thought about it. If I was going to become a vampire, that meant several things.

First of all, I'd finally fit in with my family perfectly. I'd be the same as them in every sense. I'd be just as strong, as fast, as durable, as attractive. I wouldn't have to worry about causing them pain with my blood or have to avoid trying to bleed anymore. I could be… natural around them.

Secondly, I'd be immortal. Immortal. No growing old. No wrinkles or aging bones or any of that shit that people experience when they aged. No hair graying or falling out, none of that. I would never get any older. I'd be in the same body, the same age, for eternity. That in itself sounded rather appealing to me, truth be told. I'd always hated the idea of getting older.

The third thing, and probably the best of them all: I'd be with Alice. Forever.

The more I thought about it, the better it sounded to me. I mean, I'd thought about it in the past, but I'd always pushed the thoughts away because they seemed insane. But in all seriousness, how else would I be Alice's soulmate if I wasn't changed into a vampire to be with her?

"Bella…" Alice's voice was quiet as she touched my shoulder. I looked into her eyes, which seemed to smolder with uncertainty. "You're okay with this? You're really okay with knowing that you'll be turning into a vampire and that nothing can stop it?"

I frowned and thought on it some more. I turned to look at Carlisle. "How long do I have?"

He mulled it over in his head. "In all honesty, I don't know. Judging by the amount of venom that was in your blood, it won't be any time soon. There isn't a definitive way for me to tell, truthfully, but I would probably say that you have at least a full year, if not more so, before the change is complete. I don't know why it is taking so long for the venom to move through your body, but it gives you time, if anything."

I bit my lip and absorbed everything he'd said. Something didn't quite make sense to me, though. If I wasn't fully changed yet, then why was I acting this way? Experiencing all these emotions and urges that made no sense to me?

"Carlisle, can I ask a question?"

"Certainly," he said, looking at me intently.

"Why am I acting this way if I'm not changed yet? The jealousy, the anger, the bloodlust…shouldn't that all be happening when I change or something?"

"I think I might know why," Esme stated softly. "I believe that the reason you are experiencing these things, Bella, is because you are mated to Alice. Normally, when two vampires become mates, they begin to experience these emotions and urges right away. The fact that you are a human and that you are slowly changing merely furthers your maternal connection to Alice. That is why you feel the need to protect her in any way possible. I do not know why you are experiencing bloodlust, though. Carlisle, do you have an idea?"

Carlisle shook his head sadly. "I'm sorry, but I don't. I can only imagine that it is a side effect caused by the venom slowly changing you. It seems that it is temporary whenever it surfaces, though. Am I right?"

"Y-yeah, it is. First it smells good, but then it starts to make me sick not too long after. Only today, it was…well, it tasted really good for a moment before I realized what I'd done and I had to throw it back up," I admitted, rubbing the back of my neck.

Alice hadn't spoken a word for a while. She'd been staring off into the distance as if she were in a trance. I was worried about her, so I squeezed one of her hands. That seemed to snap her out of her trance like state. She turned to look at me, a placid, tender look in her eyes, and squeezed my hand back before speaking.

"You're sure you're okay with this?" she asked.

I nodded. "How else would I be able to be with you for all eternity?"

Her face softened as she leaned in to capture my lips, hesitating only slightly.

"You won't be able to do a lot of things anymore," she mused.

I snorted. "Like what? Eat, sleep, and fall on my ass all the time? Sorry, Ali, but I can do without all those things, I think."

I saw a flash of humor in her golden eyes as she took that in. A small smile graced her lips, which made me smile in return.

"That is true. It would be nice to not have to worry about you falling and hurting yourself all the time," she teased. Her face grew serious, though. "But there are other things you won't be able to enjoy, Bella. Any human food you like now will taste like dirt to you, for one thing. Plus there is the whole newborn phase, which won't be easy for you to deal with. Unless…" She looked at Carlisle. "Do you think what's she's going through now will help her newborn phase at all?"

"I'm not certain, Alice. It might, but there's no way to tell right now," he replied.

Her brows knit together in a frown as she heard this, but after a moment she sighed and rested her head atop mine. Everyone was silent for a few minutes, letting what was learned soak in. I still couldn't believe that I was going to be a vampire. I felt terrified and excited in the same, which actually kind of worried me. Still, if it couldn't be stopped, what else could I do?

Alice suddenly clasped her hands together, making a loud clapping noise that echoed throughout the house. I saw a look of excitement in her eyes, which confused me.

"That settles it, then," she said, smiling. "If you're going to be changing, then I'm going to make sure the rest of your human life is as good as can be."

I rolled my eyes. "It already is, Alice. I have everything I need right here. Well, almost everything, since the others aren't back yet."

"They'll be back in two minutes and forty seven seconds. And that's not what I mean, Bella. I want you to enjoy everything that life has to offer you. I want us to experience all of the things that humans enjoy so that you can get the full experience for yourself. I also intend to take photos of everything as well, so we can look back on all your human memories when the time comes. Do you understand?" she asked.

"Yes ma'am."

She scowled and stuck her tongue out at me. "Don't call me ma'am!"

I giggled and rested my head against her chest. Carlisle and Esme both smiled, at each other and at us. I could see the delight in their eyes, clearly both pleased that I was happy with what was inevitably going to happen to me. It still didn't fully hit me yet, I guess, that I was going to be a _vampire_ at some point in the future. It was all so…overwhelming, to say the least.

"Is there anything I can do about the problems I've been having, though?" I asked when I thought about it.

"You just need some time to adjust to it," Esme said. "It will be hard for a while, but it'll get better as time goes on."

"I would like to, at some point in the future, have a session to look into your problems involving blood, Bella. I don't want you to have to go through what occurred today and I certainly don't want any accidents to happen," Carlisle explained.

"Alright, that sounds fine," I murmured.

He smiled. "Good. I'm glad you're taking this in stride, Bella."

"I don't think it's fully hit me yet," I admitted, running a hand through my hair. "I'm a little overwhelmed to be finding this out. And a bit scared, too."

Alice leaned down so we were eye level and cupped my cheeks. "I'll help you every step of the way, I promise."

"We all will," Esme added.

I smiled appreciatively at all of them. "Thank you."

Alice pressed her lips to mine, smiling against them as she kissed me. I gladly kissed back. I swear, Alice's lips could cure just about anything in the world. Of course, the only person who would ever taste them was me. I pulled her closer to me as she deepened the kiss, keeping the slow, passionate pace that I loved. Eventually she pulled away, though she did so slowly and reluctantly. I sighed, but otherwise didn't complain.

"The others are here," she announced, crinkling her nose.

Esme beamed, happy to see her other children again and rushed downstairs. Carlisle chuckled softly and followed after her, leaving just Alice and I. We took a moment just to stare into one another's eyes, our love for each other pouring out of them. Then I heard the door open the voices as our siblings arrived.

She stood up and offered me her left hand. "Would you like an escort downstairs, darlin'?"

I laughed and happily accepted her hand. She grinned and scooped me into her arms before dashing downstairs and setting me down on the couch, plopping right next to me. Edward was the first in, followed by Emmett, Jasper, Amara and lastly Rosalie. Emmett looked amused, Rosalie looked bored, Jasper looked disgruntled and both Edward and Amara looked curious.

There was an awkward silence as they exchanged silent greeting with Esme and Carlisle before they all seated themselves in the furniture surrounding us. Edward sat in the reclining chair nearest to the television, Rosalie and Emmett sat next to us and Jasper and Amara both sat in the remaining two chairs. They all looked at me, of course, but with placid eyes. Even Rosalie, though she was scowling as she usually did.

"Well then…" Carlisle began. "I suppose you are all wondering what has happened, as we are all curious as to what occurred at school."

"It's been taken care of," Edward replied. He furrowed his brow for a moment before shock came across his face. Then confusion, then intrigue, then sorrow, then shock again. That was the last emotion and the one that remained as he appraised me. "I see. That's would explain your erratic thought process as of late."

The others all looked confused.

"What's going on now?" Amara asked.

"Seriously, don't keep it to yourself," Emmett snorted.

Edward pursed his lips for a moment before sighing. "Bella's changing into a vampire."

They all gasped in unison.

"But how…?" Emmett began.

"Each time she was bitten, some of the venom remained in her system. All of that venom is now beginning to change, but at a much slower rate," Esme explained.

"Huh," was Emmett's response.

"Interesting," Jasper mused. "That would explain why your emotions have been all over the place lately."

"I've never heard of this happening before," Edward stated. He looked to Carlisle. "How is it possible? How can she still be a human is there was venom inside of her?" Carlisle was silent for a moment, likely telling Edward what he thought with his mind. Edward frowned, still not quite believing it. "It just doesn't make sense to me."

"Does it need to make sense?" Amara asked. "She's changing, so what? I mean, wasn't she going to be changed eventually anyways?"

"We were going to discuss it at a later point in time, yes," Carlisle admitted.

I was a little surprised at that, truth be told. Had they been talking about this a lot?

"We've discussed it from time to time," Edward answered. "Though I was personally against it initially, the choice wasn't up to me, but to you. It seems now, though, that you don't have a choice either way. I hope that this is what you want, Bella."

"It is," I stated firmly.

"There's no way you can stop it?" Rosalie asked. That surprised me too.

"No," Carlisle replied. "It would be too late now, since the change has already started to take place. There is too much venom in her system already, so it would be impossible to drain it all without causing her death."

Alice tensed next to me. I squeezed her hand to ease her, since I knew that hearing anything relating me dying worried her. Carlisle looked at her apologetically. After a moment she waved it off and squeezed my hand right back.

"What happened to Jessica?" I asked, remembering that painful scene. I cringed at the memory and, despite detesting her, hoped that nothing bad had happened afterwards.

Amara was the one to reply. "The little bitch was in a frenzy after you guys left. She was screaming at the top of her lungs a bunch of nonsense and whining about her neck, which you left a pretty big gash in. The nurse was already there, patching her up by the time we arrived on the scene. There was a massive mob surrounding her as she started to cry and whine about what happened. She said you brutally attacked her and blah, blah, blah. A whole bunch of shit that was all made up, as far as I'm concerned."

"Then what did you do?"

"I handled it," Jasper replied. "I used my gift to fill everyone with doubt and irritation, which caused them all to leave in swarms. Eventually all that was left was Jessica herself. I didn't like it, but I used my gift to persuade her that what she thought she experienced was false. I made her believe that she had been bitten by a wild animal instead and that she merely reopened her injuries when she bumped into you and fell."

"Did it work?" Alice asked, clearly concerned.

Jasper nodded. "Yes. Of course it did. She eventually walked off, feeling confused by what I told her. Edward kept an eye on her the rest of the day and reported that my ploy had worked. Neither she nor anyone else will be bothering you regarding the incident today, Bella. You needn't worry about it, it's all been taken care of."

"We should've just killed her," Rosalie scoffed. "It would have made things easier."

"That would have only made things worse, Rose," Edward disagreed.

"Yeah, Rose, you know that we don't kill humans," Emmett interjected softly.

"Oh? What if they discovered our secret and intended to blab about it? What then?" she countered.

"Must you prattle so much?" Amara asked. "Jasper would handle it, plain and simple."

Rosalie harrumphed and crossed her arms disdainfully. Emmett sighed and started to quietly speak to her, likely trying to calm her down a bit. Edward sighed and shook his head while Carlisle and Esme remained silent, concern on their faces.

"I didn't know you could do that, Jasper," I squeaked.

Jasper ran a hand through his hair. "I don't like bending the will of others, but if it is a necessity, I'll do it. Sometimes I've had to use my gift whenever there was an accidental slip up. Those have thankfully been rare these days, though, since we've all learned from our mistakes and we've all trained ourselves to better combat against situations like those."

"Until now," I grumbled, sighing.

"Bella…" Alice sighed. "Stop it." I was about to argue when she pulled me into her lips, silencing me and causing whatever nonsense I'd attempted to say to evaporate into thin air.

"I think it's cool," Emmett crooned. "You know, that you're changing and all. That means we won't have to worry about hurting you so much anymore. Hell, you'll be stronger then I am for a while once you fully change. That should be fun."

"It's rather unorthodox, I'll admit, but I suppose that Emmett has a point," Edward added.

"There's nothing wrong with being a little unorthodox," Amara grunted. "Or are you forgetting something?"

Edward frowned for a moment, likely at her thoughts, before nodding his head.

"True, there isn't any problem with it. And I wasn't trying to insult you, Amara, so I apologize if that is how I came off. It's just…I've never heard of someone changing this way before, so it's both surprising and confusing to me."

She shrugged. "Well, I think it's good that she's changing this way. It'll be nice once she's a full vampire and I must say it'll be nice to not be the only one who's different in this family. I've never really liked being the odd one out, as you know."

No one chose to respond to that. I was intrigued, though.

"What do you mean, Amara?" I asked.

She gave me an incredulous look before glancing at Alice. "Has Alice not mentioned it yet?"

I looked at Alice too. "Mentioned what?"

Alice bit her lip for a moment before shaking her head. "No, Amara, I haven't told her anything about you yet. I figured that I would let you be the one, since it is your life. I've only told her basic things about you, nothing more."

I blinked and looked between the two of them, lost again.

Amara sighed. "I see."

"Are we gonna have story time again?" Emmett teased.

Rosalie smacked his arm. "We won't be sticking around. Or have you forgotten what you promised?" she asked, quirking an eyebrow.

Emmett groaned. "Aw, come on, Rose. I wanna hear the story first."

"You've already heard it twice, Emmett," Jasper reminded.

He grinned at the pout on his brother's face. I couldn't help giggling as his shoulder slumped and he hung his head in defeat, giving in to whatever it was Rosalie had planned. Rosalie smirked and stood up, pulling Emmett with her. He grumbled and trudged off with her out the door. Everyone, including Alice, tried hard not to laugh at the humorous display.

"He's so whipped," I giggled.

"I heard that!" Emmett boomed from outside. Everyone laughed at that.

Once the laughter died down, Carlisle and Esme both excused themselves and went upstairs, likely to Carlisle's study to further look into the whole I'm-turning-into-a-vampire thing. Edward rolled his eyes and decided to go hunt. Jasper went with him, leaving only Amara, Alice and I alone in the living room. Alice was playing with my hair, clearly amused with herself while Amara seemed to be staring off into space.

"So Amara, what'd you mean by what you said earlier?" I inquired, eager to reignite the conversation. I was always intrigued to learn more about my family, especially Amara. There was something about her that fascinated me in a way I couldn't describe.

"I don't see a problem in me telling you. You are, after all, my sister after all."

Alice pecked my cheek. "Would you like me to stay with you?"

"It's up to you," I replied.

She thought about it for a moment and glanced at Amara, narrowing her eyes slightly.

Amara scoffed. "Don't give me that look, midget. I won't try and steal your mate or anything like that, I promise. I already have a mate, in case you forgot."

"I haven't forgotten that, obviously. Nor have I forgotten your advances on her when we were at the mall," Alice countered.

Amara rolled her eyes. "Like I told Bella here, I was playing around like a good sister does. Besides, I think it's fun to tease her, don't you agree, Bella?" I snorted. "Aw, come now, you can't obviously say you wouldn't like it."

"Amara," Alice warned.

"You are so damn dramatic Alice," Amara groaned. "Relax, I'll drop the teasing. Go out and hunt or something. Give Bella and I some sisterly bonding time."

Alice gave her a wary look for a moment before rolling her eyes and kissing me full on the lips.

"I'll be back in a while, love."

"Okay, see ya," I said, smiling at her. She gave Amara one last glare before dancing out the door.

"I really do hope her little jealousy phase wears off soon. I can't have my fun if she threatens to rip my head off every time I try and joke with you," Amara snorted. "You _do_ realize that whenever I say stuff like that I'm playing, right? I would never think of trying to get you in bed, Bella. I love you as a sister and friend, and nothing more."

"I know. But do you think you could tone it down just a bit?" I asked.

She rolled her eyes and stood up. "Fine, fine." She gestured me to stand up too. "Walk with me."

I got up and followed after her as she walked outside. We walked across the grassy front yard of our house, over to the side were several boulders were. Amara seated herself on a large, flat boulder and patted the spot in front of her for me to sit, which I did.

"May I see your scars?" she asked quietly.

I thought about it for a moment before pulling the right sleeve of my shirt back, revealing all the bite marks on it. She extended her left hand and held it over my arm, looking to me silently for approval. I nodded and shuddered slightly as her cool fingers traced each bite mark. Her honey colored eyes took each scar in, smoldering with an emotion I couldn't register.

"It was painful, wasn't it?" she asked softy. I nodded. "I know the feeling well, Bella. You see, you and I…we have a lot more in common then you may think."

She overturned both of her arms. I stared down at them and gasped when I saw similar bite marks on both arms. There were three on her right arm and four on her left. She then moved her neck to show me a scar on the right side of her neck and pointed to two others on her chest, one above her left breast and one on her right collarbone. I was stunned.

"My God Amara, how many scars do you have?" I asked, astonished.

She smiled and got off the rock and turned around before lifting her shirt up. My eyes bulged.

"Holy shit…" I breathed as I took in the number of bite marks littering her back.

"There's more still, on my legs. I have forty one in total, forty of them from my life as a vampire at one point or another," she explained, pulling her shirt back down and blurring back to her previous spot. Her left index finger began to circle her bellybutton. "This one, the one around my belly button, was my first. I don't just show it off because I think it's sexy. I show it off as a reminder to myself about my past life and how it all changed. You recall me mentioning earlier that I feel like the odd one out of the family?"

"Yeah," I replied, watching her finger draw circles around her navel.

She chuckled. "The truth is, Bella, whereas the others didn't have a choice in what they became, I did. I'm different from them. I chose this lifestyle on my own because it was what I wanted. I wasn't changed the same way the others were, such as being bitten in order for my life to be saved, nor was it an accident of any kind."

I looked up at her, gazing into her eyes. "What do you mean?"

Amara smirked. "I changed myself."

**A/N: Amara's backstory, coming up, yo.**

**And hopefully I explained everything just right. Most of you knew, but some didn't. Just want to make sure it all made sense.**

**Special thanks to bleed4her for looking this over. AleinWonderland too. **


	30. Amara

**Disclaimer: Bella, Alice and the whole Twilight ensemble belong to Stephanie Meyer. Amara, however, belongs to me. So do all OCs. Now on with the show.**

**Amara**

I blinked several times. Did she just say...? No, can't be. That's not right. My ears must've been ringing or something. I think I just imagined that. I stared at Amara, my eyes wide and my jaw lowered as far as humanly possible. I blinked several times, just to make sure I wasn't in some crazy ass dream.

"And that, my dear, is the priceless reaction I always receive whenever I say that," Amara laughed. "I must admit, it is rather amusing to watch their brains try and wrap around it. I assure you, though, what I said is the truth."

I blinked again and shut my mouth.

"Say that again?"

Amara ran a hand through her hair and sighed. "I changed myself," she repeated.

Okay. So I _did_ hear what I thought I did. That brings one thought to my mind:

What the hell?

"How the hell is that even possible?" I asked, gawking at my redheaded sister.

She laughed again, louder this time. My confusion was dispelled by the musical quality to her laugh which, much like Alice's, was nice to listen to. All of the Cullens had beautiful laughter, even Emmett. Of course, I loved Alice's musical laughter the most. I wouldn't need any music if I had a copy of that on my iPod.

Still, she wasn't giving me an answer.

"Are you gonna, you know, give me an answer or something?" I asked.

She stopped laughing and sighed. "Yes, yes. Sorry, but I always find the reactions I get humorous," she stated.

I rolled my eyes at that before growing serious. "How could you change yourself? I thought you had to be bitten by a vampire in order to become one."

"No, you need to have _venom_ inside of you in order to change into a vampire," she corrected.

"What are you saying, then? You weren't bitten?"

"Not exactly," she admitted. "I guess it's necessary for me to start from the beginning and tell you a little about whom I was before I became what I am today. Do you want to hear, Bella? I won't bore you with minor details, only what I feel is important for you to know. It's your choice though, I could always skip ahead, but then you wouldn't have the basics."

I nodded. "That sounds fine, actually. I always like learning about your past lives."

"Ah, you and your curiosity," she chuckled. "Very well then, I'll tell you."

She leaned back and looked upwards to the sky, her eyes gleaming as she began to remember things from her past. Something odd struck me.

"How come you always do that?" I asked.

She frowned. "Do what?"

"You guys always look upwards or away whenever you remember something. Is that a reflex?"

Amara shrugged. "I suppose so. I've never noticed it myself. I guess we just do it as a way to focus on nothing in particular, which helps free up our mind for our memories. As a vampire, we do have amazing memories, but in order to remember our human life we have to want to. The more we recall our human life, the stronger the memories are and the further back we can go."

"How come Alice can't remember her human life, then?" I asked.

Her face grew soft. "That is something I don't know the answer to, Bella. I wish there was some way to help her, but I truly don't know how. She can't remember, plain and simple. We don't know why, truth be told. Carlisle believes that she may have experienced a great amount of pain and suffering as a human and because of it her mind simply erased those memories when she changed. That seems to be the only explanation we can think of so far."

The idea of my beautiful Alice suffering as a human made my cringe. I couldn't stand the thought of her being mistreated in any way. Who could mistreat such a beautiful, wonderful person like Alice? Only a monster would do something so cruel.

Then I remembered James. I remembered him mentioning that he knew her. My thoughts erupted with images of James stalking her, tormenting her, torturing her. It brought tears to my eyes and made my blood boil. I seethed with hatred for the blond vampire that had already ruined my life and turned me into his toy. I refused to believe that he had done the same to Alice. I'd kill him for sure if he had, that rotten piece of shit.

"Yo, Earth to Bella!" Amara called.

"Huh?"

"You were spacing out there. And you started to cry…" She trailed off and looked at me with genuine concern. I felt my cheeks and sure enough, she was right. I wiped my eyes and pushed away all the thoughts I'd just had.

"Sorry, lost my train of thought," I murmured. "You were saying?"

She frowned for a moment before smirking. "Oh, yes. Well, before you interrupted me, I was about to begin telling you about my past. Are you ready to listen or do you have any more random questions you'd like to throw out at me?"

I thought to myself for a moment before blushing slightly.

"Can I, er, feel your scar?" I asked.

She cocked her head to the side curiously before glancing down at her abdomen and laughing.

"Of course," she replied, grinning.

I reached my left hand forward and touched her stomach with my fingertips. It was icy and hard like I'd come to expect, but incredibly soft. I shuddered slightly at how cool it was. My finger idly traced the crescent shaped scars around her navel, feeling the texture on vampire skin. It was odd compared to the scars on my arm. They were actually _warmer_ than the rest of her body, unlike mine which were colder.

"Wow," I murmured. "They're warmer on your skin then they are on mine."

My finger accidentally poked her bellybutton, but she didn't seem bothered in the least bit. That was…interesting, to say the least. It was deep and rock-hard, but soft. Like poking a statue, only surprisingly less awkward. My finger lingered for a moment before I heard Amara chuckle. I blushed and pulled my hand back, staring at the space in front of me.

"No need to be ashamed, Bella," Amara stated. "I have no problem with it. We're sisters and friends, so there's no need to feel weird. I can tell, though, that you have a thing for stomachs by the way you stare at mine. Just so you know, Ali's got a foot fetish." She said, winking.

I stared at her queerly. "She does?"

"Yup," she said, grinning. "She'll deny it as much as she can, though. She gets all embarrassed about it. It's quite adorable, actually, just like you. Now then, if you're done, I believe I have a story to tell you, if you would stop changing the topic, that is." She gave me a teasing glare as she finished, sticking her tongue out at me. I stuck mine right back out at her.

"It's not my fault I get distracted…" I grumbled.

Amara patted my head. "Oh, you," she giggled. "Now enough chattering, I have a story to tell."

I rolled my eyes at her playful tone before listening intently. Amara snickered at my childlike look before coughing to calm herself. Then she began.

"For starters, I was born in London, England in the year 1875 as Amarina Noel Douglas, the only child of Edgar and Clarisse Douglas. My father was a welder. He wasn't the smartest or the most educated man, but he had a strong will and he was a damn good metal worker. They always said it was like he had a gift for manipulating the flames the right way when he welded. My mother, Clarisse, was a beautiful woman that made dresses for a living, at least until I was born."

"My mother fell ill shortly before I was born. She didn't survive giving birth to me, which devastated my father. After three years, he shut down his shop altogether and fell into a state of depression. He wasn't abusive or anything like that, he loved me dearly and raised me as best as he could. He just couldn't handle working anymore. It was weird, though. He still welded from time to time, usually at night. Then he'd destroy whatever he made and start over again on something else. I guess it was just a release for him, you know?"

She paused for a moment and started drawing a circle in front of her with her left index finger.

"I guess you could say that my relationship with my father is similar to the one that you have with your birth one. We rarely really spoke to each other and he never really knew how to act or what to say. He was an awkward man to be around. But he did try. He bought me things, like clothes and jewelry and when I was old enough he even taught me a bit about welding. I never liked welding much, but I did like to watch."

"You know, it's weird. I loved fire when I was a human. I wasn't some crazy pyro who set random things on fire, no. I just…I loved the fact that it could change colors, I loved the crackling sound it made and the warmth it brought. Most of all, I just loved to watch it. To me, I always thought of fire as dancing. Weird, yeah, but that's just how I saw it. It soothed me, watching the flames move back and forth."

Amara paused and looked into my eyes, studying me for my reaction. I absorbed what she'd said and thought about it for a moment.

"Do you think that's how you ended up with your gift?" I asked.

She pursed her lips and shrugged. "Honestly, I don't know how I got it. Carlisle thinks that when we change into vampires, we bring with us our greatest traits with us, physical, emotional, spiritual and mental alike. But even he isn't sure how I developed my ability. Maybe it was my obsession with watching fire? I don't know, honestly. I doubt I ever will."

I ran my hand through my hair and adjusted myself. "So, you were saying about your human life?"

She chuckled.

"You wanna know something funny? I was the same way then as I am now. Well, I didn't swear as much, I blame that on being around humans for so long, but otherwise, I was pretty much the same. I wasn't like most girls growing up. Far from it. For one thing, I was incredibly tall. That, combined with my violet eyes, vibrant red hair and even the fact that I was left handed all made me much different. People used to say that I was an "exotic" beauty. Most people, though, were intimidated by me, and not just because of my height and physique."

A smile graced her lips. "I was a scrappy one, I'll admit. I used to get into all sorts of trouble at school. Hell, I ended up getting expelled because I broke some boy's nose. He had been making some sexist comments, so I taught him a lesson. Ah, I remember those days. Boys would try and make a pass at me and I'd flip them off. If they ever got in my face or tried to grab me, I always gave them what was coming to them. Eventually they just steered clear of me."

I snickered. "It sounds like that much hasn't changed."

Amara smirked. "Nope. I'm still edgy and in-your-face when I need to be. But I've loosened up a lot since then. I guess settling down with someone and being surrounded by a loving family kind of does that to you. Back then, though, I was a lot more abrasive and a hell of a lot more naive. It was my naivety that ultimately caused me to become what I am."

"How so?" I inquired.

"As I started to get older, I started developing issues with my father. My attitude got worse. I was stupid, then. I let the way others acted around me and treated me affect me, which sort of made things take a bad turn for me. Things got worse and worse until one night, after I'd come home late. I was seventeen at the time and I'd just returned from a party when I got into a big argument with my father. I ended up storming out of the house, fully determined to leave and go somewhere else. Unfortunately, I didn't have any friends because of the way I acted."

"I wandered the streets for several hours, not knowing where I was going. That's when I ran into _her_." Her voice became colder as her eyes darkened. "I was young and stupid and too tired to think straight when I met her. At the time, she just looked like a woman wearing a long hooded cloak. She approached me, asking me if I needed a place to stay. 'You look lost, dear. If you'd like, you could come to my place and have some food. At the very least, come and warm yourself up, you'll catch your death out here.' She sounded so sincere and so sweet. It's a pity that it was all just an act to lure me in."

Amara curled her lip back and let out a quiet hiss as she shook her head. Her finger had ceased drawing circles into the boulder we were sitting on as her hand clenched into a fist.

"I walked with her as she led me to her carriage, since those were the main method of transportation. Then she drove a few miles away, through a forest. Before I knew it, we were at her "home", which was a fucking castle. I knew there was something odd about it, but I didn't get much of a chance to ask. She got out and pulled me along, coaxing me with promises of a warm fire and cookies. When we stepped inside, though, everything went dark. The last thing I remembered was her hysterical laughter and her red eyes, looking down at me with humor."

"When I woke up, I was in some sort of cellar. I was chained up against the wall, too. It was like something out of a medieval movie or one of those dungeon scenes you see, only this shit was real. I tried to free myself, but my body was weak. That's when she appeared, her hood down to reveal what she really looked like. She had long, ethereal black hair, a cruel smile and crimson eyes that felt like they pierced into my soul. And then there was her voice, which was so sickeningly sweet it made me want to vomit."

Her fists clenched even tighter as she ground her teeth together.

"I was just standing there, staring like a moron. 'Hello dear, my name is Theodosia. And you are now my newest toy.' I didn't know what the fuck she meant or what she was. It didn't take long for me to find out, though. She was a vampire that had been created a hundred years ago. I don't know when exactly or why, but I knew one thing. My human life was pretty much at an end the moment I'd met her. You see, Theodosia was a scientist, or so she liked to think she was. And as you might have guessed, humans were her test subjects."

"I don't know what she was after. I don't even think she knew. She would travel all around and collect humans, sometimes males, sometimes females. She'd switch off every so often, depending on her mood. I was one of the dozens of girls that she had abducted for her experiments. She claimed to only take "exotic" humans for "research". That was all bullshit. Her idea of research was torturing the humans. Breaking bones, cutting flesh and using venom in a variety of ways."

She stopped and pointed at the bite mark around her stomach.

"This was her doing. I had tried on countless times to escape, but she always caught me and I paid the price for it. She always found my escape attempts amusing, though, so she let them continue. Then one day she decided she would teach me a lesson. She pinned me down and bit down around my belly button. The pain was horrible, let me tell you. Several hours later, she eventually drained all the venom out of my system. Let's just say that I didn't try to escape after that little incident. I just complied with whatever she put me through, just trying to survive."

"It was horrid. Having to listen to the screaming, the crying, the gasping and panting. Having to smell the sweat and the blood and any other bodily fluid imaginable. We were scarcely fed and treated like shit day in and day out. Most of the girls died. Some died from Theodosia feeding on them to sustain herself, some died from her twisted experiments. A few died trying to escape or fight against her. On some occasions, when she injected venom into them, she sometimes forgot about them until they were almost changed, at which point she'd rip their heads off to prevent the change from happening."

"I was one of the few who survived. I don't know how I did it, but I survived. Part of me had resigned myself to fate, but the other part was just waiting. Waiting, praying for that day to come when I would have my chance to escape. You see, Bella, Theodosia had two major faults. The first fault was that she talked a lot. She would always talk about herself, but sometimes she'd talk about vampires in general. That was how I learned about venom and how it changed a human. The second fault, the one that was my saving grace, was that she would leave her home several days at a time at a certain point in search of new test subjects."

Amara's eyes took on a dangerous glint as she smiled.

"I remember that day the best. The day she left and I broke free. I had been waiting for that moment and I seized it. I used all my strength to tear away from the chains shackling me to the wall and got the hell out of that prison. I was about to run and free the other girls when I saw something. A vial full of venom. I took it and looked at it, thinking to myself what this meant. I could become a vampire. I could be immortal, have the strength, speed and endurance that a vampire had. So instead of escaping, I injected myself with it."

I gasped. She smiled wider.

"Yes. I injected myself. I could have tried running away, but no. I didn't. I wanted what she had, to be able to do the things she could do. Once the venom was inside of me, the burning started right away as I collapsed and started screaming. It was the most painful two and a half days of my life, even more painful then what she'd done to me in the past. I honestly wanted to take my choice back and run away, but it was too late. By that point in time, my heart stopped beating and I awakened as a newborn vampire."

"What'd you do next?" I inquired.

Amara's face softened, the smile dropping altogether as her eyes became sad.

"I ended up killing the other girls," she admitted, the shame clear on her face. "I couldn't think straight at the time. I just wanted blood. I could smell them through the walls and just tore into the rooms and drained them. I drank from every last one, reveling in the heavenly taste of their blood. It didn't come to me until much later on what I'd done. I felt guilty for it and I still do, but a part of me argued that me killing them quickly like that was for the best. They would've died anyways, so why not kill them quick and painlessly. It's true, my selfishness cost them their lives, but at the time, I didn't think about that."

"And then that bitch returned. She had come back empty handed and didn't expect to see me there. I took one look at her and just attacked. All the memories of what she'd done to me and to the others came back and just fueled my rage. She fought back pretty well, I'd say. She was more experienced, but I was stronger. The best part? My fighting skills, the ones I'd developed as a human, were still intact. She bit me three times and left her mark, but I was the winner. I ripped off her legs, then her arms, and then her head. Once I was done, I let out a feral snarl and tore into the night, leaving that wretched place behind me."

"At first, I didn't know what to do. I had no friends and only one family member. I remembered my father and made my way back, hoping to see him again. I never got there, though, since when I passed through a graveyard, I found his grave. It turns out that I'd been held up in that hellhole for a whole year. My father thought I'd died and, blaming himself, took his own life. He burned his shop and our house down with him, destroying all my memories. The realization hit me then. I was alone. The only people I'd ever known as family were gone. And I was left without a purpose and without a place in life."

Amara looked truly sad as she recounted this. Her eyes smoldered with sorrow and she looked as though she were about to cry. I felt myself feeling sorrowful for her. She had been through so much pain. Everyone in my family had. Losing their families…God, I couldn't imagine that kind of pain. I couldn't imagine losing any of them, Alice especially. I reached out and touched her shoulder. She looked up at me and smiled warmly.

"Thanks, Bella. You don't have to feel bad. That was long before you were born."

"What'd you do after that?" I asked.

She sighed. "I wandered around a lot, mostly. I fed from humans, fought off other vampires and just wandered aimlessly, no purpose in life. About ten years or so after I'd created myself, so to speak, was when I found them. The Volturi. And that was probably one of my worst decisions."

"Volturi?" I asked.

"Carlisle probably mentioned them to you. Do you recall that portrait in his room? The one with him and six other people?" I nodded. "Those six are the Kings and Queens of Volterra. They all live in Italy, hidden away from the humans in their own little secret society. They're a cruel, relentless group driven by two leaders who care only for themselves and for dominating every race, human and vampire alike. All these scars you see? Are from my days in the Volturi."

"The leaders of the Volturi are Aro and his mate Sulpicia. Then there's Marcus and Didyme, and lastly Caius and Athendora. If you recall the painting, the younger black haired man is Aro, the one with the older, bored face is Marcus and the white haired male is Caius. Of the women, the one with black hair is Sulpicia, the blonde is Didyme and the mahogany haired one is Athendora." She spoke each name with a venomous hiss, the hatred clear in her eyes.

"You don't like them," I stated.

"I loathe them. Every last one of them," she replied. "Aro and Sulpicia think they're so damn superior. They act all sweet and kind to you, but they'd just as soon have your head ripped off then treat you kindly. And if you have a gift, they'll want you to join them. You can refuse, but no one refuses them for very long."

"That must've been why they asked you to join, huh?"

She shook her head. "As surprisingly as it may sound, I didn't discover my gift until right before the Volturi discovered me. It was weird, too, how I discovered it. I learned about it a week later when I was traveling around. I ran into someone I never thought I'd see again. Theodosia."

I gaped again. "But you killed her!"

Amara nodded her head and sighed. "True, I tore her limbs off. But I didn't set them on fire. Only fire can kill a vampire. Even if their body was in pieces, they would still be able to be reattached and they'd still be alive. I found that out the hard way. Theodosia attacked me and tried to set me on fire. I felt this weird sort of pull when I saw the fire and next thing I know, she's writhing around on the ground. I didn't know what had happened until I discovered I could manipulate fire. And then some of the Volturi guard found me and saw what I could do and the rest is, well, history. I'll tell you more about that another time. It's nothing personal, I just don't feel like going into detail right now."

"So why did you leave the Volturi?"

"Because I finally woke up to reality. I saw that I was just a pawn to them, nothing more. I saw the pain that I was causing, the lives that were lost because of me. I remember one time my mission was to kill a rogue vampire hiding out in a village of humans. I'd been told that the humans were few and that most had been evacuated. So I set the place on fire. Guess what? They weren't evacuated. And there was no vampire. I'd massacred an entire village of humans for nothing. For fucking nothing! That was the last straw. I left. I couldn't handle it anymore. Aro and Sulpicia tried to sweet talk me into staying, but I blew them off. I had seen past their lies at last and had enough of it. I was done being their tool."

"I wandered around for a good while. Then I met Sophie and for the first time in my life, I found a friend. It was thanks to her that I slowly started to change my ways. Hell, if it weren't for her, I would have never found the Cullens. I would have never found Jasper, my mate, found my brothers and sisters and parents. All of that was thanks to Sophie, in one way or another. That's why we're so close to each other. She helped fully change me. But it's not just her. Arthur helped inspire me when he was able to avoid feeding off of humans. And when I met the Cullens, it was Alice who helped bring me close to the family and snag Jasper."

She paused and took in an unnecessary breath.

"What I'm saying is, I can relate to you, Bella. When I found the Cullens, I was broken. I felt like everything I'd ever been was left in pieces. They helped rebuild me, though. And now that's what's going on with you. When you got here, you were scared, scarred and ready to slit your own throat to escape from your pain. Now you have a girlfriend who'll rip the heads off of anybody who looks at you funny, a mother and father who love you with every fiber of their beings and siblings to bond with, tease, be teased by and protect you."

"I may be sarcastic and I may get on your nerves with my flirtiness, but it's all in good fun. You deserve happiness in your life. I think that everyone does, or at least everyone deserves a chance for happiness. Those two douchebags that hurt you? They don't deserve it, nor will they get it, I can promise you that much."

"Thanks, sis," I said, smiling at her. She tousled my hair in response. Then she stopped and stuck her nose in the air, sniffing several times and frowning. "What is it? What's wrong?"

"Alice is on her way. Pretty fast, too," she replied.

Seconds later, Alice appeared in a blur through the trees, stopping close near me. Her eyes were wide with worry and concern as she looked between us.

"What's wrong?" Amara asked, getting off the boulder. I followed suit, only to be quickly engulfed in Alice's arms.

"I had a vision. The newborn, she's getting closer," Alice responded.

Amara snorted. "So? If she gets too close, we can take care of her. It's nothing to worry about."

"No, Amara. It isn't just that. Right after I saw that, I saw the other two moving. They're starting back towards Washington. I think they're going to meet with the newborn," Alice stated.

"Oh. So then they are working together…" Amara mused. 'Did you tell Edward and Jasper?"

She nodded. "Yes, I did. I called them and let them know, the same with Emmett and Rose. They'll all be back soon, so I think it best that we go inside and talk about what we're going to do about them if they try and attack us again."

Both Amara and Alice started walking. Alice laced the fingers of her left hand around my right and squeezed them as we walked. I squeezed back, my worry growing.

"Do you really think they'll attack again? Even with so many of you?" I asked.

"It's too soon to say," Alice admitted. "I wouldn't say no, though. They could always use the newborn to overwhelm us before attacking themselves."

It didn't take long for us to reach the house. All three of us walked in, Alice sitting down on the couch and pulling me into her lap. Amara sat down next to us. Carlisle and Esme quietly appeared downstairs, clearly sensing the distress in the air.

"What's wrong, Alice?" Esme asked.

Alice bit her lip. "I had two visions, one of the newborn, one of the other two. They're moving towards each other. I'm pretty sure that means that they're together; at least the dialog I heard between the other two seems to indicate it. They-"

She stopped suddenly as her eyes glazed over, another vision hitting her. All of us remained silent as she experienced whatever it was she was seeing. Then she snapped out of her vision, a frown on her face.

"What'd you see?" Carlisle asked.

She shook her head. "Nothing concrete. Just flashes of their movements. They keep changing their route, but their destination is the same. They'll be meeting the newborn in about two days, likely to plan out their next course of action. I'll keep my visions on them, just to be sure."

Carlisle and Esme both nodded in understanding.

Alice turned and looked at me, a curious look on her face. "Bella, may I ask you something?"

"Um, sure."

"Earlier today, I had another vision. It was of you and your, er, friend, talking at school. He invited you to something, I believe?"

I remembered the invitation. I had meant to ask about that before.

"Oh! Yeah, right, I totally forgot about that. He was wondering if I wanted to go to the beach with him and his friends. Esme, Carlisle, would that be alright if I went?"

Esme smiled. "Of course, dear. You needn't ask. So long as you're careful, it's fine."

Alice pouted. "If it's a beach, then that means it'll be sunny…"

I hung my head. "I know, Alice. I wish you could go. I mean, I can stay. I don't mind…"

"No, no, no," Esme said, putting her hands on her hips. "It would be good for you to be with other humans for a change, Bella. You need some friends to spend time with and going to the beach with them sounds like a wonderful idea."

"Can I ask something?" Amara inquired. I nodded. "This beach wouldn't happen to be La Push, would it?"

Alice tensed up next to me. I noticed an odd look in her eyes. Carlisle and Esme had the same odd look, though it was only for an instant.

"Yeah, that's the place. Why?"

Amara frowned. "I thought so."

Alice, Carlisle and Esme were looking at each other, silently having a conversation with their eyes. I scowled, hating it whenever I was left out of something, even though they hadn't done that too much lately. At least, as far as I knew. They all turned and looked at me in unison. Esme looked concerned, Carlisle thoughtful and Alice seemed…disdained, to say the least.

"What?" I asked. "What's wrong?"

"It is…" Carlisle paused to think of the right word. "Complicated."

"Do you know anything of the native people who live there, the Quileutes?" Esme asked.

I shook my head. "No, not really."

They both frowned and looked at each other silently again. The silence was beginning to get a little awkward. Even Amara wasn't talking, which surprised and worried me. What was so bad about the Quileutes? Did they know about the Cullens' secret?

"Do they know what you are?" I asked quietly.

Carlisle pursed his lips before nodding. "Yes, they do. We have a very complicated relationship, Bella. It's one that I'm not sure I can bring up right yet."

"She's family, Carlisle," Amara argued. "She'll find out eventually, anyways. Besides, Rosalie's already dropped a few hints here and there. She ran into one of them when we were at the mall that day."

"I saw one of them in the woods," Alice murmured. She looked up at her parents. "I don't like it. I don't think she should go."

Carlisle and Esme both sighed.

"No, I think she should," Esme stated. "I think it will be good for her."

"I agree," Carlisle added. "We can discuss the Quileutes at a later point."

Alice scowled and turned to look at me. "Are you sure you want to go?"

"I-"

"Alice, let her go," Esme said softly. "She won't be human for very much longer. The least we can do is let her experience having human friends, correct?"

Alice grumbled something under her breath before hanging her head in defeat.

"Fine then," she grunted.

I furrowed my brow, completely confused. What was the deal with the Quileutes?

"What about the Quileutes?" Edward asked as he walked in through the door, Jasper right behind him.

"That's what _I'm_ wondering," I grumbled.

Both Edward and Jasper looked confused. Amara sighed next to me.

"She's one of us. She's going to _be _one of us. I think she has a right to know about it."

"It might be best," agreed Jasper. Edward nodded as well.

Carlisle and Esme both looked troubled as they seemed to think about it.

I rolled my eyes. "Look, you guys can tell me later or whatever. I don't care."

I got up and walked up the stairs, aware that Alice was following after me. I walked into our room and flopped on the bed, sighing. My head was hurting from today. So much had happened. It felt like my life was a roller coaster ride that didn't stop and I was desperately trying to get off, just enough to catch my breath. It didn't look like I'd be getting that chance anytime soon.

Alice sat down next to me. She didn't say anything until I turned myself over. I sighed and rested my head on her lap, staring up at the ceiling. Alice sighed and began stroking the top of my head with her left hand, her right latching onto one of my hands. We both stayed that way, silent and lost in thought. Even with all the shit I'd been through and was going through, being with Alice like this always seemed to make it all disappear, even if it was only for a while.

I'll admit, my curiosity was pretty spiked right now. I wanted to know about the Quileutes and why everyone was so hesitant to talk about them. I wanted to know more about Amara's past, about the pasts of everyone in the family. I wanted to help Alice. And I wanted to know what I could do to help with my change.

My God…

I was changing into a vampire. I still couldn't believe it. There were so many things I wanted to know about it, about vampires in general. Would I have a gift like Alice did, I wonder? Ugh. So much to think about, so much to learn, so much to do. And it feels like there's barely any time to for any of it. What to do, what to do.

Sigh.

I guess for now, its best that I put everything on hold. I can deal with it all later. Right now, I just want to relax with my girlfriend. Because at the rate these things are going, we won't have that much time left to relax.

**A/N: And there you have a good portion of Amara's backstory. There's more to it, which will be revealed later, but I think that's good enough for now.**

**It's amazing for me to say that this story is far from over. I haven't even gotten to the halfway point. Is that bad? No, I'd say not. Hope ya'll enjoyed this chapter.**

**Moving right along, now. All reviews are welcome, but I won't twist your arms for them. Yet. **


	31. Plans

**Disclaimer: I don't take credit for Twilight because I don't own it (if I did, this would be it). I do take credit for all OCs and (maybe?) original ideas.**

**Plans**

"Alice, why are you moping?" I whined.

Alice hung her head and sighed. "I'm not moping, Bella," she replied.

"Uh, yeah you are."

And she was. She'd been acting this way all morning and it was getting on my nerves. I could not stand it when she was sad or upset, and her moping around didn't help. Yet every time I tried to ask her what was wrong, she shrugged it off. It all started yesterday after I said that I was planning to go to La Push with Angela and the others. True, I'd miss her terribly, but I felt it would be a nice change of pace to spend time with other humans for once.

Clearly, she did not agree with me.

Right now, Alice was slowly clambering through her closet, searching for an outfit for herself to wear to school today. I'd woken up surprisingly early this morning and had already showered, eaten and dressed. Now I was sitting on the bed, watching my girlfriend try to decide. That normally wouldn't bother me were it not for the pout on her face and the depressed look in her eyes, which I could see even when she was turned away from me. And I hated it.

I, for one, was tired of seeing her like this. What was worse was that it was hurting me. I couldn't stand to see her anything other than happy. It just wasn't _Alice_ if she wasn't happy. I stood up and walked over to her as she tossed another shirt to the floor.

"Alice," I breathed. She didn't respond, she just kept to what she was doing. "Alice!"

She turned, only slightly, and looked at me blankly. I could see that sorrow in her eyes and it brought me pain. I could feel tears forming in the back of my eyes and struggled to keep them from falling. I reached out and grasped her shoulders, looking at her pleadingly.

"Please,_ please_ tell me what's wrong," I begged.

Alice's eyes widened for a moment before her face softened and she wrapped her arms around me, pulling me into a warm, loving embrace. I curled into her as she nuzzled into me, her cool lips kissing each shoulder before she pressed them to mine.

"I'm sorry," she murmured. "I've just had a lot on my mind lately. I know you don't like seeing me like this and I'm sorry I haven't said anything about it."

"Well, can you tell me now?" I asked.

Alice ran a hand through her hair. "It's, er, complicated."

"Bullshit."

She sighed. "Bella, I don't want you going to La Push."

I frowned, and took my arms away, grabbing her hand and leading her over to the bed. I sat down and pulled her into me. She complied and sat down on my lap, resting her forehead against mine as we gazed into each other's eyes.

"Why not?" I asked softly.

"That's the complicated part. Everyone has been back and forth on how we should approach the situation. Our relationship with the people there is…an odd one, to say the least. Normally we aren't supposed to talk about them with others. But you're a part of this family and you're going to be one of us soon, so in theory, we should tell you. I just, I don't know," she murmured, looking away from me at our intertwined hands.

I bit my lip and thought on it for a moment. I hated being out of the loophole, that much I knew, but I didn't want to force anyone to tell me anything that they shouldn't. But if they all knew and I was going to be a vampire and should know, shouldn't they tell me?

Ugh, this is so damn confusing.

"May I ask you something?" I inquired, lifting our conjoined hands and squeezing hers. She nodded hesitantly, unsure of what I was going to say. "Are vampires always this cryptic about stuff or is just you guys?"

Alice stared at me blankly for a moment before giggling. "I think it's just us."

I shook my head and sighed dramatically. "Well, I suppose if you'll tell me eventually, I'll live."

"Does that mean you won't go?" she asked, looking hopeful. I swore I heard Esme sigh downstairs, as well as a few amused chuckles from my brothers.

"If you really don't want me too…"

Alice bit her lip again and looked away before her shoulders sagged as she shook her head.

"Bella, I want you to be happy," she said gently, resting her forehead back against mine as she gazed into my eyes and squeezed my hands. "I want you to be happy, to enjoy yourself in the short amount of time you have left as a human. And if…if going to La Push makes you happy, then…then…damn it." She captured my lips and held them there for a moment before pulling back. "Then go. I won't stop you. But promise me you'll be careful, okay?"

"I'm always careful," I grumbled without thinking. Alice narrowed her eyes and lifted an eyebrow at me, questioning my words. I looked away rather embarrassedly. "Well, I _try _to be careful, I mean. It just doesn't work. Ever."

She closed her eyes for a moment before reopening them, a hint of mirth showing.

"Well, I won't be able to protect you. So try not to do anything too dangerous, okay? I wouldn't want my Bella to be hurt by vicious seaweed or anything of that sort," she said, smiling more with each word.

I rolled my eyes. "I will. You be careful too. I don't want to come back to find you a pile of ashes because Amara accidentally set you on fire," I countered lamely.

Alice giggled before kissing me softly. I kissed back happily, allowing her to press my back to the bed. She wrapped her arms around me as her lips continued to rhythmically moved against mine, eliciting a quiet moan from me at the feeling. After one long, tender kiss she smiled against my lips before sitting up.

"Now quit distracting me. I need to find something to wear today," she giggled, bouncing off the bed and running over to her closet.

I smiled and sat up lazily, watching her for a few minutes.

"You could just wear what you're wearing now," I suggested.

She stopped and frowned as she looked down and studied her wardrobe before looking back at me confusedly.

"These are my pajamas, though," she pointed out.

I shrugged. "So? Haven't you ever heard of pajama day?" I asked.

"Pajama day? Is that a holiday or something?" she asked, cocking her head to the side, her golden eyes appraising me with sincere innocence and curiosity.

Oh. My. God. She is so fucking _adorable_!

Is she aware of how damn cute she is? Honestly!

"No, Alice, it's not," I giggled.

She furrowed her brows and crinkled her nose in that insanely cute way that I loved before bouncing over to the bed.

"What is it then?" she asked, her eyes twinkling. Oh God…

"Um, it's…it's nothing, really," I replied, trying to look away.

"Bella…" she whined.

I tried_ hard_ not to melt into nothingness. Really, really, really hard. But fuck, I felt like I was going to turn into a puddle at any second. I was suffering from cuteness overload and was close to just exploding from it.

Alice sighed and pecked my cheek before removing herself from the bed and dancing back over to her open closet. I let out a breath of relief, thankful that I was still flesh and bone. I could hear the amused chuckling of Edward downstairs, likely entertained by my thoughts. Bastard.

"Ah! Finally, an outfit that I like!" Alice sang, pulling out something from her closet.

I didn't get a chance to see what she'd chosen, because in an instant she'd shredded her pajamas off, tossing them to ground in seconds. Now she was standing there, in front of me, with nothing but her blue lace underwear. Fuck. Me.

My jaw fell open at the sight as my face heated up. I mean, _damn_.

"Do you like what you see?" Alice giggled.

I just sat there, gaping at her angelic form like a moron. She laughed at that before slipping into her clothes and turning to beam at me. I was still agape, my face redder then a ripened tomato. It hadn't even struck me that Alice was right next to me, her lips brushing against my left earlobe. I shuddered when I felt hear cool breath against my neck and could feel her smiling against me.

I blinked and blushed an even darker shade of red when I realized where she was. She giggled and kissed my cheek before leaning away from my, smiling and shaking her head.

"You are too adorable, Isabella. Do you know that?"

After my face had cooled and my heart had stopped pounding, I was finally able to form some sort of comeback in my mind. Unfortunately, I failed in doing so and merely grumbled to myself.

"Don't tease me like that," I whined quietly. She giggled in response, twirling around in amusement. Something hit me. "You…you saw that, didn't you?"

She stopped twirling and smiled wide at me. "I saw your reaction, yes," she admitted. I felt my blush returning when she winked at me. Alice started giggling again, bouncing her feet. "I saw you staring at my ass, too." Her eyes gleamed mischievously as she said that, making me blush fully. I cursed at myself mentally for gawking. How could I _not_ though?

The laughter of my siblings, Edward and Emmett in particular, filled the house up as Alice continued giggling and bouncing. Ugh. Fucking mind reader and stupid vampire's senses! That just got Edward to howl louder in amusement. I groaned and pulled my knees to my chest, hiding my face on them in embarrassment.

I felt a cool hand gently rubbing my head, fingers running through my hair.

"You don't have to be so embarrassed, Bella," Alice soothed. "I realize, though, that you still aren't used to that sort of thing. So I'll cut it out with the teasing, I promise. At least until you and I are more comfortable with each other. Okay?"

"Fine," I grumbled. "Are you done teasing me now?"

For a moment she seemed worried, but then she noticed the smile forming on my lips. Teased or not, I couldn't be mad at Alice. Like, ever, it seemed. It was just not possible. She put her finger to her chin and thought about it for a moment before grinning and nodding before leaning down and capturing my lips.

"By the way, I really do wish you would put more consideration into what you wear," she stated, scanning over my apparel and shaking her head.

"What's wrong with it?" I asked. I was wearing something she bought me, wasn't I. What was the problem with that?

A smirk played on her lips for a moment, but she chose not to respond. Instead she kissed my cheek and danced out of the room, leaving me without an answer. I frowned in annoyance, but dropped it and followed after her. I wasn't looking forward to school today, not after what had happened. Jasper and Alice both assured me that the problem was taken care of, but how was I supposed to interact with her, knowing what I'd done?

"Just do what we do," Edward stated when I'd gotten downstairs. "Ignore her."

I snorted. That was easier said than done with Jessica.

"True," he admitted. "But you can manage it, I think."

"If you say so," I muttered.

He shrugged and walked outside, likely preparing for the drive to school. Emmett, Jasper and Amara are followed after him, leaving only Alice and I. Rosalie, for some reason, seemed to be waiting near the doorway for something. I didn't get a chance to say anything about it, since Esme came over and wrapped me into the same warm hug that she always did.

"If anything happens, you can always come home straight away, dear. I'll be sure to take care of any complaints, I promise," she whispered into my ear. I relaxed into her arms and hugged her back. Esme's hugs were the second best in this house, by far. I saw Alice tensing up as she watched us, so I released my hold on Esme. Esme smiled and kissed my forehead before disappearing up the stairs, into her room most likely.

Alice twirled over to me and wrapped an arm around my waist. "Ready to go?" she asked.

I nodded. "Yeah, let's get this over with." She giggled at that as we made our way to the door, which Rosalie was still by. Before we could exit, she stepped in front of us, her eyes narrowing and studying me.

"So you're going to La Push?" she asked in an off-key tone.

"Yes," I replied.

She frowned for a moment before an amused smile formed on her face. "Try not to bring back fleas, will you?" And with that, she spun around and walked off, leaving me utterly confused. Alice sighed and pinched the bridge of her nose next to me. I shot her a questioning look, but got that 'I'm-sorry-I'll-tell-you-later' look in return.

Sighing, I trudged out the door, Alice still locked around me. We were actually driving her car today, so I was able to sit in the front seat this time around. Edward was the one carpooling with us while the others drove with Jasper. I found it confusing how they always switched cars every few times, but shrugged it off. It was probably just to show off all their crazy expensive vehicles.

As we drove to school, something actually came into mind that I had thought of before, but completely forgotten.

"Alice?" I asked. By now, we were at the school. In record time, I might add, thanks to Alice's bat-shit crazy driving—which I had actually gotten used to, oddly enough.

"Yes?" she asked upon opening my door for me.

"It's going to be sunny next week, right?" I inquired.

She nodded. "Yes. We won't be able to come to school because of it."

"What about me? Will I still be going or am I staying at home?" I inquired.

Alice stopped and actually thought on that for a moment. The others had all waved goodbye and walked off, though I had no idea why they were leaving for class when we still had a good twenty minutes before classes even began.

"You know, I honestly don't know. I meant to ask Esme about that earlier, but I didn't get around to it," she admitted.

I wrapped my arms around her waist and pulled her into me. She smiled and hugged me back, resting her chin on my left shoulder as I did mine.

"I think…" She paused for a moment and sighed. "I don't know. I think that it would be good for you to still go to school, even without us. But I'd be worried sick about you all day. There's no telling what those little snots will try when we're gone. I've had visions of some of them planning some cruel things before. I always scared them into submission, though, threatening their lives if they ever did anything to hurt you in any way."

She looked into my eyes with warm amber ones. "There's no telling what would happen if you came here alone, though. I'd say that you could stay at home with me, but you do need your education, Bella. I'm just not sure how we would work our excuse in with you."

"What do you mean?" I asked.

"Well, normally whenever the weather is sunny we always say that we're going on hiking or camping trips. Because of Carlisle's position as a doctor and some past connections, the school never bothers us about it. But with you, I'm not sure how that would work out. Neither Carlisle nor Esme would ever say that we went without you, I know that much, but I'm not seeing many options here."

I furrowed my brow and thought about that.

I didn't like the idea of going to school without Alice. But I wasn't afraid of what the other students would do to me. I may be clumsy, but I'm not weak. I'd punch any of them in the face if they tried anything. Wait, no, that'd just get me suspended. Crap. But I couldn't just stay home, either. I did need to go, whether I liked it or not.

"You could say that I you guys all went camping and that I stayed home to go to school," I offered.

Alice frowned. "Bella, anyone who knows you would know that that's crap."

"Yeah, but they don't know me that well. Besides, I could always, you know, act it out or some shit if they asked."

She giggled at that and kissed me softly on the lips. "No offense, Bells, but you kind of stink at acting," she pointed out. I bit my lip. It was true, I did stink at acting. I always blushed and I was bound to feel guilty afterwards. Damn it.

"Well, what do you want me to do?" I whined. "I don't want to leave you, but I know Esme would want me to go."

She sighed. "I don't know, Bella. I don't know. We'll figure it out, though, I promise."

I closed my eyes for a moment and rested my forehead against hers. When I reopened them, I could see her honey orbs gazing intently back at me. I smiled and captured her lips for a moment, holding them together before pulling away.

"Is there anything interesting happening today?" I asked.

Alice focused her eyes for a moment, likely looking into the future. Seconds later she came out of her trance, a frown on her face.

"What'd you see?"

"Our PE teacher has decided to mix things up today. We're playing dodgeball."

My eyes widened in mortification. Dodgeball. The sport I loathed more than any other sport in existence. It was the one sport that seemed to exist to torment me, as it had in the past. I remembered back when I was younger that I was always the target, even after I was out. No one ever defended me, either, since I always tripped and dropped the ball.

Alice, noticing my distress, stroked my cheeks and kissed me several times until I was broken out of my distressed state. It was hard to think of anything when you had the lips of a Goddess against yours, I'll give her that.

"Don't worry, Bella. I'll protect you," she promised.

We pressed our foreheads together again as I sighed.

"I think this school is out to get me," I grumbled.

"You want me to punch it in the face?" she asked, grinning ear to ear.

I smiled at her cuteness. "And how exactly do you do that?"

She shrugged. "Well, first I take out the principal, then the teachers…"

"Hey dykes, get a fucking room!" jeered an all-too familiar voice. Lauren.

Alice and I turned to see her standing with a look of disgust on her fish-face as she glared scathingly at us. To her right was a girl named Amber, who I had run into only once before. She hated me just as much as Lauren did, obviously. To her left was none other than Jessica, her neck wrapped with bandages.

I cringed when I recalled what I'd done to her yesterday, the memories flooding back to me in a wave. I was actually more surprised that Jessica wasn't running and screaming or shouting shit at me. She just stood there, glaring at us with the same disgust that her bimbo brigade friends were.

Ha. Bimbo brigade. I was officially labeling them as that for the rest of the year, I don't give a fuck how lame it is.

"So gross…" Amber hissed. The three of them all stuck their noses in the air and walked off then. It was at that point that I realized that the parking lot was becoming less empty. How time flies by so fast, I'll never know.

Alice's low growl disrupted my thoughts. I noticed that she was glaring hatefully after them, her eyes pitch black with anger.

"Stupid bitches," she snarled. "I should rip their heads off."

"Alice," I soothed, moving my hands to her cheeks and stroking them softly.

Her eyes flickered back to mine and started lightening in color, though I could still see the hate and disdain radiating off of them.

"No ripping anyone's heads off, remember?" I asked.

She bit her lip. "I know, I know. Temper. I'm sorry. I just can't stand it when people make fun of you. They have no right to it and I really want to rip their fucking heads off whenever they do, you know? You're my angel and no one insults my angel, it's as plain as that."

"Aw," I cooed, kissing her again. "I love you."

She smiled warmly at me. "I love you too." After a moment, she gave me an innocent look. "So no ripping off heads?"

"No ripping off heads," I repeated.

She pouted adorably. "Fine. But if they try and pull anything, I'm going to break their arms and legs. That's the least they deserve, don't you think?"

"I don't think Carlisle and Esme would appreciate that, Ali," I pointed out, running a hand through my hair. I doubt their parents would either, for that matter. Plus, we'd all have to leave Forks and start somewhere else, which would be a bitch for me. I kind of wanted to stay in one place for a while. I was tired of running around so much.

"I…I know. I'm sorry; Bella, but I can't help it. I can't help getting angry whenever someone threatens you in any way. It's like the jealousy thing, only a lot stronger. I'll try and contain it, but I won't make promises to not react. Like that incident with _Newton_…" She spat his name out as if it were the most rotten piece of scum on the Earth.

"You haven't forgiven him." It wasn't a question, more a statement.

"No," she hissed. "He deserves more than what he got. Much, _much_ more. _Nobody_ touches my Bella that way and I'll be damned if I'm going to let him do it again. He'd best watch his back, just like those bitches should."

I chose not to respond to that. I knew if I did, I'd only get her angrier. And angry Alice was not something that I wanted to unleash on the school, no matter how true her words may be. Instead, I merely held her in my arms until the blackness in her eyes dissipated, the honey color returning slowly, but surely. Eventually her body relaxed into me as she leaned in and kiss my shoulder before looking up at me with gentle tawny eyes.

"Are you ready for class?" she asked.

I groaned. "I'd rather just stay here with you."

She smiled and captured my lips. I closed my eyes and kissed back, ignoring the various grunts of disgust aimed our way as more students arrived. I placed my hands on the back of her head and pulled her into me, kneading my fingers through those amazing silky locks. Alice mimicked my motions and pulled me into her as well as she slowly and passionately moved her lips against mine. I moaned softly at the tingling sensations surging through me, reveling in the taste and smoothness of her lips against mine.

Eventually I needed to break way for oxygen, but I did so slowly. Alice kept her forehead against mine, smiling warmly at me as her eyes gazed back into mine. These were the moments I enjoyed most, other than the kissing and cuddling, just looking into her eyes. They were always so full of love and warmth. I felt safe looking in them, lost in their beauty. It was a nice feeling.

"We should probably be going," Alice sighed. "If we stay out here too long, we'll never leave, which will cause the principal to come out here and break us up. Speaking of which, we should try and keep our PDA to a minimum. She's been receiving a lot of complaints lately and anything too…open…might get her on our case."

I pursed my lips. "I bet Esme could take her."

Alice laughed at that, the sweet music echoing throughout the parking lot. I smiled, enjoying the sounds of her laugh until it slowly died down.

"Oh, Bella, you have no idea how right you are. Esme could and would. She's very protective of us, of you especially, so if anything were to happen to you, you can bet that she'd have something to say to that," Alice said. Her eyes seemed to say something more about it.

"Is there something you aren't telling me?" I asked.

She bit her lip and seemed to think over whether or not to tell me before sighing.

"Well, it's just that there's a lot going on 'behind-the-scenes' if you will. Esme was as livid as I was when found out about what _Newton_ did to you. Suffice to say, she leveled a good portion of the forest in her fury, taking out an entire herd of unlucky deer and the bear that was dumb enough to cross her," Alice stated, running a hand through her hair.

I gasped, imaging Esme ripping the head off a bear and shuddered at the image. Alice stroked my back tenderly and nodded her head.

"But…but Esme is so…loving and sweet and nice…" I protested. I couldn't see her deliberately killing something unless she was hunting. Then I remembered the display when Alice and Rosalie had been fighting, seeing her feral side. I shuddered again.

"Vampires are naturally territorial when it comes to three things," Alice started to say. I wasn't sure how that related to Esme, but I was certain it would eventually. "We are territorial about blood, our mate and lastly, sex."

I blushed a little at the last part, but didn't remark. I wanted to hear what she had to say.

"When we hunt, we give ourselves over to our instincts. Because of that, the word "share" does not normally come into play when we find our prey. The blood that we drink is ours; therefore, we will fight to keep it until we have it in our systems. For sex, I've already explained it to you a bit. Mating is a very sacred ritual for a vampire and as such, we don't like to be disturbed during it. Not only that, but once we mate, it is the equivalent of marking what is ours. After mating, all vampires will know that we and our mate are together and cannot be taken. Stealing one's mate is a foul, disgusting thing that we look down upon, hence why it is so rare."

She stopped to see if I understood what she was saying, to which I nodded at.

"That brings me to my point. Normally, a coven only exists between two vampires, generally mates. However, as you can see, we all live together with one another without feeling territorial or anything such as that. Esme believes that our abstaining from human blood is what helps us further develop our bonds. In truth, we are all protective of one another as family, even more so then normal vampires. Carlisle and Esme, Esme especially, are protective of all of us. They see us as their children, which is near the equivalent of a mate. For that reason, they don't like it when we are hurt in any way, shape or form."

"Esme loves us all deeply and developed a maternal bond with each of us, so she naturally has the instinct to protect and defend us. With you, because you are a human, you…well, I don't mean to insult you, Bella, but in our eyes you are weaker. Because of that, you need more protection from things. So add Esme's already strong love and you can see why something like what Newton did to you would piss her off. And boy was she livid, especially after hearing about all the insults and the incident with Mallory. It took Carlisle and Jasper to calm her down afterwards, which is rare since usually Carlisle can do it himself."

I absorbed everything she had said to me bit by bit, piecing together a new image of Esme. I now had a newfound level of respect for my mother, especially knowing what she went through. She and Alice were very similar in those standards. I think, if at all possible, I came to love Esme even more then I already did, which is saying something.

"Carlisle doesn't seem to be affected the same way," I mused, thinking of my father. Carlisle was always gentle and kind. I know Alice had mentioned that he was just as able to become feral as Esme, but it was even more difficult to imagine Carlisle angry or…well, vampiric.

"Carlisle has been around for a lot longer then we have. He has far better control over his emotions, but that doesn't mean that he isn't any less bothered by it. Whereas Esme was about ready to allow me the privilege of ripping Mike's head off, Carlisle was more along the lines of speaking with his parents regarding his 'ill behavior'. Carlisle is kind to everyone and it is because of his natural kindness and compassion that the idea of violence doesn't speak to him. That doesn't mean he wasn't angry. He was _furious_, I could tell. He just doesn't show it the same way that Esme or that the rest of us do."

I thought on that and realized that it made sense. Carlisle would keep himself in check not just for the sake of kindness, but to set an example for the rest of us. That helped make me love Carlisle even more then I already did.

"We should get going to class, now. We can talk more later if you'd like," Alice said, nudging my shoulder slightly.

I blinked and nodded. She smiled and laced the fingers of her left hand around my right as we walked off together, bypassing a group of boys who all hooted and cooed at us. Alice and I both shot them glares that silenced them in seconds. I smiled at, though I knew it was Alice's glare that had been the reason. Seriously, her glare was almost as scary as Rosalie's.

We wound up getting to class with a minute to spare, thanks in part to her talking. Neither of us minded and I thoroughly enjoyed learning more about vampires. That was far more interesting than English or whatever else I was taking here.

We spent the entirety of our first class holding hands and passing notes. Alice was able to warn me that the teacher was going to ask me a question ahead of time and gave me the answer, for which I was thankful for. What amazed me was how oblivious the teacher was to our note passing and hand holding. Then again, I think he caught us holding hands, but he didn't bother to make a comment on it. At least the teachers here, for the most part, were respectful. I think.

Then the bell rang and the two of us left the room together. I didn't look forward to leaving her, but I was glad to have a chance to plan things out with Eric, if he still wanted me to go. We stopped at the door and she pecked me on the cheek, holding her lips there for a few stray seconds before reluctantly pulling away and dancing off down the hall. I sighed quietly before trudging through the door and seating myself near Eric.

I didn't fail to notice the very wary gaze that Mike Newton sent my way. Other than that, he avoided me altogether. I guess he'd finally learned his lesson from yesterday. Good, it took him long enough, that creepy jerk. I noticed Eric looking at me with a smile.

"Hey Bella," he greeted as he always did.

I smiled at him. "Hey, Eric."

"So have you decided if you wanna go or not?" he asked.

"Yeah, I'd love to go. If you really want me to, that is," I murmured.

Eric rolled his eyes before grinning excitedly. "Obviously. So can Alice go?"

I shook my head sadly. "No, she can't. She'll be busy that day."

"Aw, that's too bad. But don't worry, we'll keep you company. It'll be great, you'll see." He seemed genuinely enthusiastic about it, which actually put a smile on my face.

"So what day have you guys decided?" I inquired.

"Sunday," he replied. "Ben went and looked it up online and found that the weather will be perfect that day. No wind, just sun, sun and more sun. Great for going surfing or swimming, I'd say. Do you know how to surf?"

I laughed quietly. "No, Eric. Have you seen me walk? I trip over thin air half the time. I couldn't imagine the injuries I'd get if I tried to go surfing and I know Alice wouldn't like it either. No, I think I'll just take a walk or wade in the water. I don't mind watching you guys surf, though."

"Pfft, are you kidding me? We won't leave you all by yourself. Besides, only Katie and I are the surfers of the group. Ben and Angela have tried, but they aren't all that good. Plus, Angela and her glasses and all make it kind of hard. She'll probably wear contacts, though. I've been trying to talk her into getting some cool colored contacts, like your family has, you know? Say, how come you don't wear contacts?"

I blinked, confused by his words. Contacts? What? Oh. Oh! Their eye color. I forgot that gold isn't really a natural eye color. But my eyes aren't gold because I'm not a vampire. Whoops.

"Oh, yeah, mine just haven't come in yet," I lied, sounding surprisingly convincing. "The workers at the company that make them are having a strike right now because of unfair pay, so I won't be able to get mine for another few months, if anything."

"Bummer," Eric said, frowning.

"Yeah, it stinks. But I'll live. Alice lets me borrow hers from time to time, actually, just so I won't feel left out," I said, smiling reassuringly at him.

I was amazed at how smoothly that had gone. Usually whenever I tried to lie, it didn't work. I mean, Alice and I had just gotten done talking about how I stunk at acting, yet here I was able to pull it off. Weird. Maybe being around the Cullens is starting to rub off on me in more ways than one? I mean, literally.

"So does Sunday work for you?" he asked.

I nodded. "Yeah, but I need to know the time and the, er, place."

"Well, we were thinking twelve thirty or so. As for place, it's the big beach reservation on the west side of Forks. If you'd like, we can give you a lift over there."

I considered that for a moment before realizing that Alice would NOT like that at all. She'd get jealous over it and I didn't want her to get jealous. But with the way they were acting concerning the whole La Push thing, I doubted they'd want to drive me. Decisions, decisions…

"I'll check in on that. Can I get back to you later?" I asked.

"Of course," he replied, smiling. "No rush. Angela can give you her number in our next class and you can text her about it when you have your answer."

"That works."

Class began then, though I was actually feeling pretty good. Having the chance to have friends was something I never got before, so it was nice now that I was finally getting that chance. I did wonder if my change would be a problem, but I vowed to keep it in check. I couldn't risk losing any friends or causing any problems for my family. That was unacceptable.

I didn't say anything more to Eric for the rest of class, though there was a comfortable silence between us. Once class ended we chatted a bit more concerning the La Push trip. I didn't mention to him that I didn't have a bathing suit—though I knew that Alice would somehow fix that relatively fast—nor did I mention how jealous she got whenever I talked with him. I knew that she was only doing what her instincts told her, so I wasn't mad or anything. I did wish that she would learn to control them better, but whatever.

Angela was pleased to hear that I was going when I talked with her in my next class. We exchanged cell phone numbers and I promised I'd text her with my answer later tonight. She was even more excited that I was going than Eric was and expressed hope that I would get a better chance to spend time with Katie and Ben.

I was quite happy when the bell rang. I practically fell running out the door, but Angela was able to catch me. She giggled quietly before waving to me as I took off, eager to be with Alice and the others. She was waiting near the entrance to the cafeteria with open arms, which were soon enveloped around me in a warm hug.

After we'd finished, the two of us walked off to our table, sitting down in our usual spots, a tray of food for me already waiting. I smiled and greeted my siblings before eating my food, relaxing next to Alice as she played with my hair. Once I'd finished my food, though, I knew I had to ask.

"Hey, Alice?" I asked softly, wrapping one arm around her.

Her eyes glazed over for a moment, likely getting a vision of what it was I was going to ask.

Once her eyes returned to normal, she frowned. "I don't like that idea."

"I think it's a good idea," Edward disagreed. Alice shot him a glare.

"Well I don't," she hissed.

"What if you drove me over to her house? That way you would still drive me, but it wouldn't cause a problem?" I offered.

Alice opened her mouth to respond, but closed it shut and actually seemed to consider that.

"What's going on, now?" Emmett asked curiously.

"They're just planning out Bella's…beach trip," Edward said with mild hesitation.

Rosalie snorted while Emmett nodded in understanding. Jasper and Amara were silent, though I could tell by Amara's eyes that she didn't like the idea of me going to La Push.

"Fine," Alice sighed. "But if she touches you…"

"Alice, she has a boyfriend," I interjected.

She pouted adorably for a moment before getting hit by another vision. When she came out of it, she had a devilish smile on her face. Edward's lips curled into an amused smirk as well. I was confused at first when I remembered thinking about swimsuits earlier. The glint in Edward's eyes told me I was correct. I groaned internally, but secretly pondered the idea of seeing Alice in a bikini. Now _that_ would be a treat.

Edward guffawed for a good few minutes before the lunch bell rang and all of us were off. Even though Alice and I walked off holding hands, she refused to say anything about her last vision. I sighed as we walked into Biology together. Biology wasn't much fun, truthfully, because I spent most of it dreading what was to come next in PE. Before I knew it, the bell had rung and we were on our way to PE.

Dodgeball. Fun stuff. _Not_.

**A/N: Hooray for the fluffiness. And for some more informational stuff. I'm glad I got to throw that in there, I always enjoy adding more depth to the vampires as a whole.**

**Now let's get down to the dodgeball. Wee!**

**And yay me for chapter thirty! Okay, technically this is number thirty one, but I don't count the preface as a chapter. **


	32. Dodgeball

**Disclaimer: I don't own Twilight. I take no credit for Twilight. I own Amara and all other OCs.**

**Dodgeball**

"Bella, it'll be fine," Alice soothed as we made our way towards the gym. "I'll be there the whole time, I promise."

I groaned uneasily. Playing dodgeball was bad enough on its own. While I was worried about it, truth be told, I was far more concerned with the people playing it. I knew without a shadow of a doubt that I would become the primary target for most people, the girls especially. We shared PE with Lauren, Jessica and their little bimbo friends, who all had it out for Alice and I, me especially. I also worried about Alice's control over her instincts, especially when most of the people she wasn't happy with, Mike included, were in our class.

Was I nervous? Yes, very.

"Bella, if you'd like, I can take you to the nurse and make up an excuse to take you home early to get you out of PE," Alice offered.

I was actually considering that for a moment, but shook my head.

"No, because then I'd be disappointing Esme," I sighed.

"Bella, you won't disappoint her by missing one class," Alice stated, shaking her head. "If anything, she would understand completely why you wouldn't want to go. I understand, I do, so don't think anyone thinks less of you."

I bit my lip and mulled it over. We were at the doorway to the locker room now and I had a choice to make. Go in there, change, and face my fears or run away from them. I couldn't just run away all the time. I'd been running away from things from far too long now and I sure as hell didn't want to keep it up. Not with the Cullens, my family, being brave and willing to face anything that came their way head on. This was a stupid game of dodgeball, not some murderous vampire out to get me, after all.

I turned to Alice and saw her coming out of a vision, likely of my decision. She smiled at me.

"You don't have to do this, Bella, but if it's what you want, then I'm fine with it."

And with that, we walked down the stairs into the locker room. I ignored the glares and jeers thrown my way and went over to my locker, Alice right next to me. We proceeded to change into our PE outfits, which for me consisted of black sweatpants and a short sleeved gray shirt. Changing into different clothes wasn't a big deal since I slipped the sweats over my jeans and quickly switched shirts. Alice was already waiting in her attire by the time I had my sweats on.

"Show off," I muttered. Her lips curved into a smile, but she chose not to comment.

Once I was done we both walked up the stairs together and into the gym itself, where most of the other students were already waiting. Mike Newton was there, standing with his friend Tyler Crowley and two other boys I didn't recognize. All of their eyes, save for Mike's, averted and stared at us as we made our way inside. Alice's eyes darkened in irritation, but she made no move to growl and snarl at them, thankfully.

Our teacher, Coach Clapp, finally made his way into the gym from the boys locker room as the remaining students filed in. Once everyone was present and our roll was taken, he cleared his throat and announced that today we would be playing a game of dodgeball. That earned a collection of groans, whining and grins of excitement from nearly half the class.

"I'm going to be separating all of you into two teams. When I call your name, please move to the side that your team is on," he announced. Then he started calling names at random order. It seemed like he had gotten the list made up right before he started class. That didn't sound good.

It didn't take long for me to see that my initial fears were made true, only worse. Alice wasn't on my team; she was on the opposing team. When he made that announcement, my heart nearly dropped in my chest as I gaped at him. It took me a moment to realize what that meant. I turned to Alice and saw the same shell shocked expression on her face.

"You didn't know?" I asked.

She shook her head and looked at me apologetically. "I'm so sorry," she murmured.

I bit my lip and ran a hand through my hair. "It's fine. I guess he made a snap decision and that's why you didn't see it. Just try not to throw the ball too hard at me, okay?"

Her eyes widened into a look of sheer horror. "I would_ never_ throw the ball at you, Bella. What are you talking about?"

"Alice, you're kind of supposed to, though," I pointed out.

She shook her head furiously. "No, not at you. I'll aim for the other people on your team, but not you. And if someone tries to throw it at you, I'll stop them before they get a chance, I promise you that now."

I smiled appreciatively at her. "Try not to do anything too rough, okay? I don't want you getting thrown out of the game or anything like that because you were trying to keep my ass safe."

"I'll do more than keep your ass safe, sweetie," she cooed, pecking me on the cheek.

Coach Clapp told everyone to get to their sides now. Alice begrudgingly did as commanded and trotted over to the opposite side as I walked over to mine. I was silently cursing Coach Clapp in my head, damning him for a thousand years for making us play this vile game and even more so for keeping Alice and I separated. That was when I turned around and made another startling realization that made me loathe this day even more.

All of the people who hated me most were on the opposite team. Lauren Mallory and her bimbo brigade entourage, plus Mike Newton and a few of his perverted, dick-wad friends were all on the same team as Alice. And I knew right away from the evil gleam in Lauren's eyes that I was her primary target. God, she really hated me.

I could tell no one on my team was particularly fond of me, either. Several disgruntled girls and a few wary boys all glanced at me a few times, whispering amongst themselves. I didn't hear nor try to hear them yak, since I just wanted to get this over with. I took several steps back, keeping my eyes trained on the people I knew would try and pelt me with dodgeballs and waited for the whistle to be blown for the game to start.

Coach Clapp brought the whistle to his lips, hesitated for a moment, then blew it. I silently vowed to shove that thing down his throat if he ever did this again as everyone, save for me, ran towards the line of balls waiting to be picked up and thrown.

In a matter of seconds, two dodgeballs were flying through the air, both aimed at me. I am not the most graceful person, nor am I the best at hand-eye-coordination. But one thing I am good at, amazingly enough, is dodging things. I managed to sidestep the first ball and ducked under the second, narrowly avoiding it. I grabbed them both off the ground and tossed one over to anyone on my team with empty hands while actually attempting to throw the other one.

I aimed for the first person I saw, cocked my right arm back and then let it loose with as much power as I could muster. My target caught sight of the ball and managed to avoid it in time, though in truth I wasn't even aiming to get them out. I caught sight of Alice gracefully dodging a ball flying towards her, grabbing it mid-spin and throwing it right back at the person who had thrown it. And they, for lack of a better phrase, didn't even see it coming.

That was the first person to get out. Another ball flew at me, which I barely managed to avoid.

Lauren. Of course she would be the one throwing them. Her eyes were focused on me with a glare that basically said 'I'm-going-to-knock-your-ass-out-dyke' as she moved around trying to grab another ball to throw. Out of the corner of my eye I saw Alice shooting daggers at Lauren, curling her lip back in fury. Bitch better watch out is all I have to say.

My attention was diverted when something round was coming towards my head. I whipped my head around just in time to see a ball flying at it and somehow I managed to duck under it. That, however, was followed by me slipping and falling on my ass, earning a few stray bits of laughter from both sides. The boy a few feet away from me, who had laughed harder than necessary, was quickly nailed in the gut by a ball. He clutched his stomach in pain and lurched over to catch his breath as he slowly trudged over to the "out" side.

Alice, of course, was the one who had thrown it, glaring after the boy before switching her attention to avoiding not one but two balls at once. She gracefully sidestepped both balls with ease, again making me marvel how fluid her movements were.

Something caught my attention to my side. I turned and saw one of the girls on my team smirking and aiming a ball at Alice before slinging it her way when her back was turned. That act pissed me off. Who the fuck does she think she is, throwing a ball at my Alice like that? Her back was turned, for God's sakes! Bitch!

My mind suddenly screamed at me to turn around, which I did. Another ball, whizzing through the air at me. I was starting to get sick and fucking tired of them throwing balls at _me_ all the damn time, my team was practically full!

I felt the rage seeping through me and before I'd known it, my left hand had shot out and grabbed the ball. Without hesitation, I cocked my arm back and flung that ball, straight at the first person I saw. And this time, I hit my mark. Mike Newton was on the ground in an instant as the ball careened his lower stomach, coming dangerously close to the area that I had actually been aiming for. I smirked in satisfaction as he toppled to the ground, Jessica squealing and running over to him like he was on fire.

Of course, my victory was short lived, since the moment I turned around my vision went black as I toppled to the ground. I heard a loud snarl tear through the room before I felt cool hands touching my cheeks. I blinked several times as I came out of the darkness to see Alice staring down at me, her dark gold eyes smoldering with worry and concern. It took me a moment to realize that I had been hit in the face. Lauren had gotten her wish after all.

"Ow," I groaned, my face, nose especially, throbbing. Alice whimpered and pressed her forehead to mine, reacting to my injury the way she normally did. "I'm okay, Ali. Go on and get back to your side. I'll be fine."

She helped me to my feet before disdainfully walking back to her side. The teacher had been too preoccupied with other things to even notice, looking up only after I'd been hit. I started towards the 'out' side, trying to avoid the people on my team. Apparently I hadn't taken into account that the other team didn't plan on avoiding me, though.

Inches away from that line, the one where I would be safe, a ball slammed into my right leg, causing me to fall over. I managed to land on my forearms, but the pain was no less severe. I winced at the pain and squirmed to my feet, not failing to hear the growl from Alice. I finally made it over the safe line and plopped down on my seat, rubbing my arms and knees as they surged with pain. At least now I didn't have to worry about being hit.

Instead, I was free to watch Alice. And watch her I did.

She danced about her side of the room, avoiding balls left and right. I could tell all the way over here that her eyes were black, but she seemed to be able to control herself as she continually dodged flying balls. Her "teammates", if you could call them that, paid no attention to her as they threw ball after ball at my side. Some of the people on my side were able to catch the balls being thrown, allowing for past eliminated players to return.

With Alice, however, that didn't last long. She caught the balls more times than one, eliminating my teammates and allowing hers to return to action. Soon the numbers were in her team's hands as only half of my team still remained in place.

Balls began zigzagging back and forth as people ran around, ducking, jumping, shouting and doing anything else to avoid getting out. Some were caught, while some were dropped and others just hit their target and nothing more. I caught sight of Lauren and Jessica glaring at me, their eyes telling me they wished I was fair game for them to hit. Then they blinked and looked at each other before a smile formed on their lips.

At first, I was confused. I glanced over and found that Coach Clapp wasn't sitting where he had been. He was over in the corner, talking to someone, not even paying attention to what was going on. He had his aide running the show. And his aide happened to hate me too. Oh, fuck. That can't be good.

And it wasn't.

Those two grabbed onto a dodgeball and prepared to throw them at me. Alice, however, reacted faster than they could and tackled them both to the ground, causing them to drop the balls they had been holding onto. She was off them in an instant, glaring scathingly at them, enough to frighten the two bimbos. Not even Lauren had the guts to glare back.

Perhaps the funniest part was that, as they started to stand, someone from my time actually nailed Lauren in the head, causing her to drop back down. Jessica went to check on her and was hit seconds later, getting her out too. I tried hard not to laugh as they moped and limped over to the 'out' side, their pride clearly more wounded then they were. I shot Alice a thankful smile, which she returned before ducking under a ball aimed at her head.

As the game went on, it actually became more intense. People were moving faster, balls were being thrown harder and Alice, surprisingly, was getting her head into the game. Without me to worry about, it seemed, she was actually starting to look like she was enjoying herself. I couldn't help grinning at the devilish smirk that came onto her face as she played, dodging and throwing balls left and right. It was fun to watch her, actually.

At the time, I thought that Alice's team would surely win because of her. However, some of my teammates surprised me by being better then I'd thought. Even with the numbers stacked against them, they managed to catch balls that were thrown and get a few people out. Eventually it came down to where I was the next person who would be getting in if someone on my team managed to catch a ball. I prayed they wouldn't, but that went down the drain seconds later.

With a groan, I got off my seat and quickly walked over to my team, moving behind them so that I wouldn't have to worry about being hit quite yet. Now things were becoming serious for both sides, especially because of the numbers game.

Alice's side had the advantage. Number one, they had her. Number two, they had eleven to the six people on my side. It wasn't looking good, especially since as soon as I started to think about it, someone from my team was eliminated, dropping our number to five. Shit.

Balls began flying everywhere again. I had to keep my eyes peeled as I dodged and avoided the balls thrown at me while unsuccessfully trying to grab them. My team was struggling to do the same, but they were actually succeeding where I was failing. Two of them tossed a ball and nailed two people on the opposite team, dropping their number to nine. However, one of those two got out seconds later thanks in part to Alice.

The ball that had hit her rolled towards me, so I instinctively ran towards it. I felt a ball nearly hit my head as I ducked and grabbed the one rolling and, without thinking, threw the damn thing. I didn't realize that I had aimed for Alice. I cupped my mouth in horror at what I'd done, but she didn't seem too bothered by it. She merely smiled, shrugged and dodged it. I knew could have could have grabbed it if she wanted to, but she chose not to.

The next two minutes were spent of my team trying to stay alive while I tried not to get hit or fall. My heart was pounding and my body was covered in sweat, the same as everyone else save for Alice, who couldn't sweat. I worried about what this was doing to her, though, and looked over to check on her. Her eyes were jet black, but she didn't seem to be showcasing thirst or pain. In fact, she seemed to be _enjoying _herself.

Another minute and the numbers of the game had changed altogether. Now there were five people on my team, me included. And only one person on the other team, Alice.

I felt terrified. Not only that, but I felt a surge of...need. The need to protect Alice from the other four people that would try and hurt her. Even though I knew deep down that nothing they did would hurt her physically, the thought of them trying still irritated me. It had before too, but there had been other targets. Now it was just her. I didn't like that.

Alice readied herself as the four of them grabbed onto a ball to throw. I didn't, of course, and merely watched with clenched fists as they threw the balls at her. Alice smirked and dodged every last one of them, waiting for them to hit the floor before she started to grab them. In a matter of seconds I watched as she spun around and tossed each ball back, hitting each of the four people on my team, surprising them each time.

She was about to let loose the last ball in her hand when she realized that I was the only one remaining. And then she stopped, dead in her tracks, her eyes widening. Alice hesitated. I could see that she didn't want to throw the ball at me, even though I was silently pleading her to, just to end this stupid game. But she didn't.

I stared into her eyes, uncertain of what to do. She gave me a look that told me to move away, so I did. I moved forwards and watched as the ball flew by where I had been standing. I heard some booing from the stands as the other students watched on. Alice paid them no mind and instead seemed to struggle with what to do. I grabbed onto a ball that was near my feet and hesitated as I turned towards her. Our eyes met again.

I grimaced. I didn't want to throw it at her. It wasn't that I was afraid of hurting her, it was just this subconscious urge telling me not to over and over again. But I didn't have a choice, though, so I ignored the urges and threw it anyways. Alice dodged it with ease and grabbed another one, that same look from before on her face. I moved. She threw. She missed.

This repeated itself several times. My legs were starting to hurt from all my running though, and I was quickly losing my breath. I wanted this to end. Initially, I intended just to let Alice hit me so that it would be over with. However, my plan was cut short when I slipped on the floor and fell on the ground, ramming my face against it and landing awkwardly on my right wrist.

The impact sent a searing pain into my hand and face, causing me to whimper. That got most of the class to laugh, since clearly my agony was the funniest thing in the world in their eyes. Seconds later I felt cold hands touching me and looked up to see that Alice was by my side again, reacting to my injury. Her hands wrapped around my wrist and started to gently massage it while she pressed her forehead to mine, nuzzling me affectionately.

"Thank you, Alice. I'm okay," I whispered, touching her cheek with my other hand.

She didn't respond, her body beginning to vibrate instead as she continued to nuzzle me. Then that humming noise started emanating from her as she purred, like it had in the forest that day. I felt strangely at peace while she did this, forgetting the pain I felt, forgetting the others around us, forgetting that we were still in class together. It was an odd, yet welcome sense of tranquility.

Suddenly she stopped and snarled, spinning around to catch a ball that was flying our way that I hadn't even seen coming. With a hiss she threw the ball back at the person who had thrown it, hitting that person, Tyler Crowley, in his lower area full force. Tyler let out a loud gasp before dropping to the ground, causing everyone else to erupt into laughter. She glared after him for a moment before returning her worried eyes to me.

"I'm fine, really Alice," I said, moving my wrist around to show her. She didn't respond again, but she did release my wrist and help me stand up. "Thank you."

Alice blinked several times, a bit of color returning to her eyes as she scanned me over.

"You're certain you're alright?" she asked.

I nodded. "Yeah, I'm fine."

Coach Clapp called the class to order at that moment and, because Alice stepped over the line, she was eliminated. Thus, my team won. Most of the others celebrated, but I didn't bother with it and walked with Alice down to the locker room to change. I noticed Alice's body was stiff as she walked and that her eyes were still dark in color.

"Are you doing okay, Alice?" I asked softly as we made it to our lockers. We were the only ones in the room at the moment.

"I'm f-f-f-fine," she stammered as she hurriedly changed into her normal clothes.

I looked at her concernedly before sighing and pulling my shirt off. I wasn't as uncomfortable changing with just Alice around. Even though I was still a little embarrassed, she'd seen me that way before. And truth be told, I got used to being comfortable with Alice fast naturally. I used my shirt to dab up my wet face and, out of curiosity, sniffed my shirt.

"Ugh, this stinks," I grumbled. It was amazing how only a few days could make a shirt smell this bad. I bet Alice's shirt smells fantastic. Lucky vampires. I guess I should pack it with me and ask Esme to wash them.

I sighed and stuffed it into my backpack before slipping my sweats off and putting them in too. I prepared to grab my shirt, when an odd noise caught my attention. I stopped and glanced to my left to see Alice staring at me with wide black eyes. My cheeks turned red as she slowly studied my body. This was the second time she'd done this, but not in a place as open as this.

"Alice…"

She was in front of me in an instant. "My God, Bella. You are so sexy…" she purred.

"Alice, wha-"

Before I could even react to it, Alice had me up against the lockers, her hands pinning my shoulders to the cold steel. That action completely surprised me as she pressed her nose to the base of my neck and breathed in, eliciting a moan from her lips. She repeated this several times, moving her nose upwards and breathing in and out.

"God Bella…" she moaned. "You smell so good…"

I wasn't certain how to react. Part of me felt thrilled, part of me was embarrassed and part of me was worried. I recalled that time in the car when she had done this, which only caused her to attack me. While that fear still existed, I held within my heart the belief that Alice wouldn't let that happen. Her maternal instincts, if anything, would kick in and prevent her from it. Right?

Alice's body was vibrating as she smelled me. "Mm. You have no idea how good you smell, Bella," she murmured. "And your sweat. It just makes you smell so damn good."

She looked at me then, her eyes pitch black. "Bella," she breathed, clenching her jaw.

"Easy, Alice," I murmured. I could see the growing distress in her eyes. She leaned in and sniffed me again, moaning quietly as she did. Then she forced herself back and bit her lip, shutting her eyes as she struggled to fight off her urges.

"I'm sorry," she squeaked. "You…smell good. Sweat…too much."

"Go," I whispered.

She looked at me sadly before nodding and, after grabbing her things, ran out of the locker room at a slightly faster than human pace. Once she was out of sight, I let out the breath that I'd been holding in, relaxing against the lockers. I took a few deep breaths to ease myself, a flash flood of emotions and thoughts surging through my mind as I did.

I didn't know what the hell had just happened or what had almost just happened, though I had an idea. I figured that being surrounded by people moving around a lot was a lot of trouble for Alice, especially when she was already affected by my naturally appealing scent. Add in the multitude of beating hearts and the allure of sweat to her and she must've been in a mass of pain just trying to keep her control.

I think being down here with me meant being next to a constant source, so she must have finally reached her limitations. Poor Alice, I hope she's okay. Realizing that I had yet put my shirt on, I blushed profusely before hurriedly slipping it on. With that done, I decided it was best to get out of here before-

"Well, well, look who's all alone."

Ah, fuck.

I turned and saw Lauren and her bimbo brigade, Jessica and Amber, all glaring at me. There were now three other girls standing with them with the same looks. I recognized them as Tina, Bridgette and Allison, all girls who hung around with Lauren on a regular basis. And of course, all of them had it out for me.

Lauren stepped towards me, a look of disgust on her face.

"Where's your little freak protector at?" she asked snidely.

I narrowed my eyes. "Don't call her that," I hissed. I didn't fail to notice Jessica twitch.

Amber scoffed. "What are you going to do about it?"

The other girls moved forward and around to block off any way of escaping. They were surrounding me. I didn't like this. I wasn't a fighter naturally, but I knew how to defend myself if need be. The problem, of course, is that it's one against six. I can take maybe three of them, since most of them don't look like they know how to fight. But six? Shit, this isn't looking good.

"We don't like having you here in our school, dyke," Jessica growled. She was trying to act threatening, but failing miserably. Not only was she incredibly short compared to me, but she couldn't even sound threatening.

"We want you gone," Tina added.

"You and your weirdo family," Bridgette piped.

They were all closer to me, now. Lauren stood in front of me, Tina, Bridgette and Amber to my right and Jessica and Allison to my left. I clenched my fists, my eyes darting from each of them, waiting to see what they would do.

"We're gonna teach you a lesson, bitch. Then you and your family will get that you aren't wanted here," Lauren sneered.

I licked my lips. "Fuck you, whore. You can't make us do shit."

"Ooh, big words coming from a girl who's sorely outnumbered," squawked Allison.

"You think your little girlfriend is going to save you? She's long gone. She probably ran away from you," Jessica scoffed.

I ground my teeth together, feeling the anger slowly building. I saw her neck, the small bandage covering where I'd bitten her before. It was still a fresh wound.

Bite her. Tear into her. Make her suffer.

I cringed and fought back the urge to leap at her, trying to keep the vortex of emotions whirling within me at bay. Stupid venom giving me stupid vampire urges.

"Aw, are you gonna cry?" Amber asked in a mocking voice.

I gritted my teeth, but kept myself from releasing the growl that wanted to be let out.

"Did she leave you? Is that why she ran out of here so fast?" Lauren asked. "See, you can't even get the freak to stay with you."

Okay. That's it.

I snapped my left hand forward and caught her in the chin, causing her to topple backwards. Jessica shrieked while the other girls all watched in surprise. Then they reacted. Allison, Amber, Bridgette and Tina all leapt towards me with their hands outstretched, trying to grab me. I snarled and lashed out as best I could, kicking Amber in the chest and backhanding Tina, at the very least, before being slammed into the lockers by the other two.

Lauren was on her feet now looking furious.

"You stupid bitch!" she screamed. Her right hand smashed into my cheek, knocking me down to the ground. I couldn't react in time and in seconds the other girls had me ensnared in their tight grips. Tina grabbed the back of my head, Allison my right arm, Amber the left. Jessica and Bridgette both stomped on my feet and held my legs in place.

"Let me go!" I snarled, writhing around to free myself from their grips.

"Shut up!" Lauren snapped, smacking me across the face. "How dare you strike me you disgusting lesbo!"

The other girls thrust me back into the lockers. Lauren struck me across the face again.

"You like that? Huh? You like that, you stupid bitch?" Lauren hissed through her teeth.

"Stop," I pleaded. Their grips tightened on me. I winced at the pain and struggled to break free, only to receive another sharp blow from Lauren, who was smirking in cruel satisfaction. "Please, stop it. Stop!" My pleas fell on deaf ears as they only laughed in my face.

I was feeling overwhelming anger. Not only that, but another feeling, one I couldn't place.

"We'll teach you!" the girls jeered.

I closed my eyes, fighting back the tears as another blow hit me.

"I said STOP!" I screamed.

Suddenly all of the girls surrounding me were thrown backwards. I blinked. What the fuck? What just happened? One moment they have me pinned, the next they're all on the floor. I didn't understand what had happened. I didn't get a chance to think either since the girls were all standing, dazed and confused themselves.

"What the fuck?" Amber cursed. "What just happened?"

"I don't know," groaned Jessica.

"Who cares?" Lauren hissed. She jabbed her finger at me. "Get her!"

Shit! I tried to make a dash for it, but ended up tripping and falling to the floor. The other girls started swarming around me, grabbing me to throw me back where I had been before. Lauren was about to say something when a feral roar tore through the entire room, causing all heads to turn to the entrance to the locker room.

Alice.

No. Not just Alice. Rosalie and Amara, too, all three of them with black eyes and angry glares.

Before anyone could even blink, Alice was in front of me, slamming her left fist into Lauren's chest. She let out a quiet gasp before flying backwards, hitting the ground and rolling around a few times before stopping. Rosalie and Amara were right next to her, grabbing and throwing the other girls off of me.

Jessica squealed like a frightened kitten and tried to run away, but Alice grabbed onto her shirt and pulled her closer. She curled back her upper lip and snarled before throwing Jessica like a ragdoll into Lauren, who started to stagger to her feet.

I heard the moans and groans of the other girls as they all staggered to their feet.

"I think these little shits need to be taught a lesson," Rosalie hissed.

"I agree," Amara growled.

In a flash they each blurred over to two of the girls and grabbed onto them before dragging them off. I stared after, fearful of what they had in mind. Then again, I knew they wouldn't do anything to jeopardize their family. And they seemed to be in more control then Alice was.

Oh. Alice.

Alice looked like she was about ready to rip Lauren and Jessica's heads off.

"Alice, don't," I said softly.

She whipped her head around to look at me. I watched her eyes widen in pain and fury before she let out another loud snarl and started walking towards the two downed blondes, fists quivering next to her sides.

"Alice, no!" I shouted. "They aren't worth it!"

It wasn't working. She wasn't listening to me. I was about to shout again when I heard the sounds of screaming coming down the hallway, likely from whatever it was Rosalie and Amara were doing to those girls. I shuddered at the thought and chanced a glance in that direction. A moment later, the four girls ran out of the hallway, screaming and covering their heads. I gasped when I saw what had happened.

They'd gotten their heads shaved.

I would have laughed were I not worried about Alice. She was now at Jessica and Lauren, grabbing them both roughly and lifting them both up. I ran towards her, trying to stop her from causing them any harm. Yeah, ironic isn't it?

I didn't get a chance to reach her, though, because a felt two cold hands gently stop me.

"Don't," Rosalie warned, speaking softer then I'd ever heard before. "If you approach her, you'll only cause her instincts to flare out of control. She hasn't lost it yet."

I turned and merely watched on.

"You," Alice snarled, glaring at Jessica. "Leave. Now."

I was surprised at that, as equally surprised as Jessica was. It didn't take long for her to react, though, because seconds later she booked it out of the locker room, not even bothering to look back. Lauren was quivering madly as Alice let out a very low hiss.

"You. You have insulted my family. You have insulted me. But worse, you DARE touch MY Bella. Now you listen and you listen good you stupid, close-minded piece of shit. If you _ever_ touch her again, if you _ever_ insult her or any one of my family again, if you so much as glare at her again, I will _break_ you. Do you understand?" Alice asked, her voice laced with venom.

"Y-y-y-yes…" she whimpered.

"Good," Alice hissed. "Because if you ever, _ever_ lay a fucking _finger_ on her, I will make you regret it. Now _leave_."

She released Lauren and in a flash the blonde skittered off. Alice didn't move from her spot at first, standing still like a statue for a few minutes. Rosalie removed her hand from my shoulder and sighed quietly. I glanced at her and Amara. They were tense, that much I could see and neither seemed to be too happy. Rosalie noticed my puzzled expression and reached into her pocket to pull out a small mirror.

"Do you know why she's so upset?" she asked. I shook my head. She opened the mirror and handed it to me. I opened it and nearly gasped when I saw the large bruises on my cheeks left over from Lauren. "That's why."

"Stupid little shit deserved worse," Amara grumbled.

Alice turned and walked towards me, her face soft and full of sorrow and concern. She gently touched my cheeks as she gazed into my eyes, conveying her remorse for me getting hurt. I pressed my forehead against hers and placed my hands on hers, rubbing them with my thumbs.

"We should go," Rosalie grunted.

Alice closed her eyes and pulled her hands away. "Yes, we should." She looped her left arm around my waist and pulled me with her as the four of us made our way up the stairs to exit the locker room. Once we were out, I saw the other girls, who watched us with gaping eyes. They didn't move or speak, they just gaped.

Rosalie snorted next to me. "Ah, the smell of sweaty teenagers."

"Too strong," Amara muttered.

Alice grunted in agreement as we left the building altogether. I didn't see Lauren or Jessica or any of the other girls as we all speedily walked to the parking lot. Something caught my attention to my left and when I turned, I was stunned when I saw a group of boys hanging by their underwear from several tree limbs. What's more, I recognized them from my PE class, Mike Newton and Tyler Crowley included.

What the hell?

"They were making some lewd comments, so we decided to teach them a lesson."

I knew that voice. Edward. He, Jasper and Emmett were all waiting near the cars. Their eyes all widened when they saw me. Emmett ground his teeth together, his face contorting into one of anger. Edward frowned disdainfully and clenched his fists. Jasper was as irritated as they were, but was doing what he could to calm them down.

"What happened?" Emmett asked.

"Later," hissed Alice. "Home now."

"Esme's not going to like this," Jasper murmured, shaking his head.

I cringed when I remembered what Alice had told me earlier. Esme would be livid. And that wasn't something I was looking forward to.

**A/N: Ah, good old dodgeball. Giving kids an excuse to hit someone they hate in the face. **

**Isn't school drama fun? No? Well, I agree. But this stuff is. So, you know, let's move on.**


	33. Esme

**Disclaimer: I take no claim for any of Stephanie Meyer's characters, only for my own.**

**Esme**

Alice practically carried me to her car. She opened the door and placed me inside, even doing my seatbelt for me before she blurred over to her side and got in. Edward decided to carpool with the others, since being around Alice was a bad idea. I asked him why, to which he told me he'd explain it later. I was silent as Alice started the engine and drove off. Our drive home was silent. I could tell just by looking that Alice was still seething. Everything about her posture, her eyes especially, was tense as she drove, just barely able to keep her attention on the road.

I didn't say anything. I was too scared to. I felt Alice's gaze on me constantly as she drove. I glanced over at her when her eyes met mine. I could see them smoldering with love and affection, but also with sorrow, pain and fury, the same emotions I'd seen at school, only intensified. She didn't say anything, though. Not even when we pulled into the driveway.

Alice blurred from out of the car and pulled me from my seat before wrapping an arm around me to take me inside. In a flash I saw Esme standing in the doorway, the smile she had on her face dropping instantly when she caught sight of me.

"What happened?" she asked, appearing in front of us in an instant. Her cool hands gently touched my cheeks, her eyes smoldering the same way as Alice's.

Alice tensed up next to me. "Those…_cretins_…attacked her," she ground out, her rage seeping through each word.

Esme's eyes darkened intensely "They _what_?" she snarled.

I cringed at her dangerous tone and started thinking of how to tone the situation down. I didn't want Esme to get upset, that was for damn sure.

"It was nothing, Esme. I just got into a bit of a scuffle with a few girls. No big deal."

My mother narrowed her eyes at me and shook her head furiously. "No big deal? Someone _hurt _my child! That is a _very_ big deal to me!" Her eyes now mirrored Alice's, but there was something else in them. I remembered what Alice had told me earlier about Esme's maternal instincts and how protective of her children she was.

An image of an angry Esme tearing off the heads of all six girls flashed through my mind. I shuddered at it.

"Tell me what happened," Esme stated, grasping my shoulders. I was surprised by the gentleness in both her voice and her grip, despite the underlying fury in her tone. I was at least glad that she was able to maintain some of her natural Esme-ness.

Despite the fact that I was rather terrified of the results, I knew that I couldn't say no to her. So I told her everything that had happened, excluding that small thing with Alice. I told her what the girls said and did, trying hard to tone it down, but failing miserably. I just could not bring myself to lie to Esme, no matter what the consequences were. I looked at the ground as I finished, fearful of what I would see in Esme's eyes. I had a very bad feeling about what was going to end up happening. And sometimes, I really hate when I'm right.

Esme stared blankly for a moment before curling back her lip and letting loose a vicious, guttural roar that rang through the surrounding forests. The sound was frightening beyond anything I'd ever heard before, making me jump practically five feet in the air. Alice pulled me protectively into her arms and let out a loud hiss at her mother, angered that she had frightened me. Esme hissed right back, baring her teeth at her daughter. The two of them glared at one another with coal black eyes while I trembled in Alice's arms like a frightened child.

Okay, I _was_ a frightened child. I had thought I'd seen Esme angry before when Alice and Rosalie had been fighting. Yeah, that was nothing compared to the murderous rage reflected in her eyes. Esme's eyes flickered to me, taking in the sight slowly. Gradually understanding began to dawn on her. Then the recognition. Her face softened, forming an apologetic look as she bowed her head slightly at Alice. Alice stopped hissing and repeated the gesture before loosening her arms.

After a moment, Esme closed her eyes, concentrating on something. When she reopened them, they were no different from before, save for a small glint of remorse.

"I'm sorry, Bella," she murmured, shaking her head. "I did not mean to frighten you. I need…need to get this out, though."

"It's okay," I replied, still holding onto Alice.

Alice pulled me back into her arms and took several steps away from Esme, who seemed to tremble with growing fury. The others pulled up then, coming to a complete stop in an instant when they saw their mother. I had a feeling Esme was going to blow, so I ducked my head into Alice's chest, breathing her scent in to ease.

"Those worthless MAGGOTS!" Esme roared. "How _DARE_ they strike _MY_ child? I have had ENOUGH of this bullshit! NO ONE harms my child and gets away with it, _no one_. I will NOT stand for this! I will _tear _their putrid heads off!"

Esme let out another snarl and in flash slammed her fist against a nearby tree. The trunk of the tree shattered instantly as it toppled over, ramming into another tree. She repeated this and demolished four more trees in her rage. Alice stood still like a statue, watching Esme's every movement with wary eyes. The others were out of the car and standing around us, looking on with various facial expressions. The most surprising of them was the smile on Rosalie's face.

"I love when she's like this," Rosalie said, smirking.

"Perhaps I should try to calm her…?" Jasper pondered out loud.

"Maybe you should just let her anger run its course," Edward suggested. "She isn't thinking straight right now."

"Dude," Emmett breathed. "I haven't seen her this angry in a while."

I blinked and glanced back in the direction Esme had been going. I couldn't see her anymore, but by the thunderous sounds in the distance I could tell she was still in her frenzy. I hoped that she would be okay. Then I remembered Alice and looked up at her. Her eyes were still watching the direction Esme was in.

"Alice?" She didn't respond. She didn't even seem to register that I'd said her name.

The others all looked at her cautiously.

"She needs to hunt," Amara stated. Her eyes flickered to me for a moment.

"Don't approach her yet," Edward whispered. "She's in protective mode. If we get too close, she'll think we're the enemy."

"What do we do, then?" Emmett asked, just as quiet.

"We can't leave Bella with her when she's like this," Amara pointed out.

I gulped as they all exchanged silent looks with one another. Was I really in danger with Alice being like this? I started to worry, which made me tense up in Alice's arms. She noticed this and stared at me with a blank expression. I couldn't read her eyes, so I didn't know what to do or say to get her to relax. That only made me worry more.

"Alice," Jasper called. "Alice, will you look at me?"

Alice inclined her head towards her brother, who gazed at her placidly.

"You need to hunt, Alice. You aren't in control of yourself right now." His words were calm and gentle. I could feel waves of those two emotions flowing off of him as he spoke, likely to try and get Alice to understand his meaning. She glared at him, obviously not trusting his words.

"Alice, trust us. We will look after Bella. She will be safe with us. You need to clear your head and hunt," Edward stated, using the same tone that Jasper had. Her eyes moved to meet his, then back to Jasper's, then to mine. I nodded my head, trying to convey that they were telling her the truth. She hesitated for a moment before reluctantly releasing me from her arms.

"Emmett and I will take her," Rosalie announced. "Come on, Alice."

Alice blinked, looking between Rosalie and I a few times, before sighing in defeat and following her sister as they sprinted into the woods. Emmett smiled reassuringly at me before following after them, disappearing in seconds. That left Jasper, Amara, Edward and I, standing awkwardly a few feet away from our house. I stared in the direction that Alice had gone in before running a hand through my hair.

A wave of exhaustion crashed into me as all the day's events came back. My body, my legs especially, felt weak and I started falling backwards. I was caught, however, by Jasper, who helped steady me back up.

"You okay, Bella?" Amara asked concernedly.

"She's exhausted," Jasper replied. "The day's events must've really worn you down. May I offer my assistance in carrying you into the house?"

I smiled. "Yes, sir, that'd be appreciated."

He chuckled merrily at that before scooping me into his arms and carrying me inside, Amara and Edward trailing behind. Jasper gently placed me on the couch, being sure to prop my head up on a pillow as he did. I smiled appreciatively at both him and his gentlemanly nature. He smiled back in kind before seating himself next to me. Amara sat in one of the armchairs while Edward remained standing, lost in thought as he ran a hand through his matted hair.

Everyone was quiet. I felt tired, yes, but I wasn't sleepy. And I sure as hell couldn't just fall asleep after everything that had gone on today.

"Okay, pardon my language, but what the fuck was all that?" I asked.

My siblings all stared at me for a moment before looking at one another. There was a mixture of amusement and thoughtfulness among them before they decided to reply. Amara was the first to speak, smiling as she did.

"You make it sound as though using swear words is a bad thing," she snickered.

I rolled my eyes. "You know what I mean."

"You are referring to the situation with Esme, yes?" Edward asked. I nodded. "I imagine that Alice has told you a bit concerning Esme's attachment to us and how protective she is?" I nodded again. "Honestly, there isn't much else to explain. She was upset by what happened at school and she went off to blow off some steam."

"I've never seen her so _angry_ before," I murmured, sitting upright.

"It's like a mother bear wanting to protect her cub. The fact that you were physically injured and that she wasn't there to do anything about it hurts her and angers her greatly. You've been hurt several times this past week and she's become fed up with that you you've been treated, Bella. It is part of her nature to want to help you in any way," Jasper explained.

"It's instinct," Amara added.

"Oh." I furrowed my brow. I thought about Alice and Esme hissing at one another, then how they bowed their heads. I didn't understand that.

Edward chose to respond. "Alice was protecting you from Esme. She saw you become scared and her instinct told her that Esme was a threat, thus she needed to protect you from it. Esme's instinct was telling her to go to you in order to help you, but because Alice was there, they had a brief argument with one another. When they bowed their heads, that was a sign that Esme recognized Alice as your mate and that Alice recognized her as a non-threat."

"Though it would've been fun to see those two go at it," Amara snickered. "Be a damn good fight."

"Amara!" I hissed.

She held her hands up in defense. "I'm kidding, of course. Fighting Esme when she's like that is a bad idea, let me tell you. Not that I have done it, but we've all seen it before."

I rubbed my temples, taking all of this in. "Instinct, huh?"

"Yup," Amara said, popping the 'p'.

I quietly sighed. Today had been a long day. A lot of new information added together with school drama, stupid girls and making plans. Oh, shit. I almost forgot about that. I needed to text Angela to tell her that I'd get a ride over to her place from Alice. I reached into my pocket and pulled out my cell phone, which was thankfully already on, and brought up Angela's number. I hit the text message option and start typing away.

_Hey Angela, it's Bella. Just thought I'd tell you that Alice will be giving me a ride to your place on Sunday. See you then._

I clicked my phone shut and rested it on my lap, resting my head back against the couch to relax.

"Would you like something to eat?" Jasper asked. I glanced at him curiously. He smiled. "I'm no Esme in terms of knowing a lot about it, but I do know how to fix a basic meal. I've watched her in the past, mostly out of curiosity. Does a turkey sandwich sound okay?"

"That would be fine, thank you, Jasper," I replied, smiling appreciatively at my gentlemanly brother. He stood up and blurred into the kitchen seconds later.

Edward snorted. "I'm just as much a gentleman as he is."

"Uh huh, whatever you say, Eddie boy," Amara chortled.

Jasper appeared in front of me, handing me a plate with a sandwich on it. I nodded in appreciation and took it from him. I started eating it as Jasper sat down, Edward and Amara both bickering with one another. I finished my food in a few minutes, smiling contently as I set the plate down on the table. The bickering had finally come to a stop, since neither Edward nor Amara was letting up. Jasper just sat there, smiling amusedly at them.

"How can you stand eating that crap?" Amara asked out of the blue, looking at me confusedly.

I shrugged. "It tastes good to me," I replied.

Amara scrunched up her nose. "I think it stinks."

I rolled my eyes. "Now you sound like Alice."

"Pfft. Please. Comparing that midget to _me_ is like comparing a fish to a damn taco."

I gawked at her. "What…?"

She cocked her head to the side. "Is that not the right analogy?"

"I don't think that _is_ an analogy, Amara," Jasper chuckled.

I blinked several times, giggling to myself at my sister's silliness, before standing up and stretching. My pants started to vibrate, which caught me off guard at first and made me jump a little. Then I remembered my cell phone was on and sighed, ignoring the amused looks my vampiric siblings were all giving me. It was a reply from Angela.

_That's good to hear, Bella. I'll see you then!_

I smiled at that and shut my phone off, slipping it back into my pocket for later on. I then made my way upstairs and into the bathroom, since I needed a "human moment" as Alice called it. Once I'd taken care of that little problem, I figured that I would just rest for a moment. I'd had a long day—okay, it felt like a long day to me—so just kicking back seemed like a good enough idea to me. I walked into mine and Alice's room and kicked off my shoes before plopping down onto the bed, laying my head on the pillow and sighing quietly to myself.

I thought about all that had happened in the past week. Meeting and falling in love with Alice. Being adopted into the Cullen family, a family that actually cares about me with a loving mother and father and siblings. Finding out that I'm becoming a vampire at a slow rate. Knowing that James and Victoria are on the horizon, plotting out their next moves to attack. Add in all the drama at school and the deal with Charlie, not to mention learning more about vampires and their ways, and that was my life in a nutshell.

A knock on the door interrupted my thoughts. I sat up, confused as to who would be knocking.

"It's me, Bella," came Esme's voice from the other side.

"Come in," I said softly. Esme stepped into the room and gently shut the door behind her, slowly walking towards me. "You know, this is kinda your house, Esme. You don't have to ask."

She smiled softly at me. "Well, I wanted to make sure I wasn't disturbing you. May I sit?"

I nodded. "Of course." I scooted over and she sat down next to me, crossing her legs and turning so she was facing me.

"I'm terribly sorry for my actions earlier," Esme said softly, hanging her head. "I should not have had an outburst like that and I'm truly sorry for scaring you. I was just…angry. And I know that's no excuse for acting so uncivil. I always get on the others' cases for doing that, yet there I was doing the same. Again, Bella, I'm sorry."

I touched her shoulders. "Esme, it's okay. I understand, really, I do. You were upset that I was hurt. I don't blame you; I probably would've done the same in your place. Then again, with my temper I probably would have trashed Alice's car by mistake, which I know she wouldn't have liked. It's okay, though. I just…you know, I like sweet, loving Esme, not angry, vicious Esme."

Esme smiled warmly and opened her arms up. I didn't hesitate for a second and quickly jumped into her arms, resting my head on her left shoulder as she gave me a loving hug. I sighed happily, since I always loved hugging Esme. She was the second most huggable member of my family and in many ways the person I was closest to aside from Alice. After all, it had been Esme that I first met when I'd broken into their house and Esme who was quick to accept me as her daughter, even before they even adopted me.

I snuggled into my mother and breathed her amazing scent in. It was then that I realized how little about Esme I knew. Hell, I didn't know much about Carlisle either. I wondered if she would be willing to share more about herself?

"I'm glad you aren't too upset with me," Esme said, kissing my cheek. She seemed totally fine with me sitting on her lap, which I thought was awesome. "I just find it disgusting how people treat you. I don't understand it. Why is being gay such a big deal to younger people? It doesn't make sense to me. And then they go and act cruelly towards others because of it. It's ridiculous is what it is and shameful. Humans in this era, I swear."

I sighed. "I think some part of society has always been that way."

She nodded her head. "Yes, that is true. It was like that when I was your age too. Some things just never change." I looked at her curiously, sensing that there was more to be said on the subject. Esme noticed this and grinned. "Would you like to hear my story, dear?" I nodded enthusiastically. I always felt like a small child being read their favorite story whenever I learned more about the Cullens. Their pasts were so interesting to me.

Esme took in a deep breath before she started to talk. "You may not think it, but I used to be a lot more like you are, Bella. I used to be more outgoing when I was younger. I think, though, that I relate to you greatly because I too was bullied when I was in school the way that you are now."

I gaped at that. What kind of sadistic people would ever hurt someone as loving as Esme?

"Allow me to explain," Esme said, smiling at my surprised expression. "My father was the kind of man who believed that a woman was at her best cooking, cleaning and serving her husband and children. My mother was raised that way and thus, she felt the same way as well. She wanted to teach me how to cook and sew and clean so that I would be able to make my future husband happy. I didn't want that, though. I never wanted to sew or cook or clean. No, my passion was art. I loved to draw and paint in my spare time. I wanted to make a career out of it someday."

She sighed, looking sad as she did so.

"Unfortunately, my parents tore that dream up. They told me that I wouldn't succeed and that I should just give up. They felt that I would be better suited following their rules in life. I was devastated at what they'd said, but I didn't stop altogether. No, I kept painting and drawing whenever they weren't around. It wasn't until I started high school that I developed another interest in building things. I have always been the type of person who loved to create, so the idea of building my own furniture excited me. But because I was a girl, people thought I was insane to want to do such a thing. So, naturally, I was teased for it at school."

"The other girls would always insult me, calling me queer and mockingly referring to me as a boy because of my interests. Boys would tease me too. Their teasing, combined with my parents' scrutiny, caused me to give up on my goals. I gave it all up because I lost my confidence, which was the worst mistake I could have ever made. I started following my parents' rules and ideals, learning how to clean and sew. I hated cooking, though, so I refused to learn how to do that. It's a bit ironic now, since I happen to love cooking. I find it so much fun and it's nice to get a chance to cook for someone each day."

I laughed a little at that along with her, though I still felt horrible for what she'd gone through.

"It sounds like your parents were a lot like…mine." I hesitated to say the word. I no longer considered Charlie and Renee my parents. They created me and nothing more in my eyes.

Esme nodded, scowling at the mentioning of them. "Indeed, they were. I loved them, though, and despite everything, they did love me."

"I'm so sorry you had to go through that," I murmured, kissing her on the cheek. It broke my heart to hear that had happened to her. Esme didn't deserve that.

She smiled endearingly at me. "Oh, Bella, you are too sweet. Really though, while a lot of the time it was hard for me, there were several good points. Such as the time when I was sixteen and I fell from a tree. I used to love climbing trees because it always helped me escape from the outside world. Of course, falling and breaking my leg wasn't what I'd had in mind that day. Still, that was the day that I met Carlisle. He was the doctor that treated my injury that day and I swear to you, the moment I saw him I felt something, something I didn't quite understand at the time. If only I'd known about him years later, my life may have gone a little differently."

Her face grew sad again and I hated that. I hated seeing Esme sad as much as I hated seeing Alice sad. It hurt to see such beautiful, sweet, loving people that way.

"You see, when I was a bit older, I wanted to move. Move away from my parents and finally live on my own to become a teacher. Carlisle…when I first met him, just speaking to him reignited the spark I had had and it just made me want to go and become an art teacher. However, my parents pressured me into staying. They brought up their old arguments and they ultimately got me to stay, telling me that I should be married. I was so dead set on doing what my parents wanted that I ended up forgetting what it was that I wanted."

"That is how I ended up meeting my first husband, a man named Charles Evenson. He was a handsome man, I'll admit that, but he had a short temper and, because of the way he was treated growing up, he was an abusive individual. I married him at twenty two in order to appease my parents. And while when we were out and about things seemed okay, behind closed doors he was abused me. I kept quiet about it, though, because I wanted to be a good wife, just like my parents had taught me. Those were the worst few years of my life, at least until he was drafted to fight in World War I, at which point I was free from him for a while."

"Oh Esme…" I felt so horrible for her. I couldn't bear to think of Esme being struck and tossed around like she was meaningless.

Esme just smiled lovingly at me, stroking the back of my head. "You needn't feel sorry for me, Bella. What's in the past is in the past. That was many years ago and I have since put it behind me. I suppose that in some ways that my struggling was what ultimately led me to finding true happiness in life. There's a saying, "you must go through Hell to get to Heaven". I imagine that is how I consider my life to be. I must say, though, that your love and concern for me means the world to me, Bella, and I am happy that you feel as such, even if it isn't necessary for this tale."

I nodded, soaking in her words. Then something struck me. "Did you say World War I?"

She chuckled. "Ah, yes, I did. I suppose I forgot to mention that I was born in 1895, though I do believe that Amara brought it up earlier this week. Needless to say, things were okay until he returned from the war. He was even worse, then, all throughout the year. I couldn't take it anymore, so one day when he wasn't around, I fled. I fled the state and moved north, aiming to do what I'd always wanted to do and become a teacher. That was until I discovered that I was pregnant with Charles' child."

Her eyes darkened, filling with tears that would never fall as she recalled the memory. I had to push mine back. The look on her face was utterly heartbreaking to see. It was like staring into the face of a broken angel.

"My…son…was born in 1921. But he died three days later because of a lung infection. The incident left me brokenhearted and without a purpose in life. With nothing left to live for, I attempted suicide by jumping off a cliff. While the fall was painful, it didn't kill me, though, it merely rendered me unconscious. They found me and transported me to the morgue. That was how Carlisle found me. He recognized me and decided to change me, which is how I came to be."

"I owe Carlisle everything. If it were not for him, I would have never been given a second chance in life. Not only that, but it gave me not one, but now seven children all of my own. The void in my heart has long been filled because of you and the others, Bella. That is why I love you so. All of you are my children, even if I did not give birth to you. I love each and every one of you the same and you are all a part of my world and my happiness. I could not live without any one of you, that much I know. And it also brings me joy when you are happy."

Esme kissed my forehead, her eyes full of love and affection. "That is why I was delighted when you first arrived here. I saw the spark in Alice's eyes and I knew that you were meant for one another. I'm so happy that she finally has someone in her life and I am more than happy that you have found some joy for yourself. It means the world to me to know that you are happy here, Bella, and I want it to stay that way."

She stopped then and looked at me. I was bawling my eyes out, feeling the love radiating off of her. I curled myself into her, hugging her tight as she hugged back with just enough strength to not cause me any harm. She held me there for a few minutes, gently rocking me the way only a mother could, rubbing the tears away with her fingers.

I pulled away slightly, just enough so I could get a few words out.

"I…I…I love you t-t-too, Esme," I sniffled. She smiled lovingly again and pulled me back into a hug. I'm not sure how long we stayed there, sitting on mine and Alice's bed. I lost track of time, truthfully, but I figured it was only about five minutes or so.

"There, there," Esme cooed, rubbing my cheeks tenderly with her thumbs. "Hush now, dear, it's okay. No more crying now, okay? Besides, you wouldn't want Alice getting mad at me, would you?" I smiled a little at that, realizing that she was probably right. "Actually, there's something I would like to show you."

I nodded in understanding. I was about to get off of her, but she merely stood up, picking me up with her before gently setting me down. I followed her as she exited my room and walked further down the hall, stopping all the way at her room. Esme smiled at me, opening her door and gesturing for me to follow. I'd never been in her room before, so I was curious to see what it looked like on the inside.

When I stepped into her room, my eyes bulged in amazement. Her room was beautiful. The walls were painted with various designs, like angels and flowers, yet everything went together perfectly. Then there were the various paintings on the walls. There was a painting of each family member, separate and with their respective mate, all of them hung up in a particular order. I noticed that there was a blank spot next to Alice's painting, which I marveled at, amazed by the depth Esme had put into replicating my angelic pixie.

"These are…amazing, Esme," I breathed, stunned.

"Thank you, Bella," she replied, coming to stand by me. She pointed to the vacant spot next to Alice's. "Yours will go there very soon. Then I will paint one of both you and Alice together next to it. Once that is done, all I'll need to do is wait for Edward to find his mate so that I may paint a picture of her and of them together. Then I will have everyone on my wall."

"Wow," was all I could say. What else was there? I mean, damn. I didn't know a whole lot when it came to art, but Esme could kick the crap out of Picasso and Da Vinci any day of the week, that much I did know. She was even better than Alice was, and I had thought Alice to be the best I'd ever seen before. Now I saw how Alice learned.

"I wanted to show you this," Esme said softly. She approached the small desk near the window in her room and opened the drawer to retrieve something. Then she walked over to me and handed it over. It was a small painting. Of…her?

"Is this…is this you?" I asked, astonished.

The woman in the picture looked very little like Esme. Then again, it was rather faded. Still. She had the same heart shaped face and the same dimples, but very little else was similar. Her eyes were crystal blue in color, nearly sparkling, even in a picture as old as this. They showed both beauty and elegance in them, much like Esme did herself. Her hair was a light hazel, not to mention shorter in length than Esme's. And her skin was darker, too. I stared at it for a moment, trying to understand what the hell it was. Then it hit me. This was Esme as a human.

Esme noticed my realization and nodded her head, smiling.

"Yes, this is me when I was a human, many, many years ago. I am one of three people in this family who has with them a reminder of who we were as humans. Jasper and Rosalie are the other two. It is…rare, I suppose, for us to have something like this. When I look at it, I sometimes have a hard time believing that it is in fact myself, but then I remember most of my human life and I know that it is. It is a bit strange, I suppose, comparing how I look now with how I looked then. But I also find it rather fun to do, truth be told."

I glanced back down at the portrait, studying it. I memorized everything that I could, noting the differences between human Esme and vampire Esme. I then handed it back to her, which she smiled at before returning it to her desk.

"Do you not want it blown up?" I asked.

She frowned for a moment before sighing. "I've aimed to, but I can never get around to it. It amazes me how busy I get all the time. I would like to in the future, though, at some point. I don't know when, truthfully. There's a lot going on right now, so it might be a while."

Esme started walking out, so I followed her. "Oh, Bella, you can come in here any time you wish to, by the way. It isn't off limits, I assure you."

"Thank you," I replied. Something popped into my head. "Hey, Esme?"

She turned to face me. "Yes, dear?

"If you don't mind my asking, whatever happened to Charles?"

Esme's face became unreadable for a moment. She closed her eyes and let out a quiet breath.

"You don't have to answer if you don't want to," I murmured, feeling bad for bringing it up.

She placed her hands on my shoulders and shook her head before reopening her eyes. There was a glint there, an emotion I didn't quite recognize, as she started to speak.

"No, you deserve to know. I'm certain it has been mentioned before, but never fully explained to you, that I have slipped up on occasion?" I nodded, then gasped. She smiled sadly at me. "I ran into Charles two years after Emmett joined the family. I'd almost forgotten him until I saw him again, out trying to flirt with younger women. Then I remembered who he was and what he'd done to me. And when he saw me, he remembered me too. I don't recall much of what happened, but the next thing I knew, he was lying on the ground, dead, and I had his blood inside of me."

Esme ran her fingertips through her caramel colored hair.

"It was…difficult for me to believe that I had ended his life. I felt terrible about what I'd done, because even though he was a cruel man, he didn't deserve to die that way. Carlisle soothed me, though. He spent time with me telling me stories in order to ease my guilt. My children also consoled me. Emmett made his jokes, Edward actually built me a table and Rosalie…Rosalie reminded me that I was not alone in what I'd done. She merely hugged me and told me that what was done was done and that it wasn't my fault. Their combined love helped pull me through and it helped me in my training to withstand human blood."

She smiled as she finished, and I knew that it was because she had come a long way since then.

Esme blinked and sniffed the air, smiling even wider. "I do believe that Alice has returned."

I jumped at that, happy to see Alice again. I swear, even when she was gone for a few minutes it always felt like an eternity to me. Esme laughed joyously as I pranced down the stairs, nearly falling over myself as I did. Esme caught me, though and steadied me. She smiled humorously at me and helped me down the stairs until we reached the bottom.

"Thanks," I murmured embarrassedly.

"Anytime," she giggled.

I noticed that Emmett and Rosalie were both inside. There was a football game on the television that everyone was getting into. Jasper and Emmett were both making wagers, while Rosalie and Amara were doing the same. Edward just watched on amusedly. Alice wasn't there, though. I frowned, wondering where she was. Edward inclined his head towards the doorway. I glanced in that direction and saw that she was standing outside, staring off into nowhere.

Shrugging to myself I walked outside to where she was standing. Once I was near her, she turned around and gave me a small smile.

"Hey," I said, resting my forehead against hers.

"Hey yourself," she replied, gazing into my eyes. I stared back as intently into hers.

"You okay?" I asked.

She wrapped her arms around me and pulled me closer to her. "Not really." I watched her eyes study my cheeks, which still had bruises on them.

I sighed. "They'll heal, Alice. I'm a pretty fast healer, so I'm sure they'll be gone in no time."

Alice shook her head. "That's not the point, Bella. The point is that you were hurt and I wasn't there to protect you. I can't stand knowing that it was my fault that you were hurt. If only I'd been there, then I could have protected you."

I smiled and pressed my lips to hers. "Thank you, Alice. But you don't have to feel bad. What's done is done. Besides, we can prank them or something to get them back, right? And I mean, Rosalie and Amara did kind of get a few back, remember?"

Alice smiled at that. Then her eyes lit up and a malicious grin crossed her face.

"Oh yes, we'll pay them back. I promise."

I smirked and kissed her again. She smiled against my lips and happily kissed back for a few minutes before she stopped suddenly and pulled away. I was annoyed by that until I noticed that her eyes were glazed over. Another vision. I wondered whether it was a good one or not. When her vision faded, she scowled in annoyance.

"Damn it," she grumbled.

"What? What's wrong?" I asked.

She sighed. "The principal will be calling in a minute. She wants us to go back to school to have a "talk" with us about this past week."

I groaned. "Joy."

**A/N: D'aw, mother/daughter fluff. Isn't it sweet? No? Too bad. Anyways, there's more bonding time to come in the future. For now, onto the principal meeting.**

**The La Push scenario will be coming up soon, don't worry. Just working my way towards it is all. **


	34. Conference

**Disclaimer: I do not own Twilight, nor do I take any credit for it. I do take credit for Amara, other OCs and the ideas that are mine. **

**Conference**

Alice and I both walked inside together and sat down on the couch. Or rather, she sat down on the couch and I ended up sitting on her lap, not that I was complaining. I snuggled into her and nuzzled into her chest, breathing in that sweet smell of strawberries and chocolate. She did the same and nuzzled her nose into my hair, breathing in and out.

The others were still watching the football game, which Emmett seemed to be getting into.

"Go! Go! Go!" he shouted, pumping his arms in the air.

"They can't hear you, Emmett," Edward pointed out.

"Oh, let the brainless monkey man have his fun," Amara teased.

Emmett growled at her. "Who are you calling a brainless monkey man?"

"Do you even need to ask?" she inquired, grinning.

Emmett scowled. Rosalie rolled her eyes and patted him on the head.

"It's okay, babe. You're _my_ brainless monkey man."

Amara sneered. "Translation; you're pussy whipped too."

"Okay, that's it!" Emmett shouted, jumping up from the couch. Amara laughed and in an instant the two collided into one another in midair before falling onto the floor, rolling around and growling as they wrestled around. Amara quickly got Emmett into a headlock, grinning as she pulled back on his neck.

"Say uncle!"

"Up yours!" Emmett retorted. He rammed his head into her face, causing her to let go, then spun around and wrapped her into a bear hug, squeezing tightly. "Now_ you_ say uncle!"

"No!" Amara growled, struggling to fight out of her brother's grip.

She eventually broke free and pounced on Emmett, throwing him back down to the ground. He wasn't about to give up, though, and they both kept rolling around trying to best the other. Jasper and Rosalie merely watched them, shaking their heads at the display of their respective mate. They both glanced at one another and shared a look before turning to watch as Emmett roughly slammed Amara down, only to be flung into the air seconds later.

"Why must our mates be so dense?" Rosalie asked.

Jasper chuckled. "It's in their nature."

Rosalie nodded in agreement. A few seconds later, a big smirk formed on her lips. "I bet my monkey man kicks your little slut's ass."

Jasper quirked an eyebrow. "Fifty dollars on the winner?"

"Deal."

Alice, Edward and I all laughed at the display, only for our laughter to be interrupted by a throat clearing in the kitchen. Esme stood with her hands on her hips, shaking her head at her children's display. However, a crashing noise caused her to scowl at her Emmett and Amara.

"Emmett! Amara! Stop wrestling in the house!" Esme shouted. They both stopped and groaned. Esme shook her head and pointed outside. "Out with you two. I will not have any more furniture destroyed because of your roughhousing. Now out!"

With pouts on their faces, Emmett and Amara both stood up and walked outside. No sooner did they get out the door did Amara push Emmett down and tackle him. Emmett growled in response and threw her off. The two crouched down, grinning ear to ear and jumped, colliding into one another once again. Edward groaned and shook his head while Alice and I both sighed.

"Are they always like this?" I asked.

"Yup. It's actually pretty fun to wrestle, though," Alice said, smiling.

Our conversation was cut off when the phone finally rang. Alice groaned, knowing who it was and what was going to be said. Esme grabbed the phone, giving Alice a sideways glance before putting it to her ear.

"Hello?" she said into the phone, her voice sweet and warm. "Yes, this is she. Oh, why hello Principal Porter! Is there something wrong?" Esme proceeded to speak on the phone with the principal. I listened to only part of her conversation, not really interested in hearing whatever the principal had to say. I merely hugged my Alice and snuggled with her.

Amara and Emmett both walked in and sat down to their mates, neither of them having been able to best the other. Jasper and Rosalie merely shrugged it off, saying that they'd reignite the bet whenever Emmett and Amara decided to go for round two.

"Next time you're mine, fire-crotch," Emmett crooned, grinning.

"You can try, little bitch," Amara retorted.

Alice rolled her eyes and turned to look at me. "You see? This is what I have to put up with every day. Now you have to put up with it, too."

"Shut up, foot lover," Amara snorted.

Alice hissed at her. "Damn it, Amara! Stop that!"

"Chill, pixie-sticks," Emmett chuckled. "We all know that's your thing. It's no big deal, really."

Alice pouted and buried her face into me. I smiled and hugged her tighter, rubbing her back as I did. Esme, who had disappeared outside while on the phone, returned inside then, still talking into it with an annoyed look on her face. Yet she was still smiling and her voice was still sweet, though she was clearly acting.

"Yes I understand, Mrs. Porter. Yes, we will be there in about, say, ten minutes? Yes, I'll bring them along. I'm sorry you've been troubled and I'm sure we'll get it all sorted out. Thank you for calling, goodbye." She hung the phone up before pinching the bridge of her nose in exasperation and sighing.

Edward frowned. "Great, just what we need."

Esme walked over to us with her hands on her hips. Her face was stern and motherly looking, but the hint of mirth in her eyes quickly showed what was really on her mind.

"Well, the principal called, as most of you are aware. She told me that there have been several incidents at school these past few days and it would appear that several of you have been implicated in them. For example, she recently got a call from not one but four parents complaining about their daughters having their heads forcibly shaved. Rosalie, Amara, would the two of you happen to know anything about this?" Esme asked.

Her eyes were swirling with amusement, though she was trying hard not to show it. Neither Amara nor Rosalie responded. Rosalie twirled a finger through her hair nonchalantly while Amara played around with her bellybutton, not bothering to look at Esme. Esme shook her head while trying to fight off a smile, turning her eyes to her three sons.

"I see," Esme sighed. "I also heard that several boys were hung on tree branches by their underwear. Boys, you wouldn't be the ones involved in such an act, would you?"

Edward and Jasper looked at one another and shrugged. Emmett, of course, just smiled, not even trying to hide his involvement from his mother. If anything, he was proud of it. That was typical Emmett, always loving a good laugh. Alice and I looked at one another, obviously thinking the same thing and started breaking down into quiet giggles. We couldn't stop even when Esme raised an eyebrow and appraised us, though we tried.

Esme pinched the bridge of her nose. "Perhaps, Alice, you could explain to me why two girls told their parents that you threatened their lives? And Bella, apparently you punched one of them in the face. Is that true?"

Alice blinked and looked at me surprisedly. "You did?"

I smiled. "I got that bitch Lauren once, yeah."

Alice beamed and gave me a long, tender kiss. I happily deepened the kiss, placing my hands on her head and moving my fingers through her soft, spiked hair. I felt her hands start moving up and down my back as she pulled me into her, leaning as far back into the couch as she possibly could while we kissed. I loved kissing her. All of the amazing sensations it brought aside, it always helped cheer me up. Come to think of it, kissing Alice was sort of like getting high. The only difference was, I was proud to be addicted to her.

Unfortunately, kissing Alice also had a tendency to make me forget where I was and what was going on around me. I heard a throat clear, which broke the blissful state of mind that I had been in while kissing my girlfriend. I blinked and gazed into Alice's eyes for a moment before turning to see six pairs of gold eyes looking both Alice and I. I instantly realized that I had been making out with her in front of all them and blushed, burying my head into her chest.

"Hot!" Emmett boomed, earning a smack from Rosalie. Jasper, Amara and Edward all laughed.

"I do wish you two would get a room," Rosalie grunted, a hint of amusement in her voice.

Alice merely rested her forehead into the top of my head. I didn't hear Esme say anything, so I peered at her from Alice's chest. Esme's lips were twitching wildly as she desperately attempted to keep a stern face. She saw the odd way I was looking at her and last couldn't hold it in anymore, throwing her head backwards and guffawing for a few minutes. Once she'd managed to calm down, she let out a satisfied sigh, smiling wide at all of us.

"Whoo, I wasn't sure how long I'd be able to hold that in." She paused to take in an unnecessary breath. "I'm sorry about that. Anyways, the principal would like us to go back to school for a meeting. Apparently she has a list of complaints that she would like to tell me about. I want you all to behave while we're there, alright? We don't need any more problems. Now up, all of you, and let's go." We all groaned in unison. Esme rolled her eyes. "Yes, yes, I know, but we need to do this so that no one will become suspicious."

Everyone nodded their heads and got up, Alice gently setting me down from her lap. We held each other's hands as we walked outside with the others, save for Esme and Jasper who both disappeared into the garage. She drove out of it seconds later inside Emmett's jeep, which was big enough to fit five of us in. Alice and I got in first, sitting in the back. Emmett sat next to Alice while Rosalie was seated next to Esme. Jasper drove out in his car, Amara and Edward getting in it with him.

Esme then drove off with Jasper behind her, back to school. Ugh.

"I don't see why we have to do this," Rosalie complained. "What does it matter what the principal thinks of us? Nothing! It means nothing at all what people's opinions are, right?"

"Rosalie, I raised you better than that. And while it's true that we shouldn't let what others think of us, if word gets out that you behaved badly at school, then it might travel and cause problems for us when we move next. Plus, this is Bella's first year here and I would rather it be an easy year for her, despite several complications," Esme explained.

Rosalie frowned, clearly not pleased. But she didn't argue. I don't think anyone could ever argue with Esme. That'd be _way_ too damn rude. I mean it's _Esme_ for crying out loud, who the fuck would ever want to argue with her?

"Alright children," Esme chirped, smiling. "Let's go and get this over with, shall we?"

Esme had parked in a teacher's spot, funnily enough, though she didn't seem to notice. Jasper's car was parked next to hers, he, Amara and Edward already out, waiting for us.

She got out first with the rest of us following after her. None of the others looked pleased to be here, Rosalie especially. She crossed her arms as she walked, making it obvious that she would rather be anywhere but here. Emmett just grinned as he always did, while Amara and Jasper walked together, looking at one another rather than where they were going. Edward and Alice seemed to be having a mental conversation, though Alice kept her hand entwined with mine.

It wasn't long before we were in the main office, where we all stopped as Esme approached the main desk, her sweet smile in place. The receptionist blinked surprisedly at the sight of Esme before quietly clearing her throat.

"Mrs. Cullen, Mrs. Porter is expecting you. Down the hall, two doors to the left, if you please."

"Why thank you," Esme replied sweetly.

She nodded her head once before gesturing for us to follow her as she walked down the narrow hall and into the principal's office. The office was small in size, yet surprisingly spacious. The fact that there was enough room for a large desk, four cabinets and chairs for all of us to sit in was amazing to me. Even more amazing, it wasn't uncomfortable.

"Welcome Mrs. Cullen," greeted Principal Porter, a very short, stout woman with beady eyes and trimmed dark brown hair. She was seated at her desk with her arms folded across another, looking expectantly at our mother, who smiled warmly at her.

"Hello Mrs. Porter. May we sit?"

"Of course," replied the shorter woman, waving her hand at the chairs.

All of us sat down, Esme in front of the principal's desk, Alice to her left, then myself, Amara, Jasper and Edward. Emmett and Rosalie both sat to her right, further away from the woman's desk then the rest of us. I suppose that was Rosalie's way of blatantly pointing out that she wanted nothing to do with what was going on.

Mrs. Porter shuffled several papers on her desk for a moment, then looked up, facing Esme.

"So, Mrs. Cullen, as I said to you on the phone, I have asked you all here because for the past several days, there have been a variety of complaints, both from students, parents and even a few faculty members. I have brought you all here so that we may discuss these problems and perhaps find a solution to them. Is that agreed?"

"Yes, Mrs. Porter," Esme replied, smiling warmly at her. There was something off about it, though. I could almost see the disdain reflected in Esme's eyes, like she herself didn't want to be here, talking with this woman about us.

The principal nodded. "Is Dr. Cullen not able to join us?"

Esme shook her head. "I'm afraid my husband is busy at work."

"Ah. I see. Very well, that is no issue. Now then, to begin…" Her beady eyes moved from each of us, starting at Emmett and ending at Edward, before coming to a stop at Amara. She scanned Amara for a good minute and frowned. I noticed Jasper frowning as well, clearly not liking whatever emotions the principal was feeling. "First of all, I would like to bring into discussion your attire. Amara, is it?"

Amara, who had her chin resting on the palm of her left hand, gave the principal a sideways glance for a few seconds, then shrugged, not even bothering to reply. She was just as annoyed as Rosalie was, though she seemed more bored than anything. I glanced at my sister and saw that she was wearing the same kind of attire she always wore: a belly shirt, jeans, studded boots and her usual pair of open fingered gloves. The only addition was a short sleeved black jacket, which was, of course, opened to expose her midriff.

I thought it was hot. I would _love_ to see Alice wear something like that. Maybe I should try convincing her…

"Amara," Principal Porter said, snapping her fingers. "I am _talking_ to you."

Esme twitched while Jasper's frown deepened. Amara begrudgingly turned to face the principal, clearly not even halfway interested.

"Yes, what is it?" she asked.

"I have received complaints from teachers concerning your choice of, er, wardrobe and I was wondering if you would be willing to, perhaps, modify it in some ways."

Amara frowned, glancing down at her attire before looking back up. "What's wrong with it?"

"We believe that it is a little too…open for high school, if you catch my meaning," she replied.

"You say that, yet our cheerleaders parade around with their asses jiggling around and their boobs hanging out. Not only that, but there are plenty of other students, male and female alike, who wear clothes that are more abrasive than mine. Clearly, you should be approaching them, not me. I don't wear super short skirts or low cut shirts, I only wear shirts like this," Amara defended, trying to keep the irritation out of her voice.

The principal sighed and rubbed her temples with her hands. "I see. Mrs. Cullen, perhaps you could help me explain to your daughter?"

Esme glanced at Amara and frowned for a moment, then shrugged at the principal.

"If my daughter wants to show her belly button, then she can show her belly button. I see no problem with it, Mrs. Porter. There's nothing wrong with a woman of her age wanting to show off a little bit of skin. Besides, she's perfectly capable of taking care of herself if her attire were to spread the wrong message. Not only that, but I believe that wearing what she wears allows her to define herself, to show that she is unique. Individuality, I suppose you could say."

Principal Porter furrowed her brow as she listened to this, clearly disliking the fact that Esme hadn't taken her side in the argument. I saw the resolve die away in her eyes as she eventually gave in, nodding her head quietly. I could see Amara smirk out of my peripheral vision, though it quickly disappeared when the principal shot her a brief glance.

"Very well then, if that is how you see it," she grumbled. "Shall we move onto the next bit of business, then?"

"Certainly," Esme replied.

"The second thing I would like to speak to you about was something brought to my attention today. It would appear that several girls were assaulted in the locker room earlier this day. Four of them had their heads shaved while the other two were both struck various times. I have heard from both the parents and the students, all of them claiming that your girls were involved in this mishap. I would like to take a moment to talk about that. Girls, do you have anything to say?" she asked.

"Bullshit," Alice grunted.

The principal looked taken aback. "Excuse me?"

"That's bullshit. They were not the ones assaulted, Bella was." Alice pointed to my face, indicating the bruises on them. "I saw it myself. Those stupid bi-jerks surrounded her and held her in place while Lauren Mallory punched her. Rosalie, Amara and I all got there in time and got them off of her." Alice gently stroked my cheeks as she finished, which I leaned into.

I noticed the principal scrutinizing this display with her eyes, frowning as she did.

"I see. Is this true, Bella?" she asked.

I nodded. "Yes. I was changing when they all surrounded me and started talking bad about my family and me. Then they all attacked me, like Alice said. Her, Rosalie and Amara all came down a few minutes after and helped me."

The principal nodded. "Do you know why they would speak badly of you? Have you given them reason for this?"

Um, because I'm gay? Wait, do I tell the principal that?

"I believe I can answer that, if I might," Jasper interjected, smiling at me. I nodded at him.

"Very well then, Jasper," the principal responded.

Jasper nodded in acknowledgement. "Thank you, ma'am. You see, our family doesn't often socialize with other students. They often treat us as outcasts because of our different appearances and because of the fact that many of us are together as couples despite living with one another, they ridicule us for it. Not only that, but Bella being the new student would likely make her fair game in their eyes, however cruel that may be."

Principal Porter seemed taken aback by something he said, squinting her eyes as she tapped her fingers together.

"I see. I suppose that makes sense, though it is six to four. By the way, that doesn't explain why those girls' heads were shaved. Is there an explanation for that?" she asked.

God, what a bitch.

Rosalie was the one to reply. "They were attacking our sister. They got what they deserved."

"So you claim," the principal retorted snidely.

"So we _know_," Alice growled. "_You_ were not there. _You _did not see what they were doing to her. _We _were. _We_ stopped them and gave them a reason not to do it again."

The principal snorted. "I suggest you hold your tongue, Miss Cullen. And in any case, there is no reason for doing something so obscene and immature. Be that as it may, I can see that Bella was harmed during today's events. Also, I have had several problems with the girls in question, mainly Miss Mallory and Miss Stanley. Therefore, I will look into it further before I come to a conclusion."

Alice bit her lip while Esme twitched again. I did too. Who the fuck did she think she is talking to my Alice that way?

"Now then, with that said, there is more business to attend to. For instance, I have heard several times that several boys were forcibly suspended from tree branches by their undergarments." She glanced at Jasper, Edward and Emmett. "And it would seem that the three of you are the ones implicated in this. Do you have anything to say to that?'

The boys all shot each other brief looks before Jasper cleared his throat, speaking once more.

"I do believe, ma'am, that they are mistaken," Jasper said softly.

"Oh? How so?"

"You see, the truth of the matter is, the three of us were going to our cars when we found those boys suspended. We immediately went over to them and slowly we started helping them down, since it would have been cruel to leave them there."

The principal's brow furrowed at first, but slowly her face softened as she absorbed what he was saying to her. I felt a very odd sensation pass me by, one that made me actually begin to believe what he was saying. That's when I realized that he was using his gift to persuade her into believing him. I smiled at my brother's cleverness, not failing to notice the smirk reflecting off of the other's faces, Edward and Alice's especially. Esme merely remained stoic.

After a minute, the principal looked fully convinced. "I do apologize, then, for the inconvenience brought about by this." Jasper merely smiled and nodded. I could see that he was pleased with himself, though he hid it well. "There is but one last bit of information that I would like to discuss, concerning the two of you." She pointed Alice and I. Oh joy.

"Many of the complaints I have received are from students who have, for lack of a better term, been rather disgruntled by open displays of affection. I have had numerous reports of inappropriate touching and kissing, both during class and on one occasion during lunch. Many parents have called in with concern over this and I would very much like to get to the bottom of it here and now. Do either of you have anything to say about this?" she asked.

"Half of that isn't true!" I shouted. "We've never touched each other inappropriately in class or out of class. All we do is hold each other's hand, that's it. And last time I checked, holding a hand isn't a crime, is it?"

"No, it isn't but-"

"Nor have we had any inappropriate kissing," Alice interjected. "Sure, there was that one time during lunch, which I will happily take the blame for, but the most we've done otherwise is a peck on the cheek, that I swear to you."

"Then why do you suppose so many have issued complaints?" she asked.

"Because they're haters," I grunted under my breath.

The principal scrunched up her face. "Excuse me?"

"I said because they're haters. They hate on us because we're gay, which is ridiculous!" I said, throwing my hands into the air. Alice nodded her head in agreement.

"I see." I was really starting to get sick of her saying that. She turned to face Esme. "I had heard rumors in the past about your children being together in couples. Initially I had dismissed it, but it seems that they are very true. Does this not bother you, Mrs. Cullen?" she asked.

Esme shook her head. "Not at all, Mrs. Porter. My husband and I are both very supportive of them being with one another. And yes, it is true that most are together. Jasper and Amara, Rosalie and Emmett and Alice and Bella are all seeing one another in romantic relationships." She smiled proudly at each of us, then gave Edward a reassuring smile. "My son Edward has yet to find someone, but in due time he will."

The principal scowled, mulling something over in her head before responding.

"Does it not bother you that your children are pursuing romantic relationships with one another?"

"Of course not, Mrs. Porter. They are all old enough to make their own decisions in life, which includes choosing who they fall in love with. I happen to know that they love their respective partner dearly just as they love another. Just because they live under the same roof does not mean that it is wrong. I am happy that they are together, actually," Esme replied.

"I see," she mumbled. Edward narrowed his eyes at her disdainfully.

"Is there a problem, Mrs. Porter?" Esme asked, noticing the look on Edward's face.

"Well, it seems to me that this may be one reason for the issues that your family seems to have been having. I have heard about the anti-social behavior of your family in the past, which again, I dismissed because of the academic achievements your children have had. However, now that I am fully aware of these…complications, I do believe that they may be causing more harm than good. I strongly suggest reconsidering how you look at this, Mrs. Cullen."

The sweet smile that Esme had plastered onto her face was quickly wearing off as she became more and more aggravated at the principal's words.

"I beg your pardon, Mrs. Porter, but I do not see how my children's love lives are of any concern to the various happenings this week at school. Do you not recall that we have recently adopted Bella into our family? This past week has been very trying for us as we adopted her and got her prepared for the life that she would be living. Surely you could understand."

The principal shrugged her shoulders.

"I do understand, Mrs. Cullen. What I don't understand is why you have allowed your children to create these disturbances. In the past, they have all been very well behaved. It seems, however, that the addition of a new family member has thrown all that good behavior out the window in only a few days. Perhaps your parenting methods should be brought into question?" she asked.

All of us just sat there, speechless. Esme looked shell-shocked. Did that bitch really just…?

Principal Porter had a smug look on her face as her eyes scrutinized me.

"Or shall I question your choice of who it is you adopt into your family? Because it seems to me that you made an ill choice with this one."

I winced at her implications and hung my head. Alice wrapped her arm around me and snarled angrily at the principal while the others all let out low, rumbling growls. She seemed surprised at the actions, confused even. And just a little bit afraid.

Then she saw Esme.

"How dare you," Esme snarled. The mask of sweetness that she had been wearing was long gone, replaced by a venomous glare. "How _dare_ you insult my child that way you insignificant little bitch. Who the hell do you think you are, disrespecting me and my family that way? And who the hell do you think you are bringing my ability as a parent into question? Let me tell you something. I have raised six wonderful children in the past and I now have a seventh wonderful child. And I will continue to raise them the same way I always have, which is a hell of a lot more then what I've seen from _you_."

Esme stood up, jabbing her finger murderously at the principal. "If you ever say something like that again, I swear to you I will rain down on you harder than anything you've felt in your entire, miserable life. And if you or anyone else has a problem with my children, I will gladly remove them from this filth pile you call a school. Then you can kiss your pathetic achievements goodbye, because you know damn well that my children are the ones keeping this worthless place running. We are finished here. Children, let's go."

And without another word, Esme turned on her heel and walked out the door, the rest of us following in step. Alice only paused once to hiss at the stunned principal before wrapping her arm around me and walking us both out of that wretched office, out to the parking lot. No one said a word as we all climbed into the jeep, Esme silently turning it on and driving off without looking back at the office once, Jasper's car seconds behind us. It was a very fast, quiet drive home, needless to say.

Once we were home, Esme stormed out of the jeep and vanished into the woods. The rest of us watched after her for a moment before heading inside. Everyone just sort of sat down, no one really knowing to say at first.

"That was fun," Amara remarked, half serious, half sarcastic.

"Dude, Esme was totally about to rip that bitch in half," Emmett boomed, grinning.

"Would have been nice," Alice growled under her breath, kissing my cheek. "_Nobody_ talks bad about my Bella."

I sighed and rested my head against hers. "I guess I've gone and ruined your social standings."

Amara scoffed. "Oh, please. We never really had social standings anyways."

"Speak for yourself," Rosalie snorted. "You're the one parading around in belly shirts trying to look superior to everyone."

"Ah, go suck your man-candy," Amara retorted.

Emmett beamed. "I like that idea!" Rosalie smirked while Edward and Jasper both groaned.

Alice and I both glanced at each other, our noses crinkling in disgust as the horrid mental images popped into our heads. That was the _last_ thing we needed going on in this house, especially after everything that had happened today. Or any day, for that matter. Ew. Just, ew.

"Please don't," Alice whined.

"Aw, come on pixie-sticks, where's your sense of _adventure_ at?" Emmett asked humorously.

Alice crinkled her brow. "Pixie-sticks? Really, Em?"

Emmett laughed. "What? It fits!"

"Jeez, Emmett, you're cornier than Bella is," Amara snickered.

"Quite a feat indeed," Jasper added, smiling at me.

I glared at them. They had no right to make fun of me. I couldn't help if I was corny; my girlfriend was a Goddess for crying out loud!

"Fuck you guys," I grumbled. I glanced at Alice. "C'mon pixie feet, let's go to your room."

Alice blinked, cocking her head to the side with a cute quizzical look on her face.

"Pixie _feet_?"

"Yeah, because you're a pixie and you like feet," I replied, smiling at her.

Alice curled her lip back and hissed at Amara. "Damn you, Amara!"

Our redheaded sister looked at her innocently and shrugged her shoulders. I giggled and kissed Alice the cheek.

"I think it's cute," I said, wrapping my arms around her neck. "Besides, the nickname fits you because of how amazingly graceful you are, too."

Alice pouted adorably before sighing and pulling me into her arms. Then she stood up and danced up the stairs with me slung over her shoulder. I heard several of the others laugh at the display, even after we were in our room.

"Hey, you guys think Bella's gonna get laid?" Emmett asked.

"I doubt it. She's too timid and Alice is too nervous," Rosalie replied with a snort.

Amara laughed. "Jazz, you could give them a little boost, you know," she suggested.

"I doubt either of them would appreciate that, Amara," Jasper replied.

I ignored the rest of their comments as Alice set me down on the bed, Alice lying on top of me as she always did. We didn't speak as we stared into each others' eyes, smiling. Then she leaned in and captured my lips. I deepened the kiss and in seconds we were continuing where we had left off earlier today. I ran my fingers through her hair as we melded into one another. Slowly my hands started to move around more as hers did the same. Alice's left hand slipped under my shirt and started rubbing my back while her right just continued to wander.

Alice boldly began to trace my bottom lip with her tongue, her eyes smoldering, silently asking permission to enter. So naturally, I opened my mouth, allowing her tongue full access. She smiled before her tongue entered, slowly beginning to move about my mouth. I moaned as her cool tongue began circling around my mouth, tasting every inch of it. I was both pleased and surprised when Alice moaned as well, clearly enjoying what she was doing. Our tongues started to entwine with one another, her icy one feeling amazingly soothing on mine.

I had no clue what to do since I'd never kissed anyone this way before, but Alice seemed adamant in helping me out. As she pulled me into her and pressed her forehead to mine, she move her tongue slowly, almost playfully, guiding my tongue around hers. Eventually I became more in sync with her movements as we kissed, although my oxygen supply was starting to drastically drop. Alice, sensing this, smiled and removed her tongue from my mouth before giving me one last kiss and parting our lips.

I gasped for air a few times as Alice snuggled into me. I sighed, resting my chin on her head and breathing her scent in.

"That was…great," I breathed.

Alice giggled against my shoulder. "Yes, it was."

I moved to lie on my side, Alice doing the same. We quickly snuggled into each other, pressing our foreheads together. I stared intently into those lovely eyes of hers as she did the same. Today had been a whirlwind of a day, but then again, I was starting to get used to that type of thing. I guess that's what it meant to be a Cullen, being used to craziness.

"You do realize what we're doing tomorrow, don't you?" Alice asked, a mischievous smirk on her face.

"Er…" I furrowed my brow, trying to remember what it was. Then it hit me and my face reddened as I gulped.

Alice's smirk widened into an almost wicked one. "That's right. We're going bikini shopping."

I blushed even fuller at that and merely nodded my head silently. I knew it was no use to say no to her, especially when I was in need of something to wear to the beach on Sunday.

Alice giggled before capturing my lips once more. She started to move her lips to the left, kissing every inch of my face until she was at my ear. With a smile and a glint in her eyes she kissed my ear several times before leaning into it.

"If you're good, I'll let you see _me_ in a bikini," she purred.

My mind was instantly alit with images of Alice in a bikini, posing seductively in front of me.

Oh yeah. Tomorrow was going to be a good day.

**A/N: One more chapter of fluffiness and then it's La Push time, baby. More fluffiness is always nice, right?**

**Three cheers for Esme being awesome. Poor Carlisle. He'll get some spotlight in a while, I can promise that. **

**Reviews are always welcome. Not totally necessary, though.**


	35. Beauty

**Disclaimer: I do NOT own Twilight or any of its characters. I own the original characters and ideas. Fluff time!**

**Beauty**

I stared at my own reflection in the bathroom mirror in front of me, gently running my fingers across my cheeks. The bruises I'd gotten yesterday were nearly gone. They had been noticeable before, but now they were faded into my skin, looking more like makeup than remnants of me getting my ass handed to me by a bunch of stupid bimbos. Ugh.

I still couldn't believe I'd gotten myself into that situation. Am I that pathetic that I can't defend myself against a bunch of idiots?

I was still discouraged over it. Alice and my sisters had saved me, yes, but the fact that I had done so little was just…pitiful. How could I ever hope to match up with vampires if I couldn't even protect myself? Sure, I'd gotten a few hits in, but not much. Is this how things would always be? Would I always be the weakling who couldn't even help herself?

I sighed and shook my head, glancing once more at my face. It was funny; this was probably the most time I'd ever spent in front of a mirror. I wasn't the vain type, definitely not. Though I had to admit I wasn't too bad looking, I didn't care for my own appearance. It just wasn't my thing, I guess. I couldn't quite get the bruises off my mind, though.

Maybe Carlisle would know?

Deciding that now would be a good time to ask, I turned away from the mirror and walked out of the bathroom towards Carlisle's office. I waited for only a few seconds.

"Come in, Bella," he called from inside.

I did as told and quietly walked inside of his office. Carlisle was just putting away a book on his shelf of thousands as I closed the door behind me. He turned and smiled warmly at me as he walked towards me.

"You know, you don't have to close the door all the time," he chuckled softly. "Now then, is there anything I can do for you?"

I nodded and pointed to the faded bruises. "I was wondering if you knew why these healed so quickly, actually."

Carlisle nodded and motioned for me to come forward, which I did. He appraised my cheeks thoroughly, narrowing his eyes slightly as he did. I could tell by the look in his eyes that he didn't like seeing me injured. He'd had that look yesterday when he'd come home and found out about what had happened at school in the locker room. He didn't react the same way as Esme had, but he was just as upset and just as sorrowful. He'd checked my bruises and given me an ointment to apply on them, which Alice did for me.

In fact, Carlisle called the school up to have a talk with the principal, who, from what I was told, was still shaken up from Esme yelling at her. Apparently the principal apologized profusely for the students and for herself and promised to suspend the girls implicated in my assault, which Carlisle thanked her for. I was happy about that too, since that meant I wouldn't have to deal with any of the bimbo brigade for a while, especially if I ended up going to school when the others couldn't.

"It would appear that your injuries have healed due in part to the ointment I gave you, but also because of your body itself. If I were to guess, I believe that the fact that you are slowly changing into a vampire is the main reason behind it. You will likely heal at a more accelerated rate than you normally would, though I wouldn't suggest doing anything drastic to test that theory, if you please," Carlisle stated softly.

"I won't," I promised, smiling at him. He smiled in return, though part of that look remained.

"Good. Now, is there anything else?" he asked curiously.

I shrugged. I didn't have any other reason to speak with him, which made me feel a little bad. He was my new father and I wanted to have a strong bond with him, just like the bond I was forming with Esme. He was always so kind, gentle and compassionate towards me. I did respect him and I did love him, but I wanted to build our relationship up, to have a true father-daughter connection with the man.

"How's work?" I inquired.

Carlisle chuckled again. "Oh, it's going quite well, I'd say. I had to perform a surgery this past week, which ended marvelously. Other than that, there hasn't been anything of interest."

"Have you ever had any interesting cases in the past? Any weird mutations or stuff like that?"

He put his hand on his chin and thought on that for a moment before smiling and nodding.

"Yes, actually. I once had to operate on a young woman who was born with three arms several years ago. She had two left arms and both of them worked, amazingly enough. But it caused her a great deal of pain, so we had to operate to fix that."

I gaped at him. "Holy shit, really?" He laughed and nodded his head. "Damn. What ended up happening to her?"

"She's now healthy as can be," he replied. "I always try and check in on patients from the past, even if it's just a phone call."

"That's nice of you," I said sincerely.

"Thank you, Bella."

After a moment, he glanced in the direction of the door and shook his head amusedly. I frowned and turned around to see Alice standing near the doorway, bouncing on the balls of her feet, a big grin in place.

"Hi Bella!" she chirped excitedly, twirling over to kiss me on both cheeks. She cupped both cheeks immediately afterward and pulled my lips to hers, which I gladly allowed. A few kisses later we both broke away, grinning at one another.

"Ah, youth these days," Carlisle chuckled. He was sitting at his desk now, looking over some notes. I blushed slightly, having forgotten we were in his office.

"Sorry," I murmured.

"No need to be. Forgive my intrusions," he replied warmly.

Alice grabbed a hold of my hand. "C'mon Bella, let's go!"

I didn't get a chance to respond because she pulled me along with her as we walked out of Carlisle's office and down the stairs. Esme was humming to herself as she danced about the kitchen while Rosalie and Amara were both sitting on the couch, watching television. The boys, I remembered, were all out hunting. Esme noticed me and smiled before coming over to wrap me into one of her loving hugs, which I happily returned.

"Hello Bella," she greeted. "Enjoy your shower?"

"Always do," I replied.

"Bet she'd like it even more if Alice was in there with her," Amara snickered.

Rosalie rolled her eyes. "_Please_, Alice would just end up jumping her."

"Rosalie!" Alice hissed embarrassedly. "That is not true and you damn well know it!"

I blushed and instantly thought of Alice and I being in the shower together. Oh God. Heaven. Gah! I shouldn't be thinking those things. Then again, she _is_ my girlfriend. But it's way too soon for that kind of thing. Ugh. Damn them and their putting images in my mind.

Okay, so I think about Alice naked quite often. Yeah, I'm a pervert, I know, but I can't help myself! She's fucking hot for God's sake! And I'm a semi-horny teenager!

Rosalie and Amara both snickered, clearly amused by our reactions. Esme merely sighed.

"Girls, leave your sisters alone," she chided, though there was a hint of mirth in her eyes.

They both laughed harder while Alice pinched the bridge of her nose, both annoyed and embarrassed. I noticed that Esme, Amara and Rosalie shared a look with each other and furrowed my brow in confusion.

"What?" I asked, puzzled. "What's so funny?"

Amara smirked. "We're all just waiting for little Ali to get in the sack with you is all."

I blushed a deeper shade of red while Alice groaned loudly.

"Oh, Alice, calm down. Sex is a very natural thing in our lives and there's nothing to be ashamed about. It's a beautiful thing and I'm certain both you and Bella will relish it when you decide to act upon your desire for each other," Esme said, shaking her head.

I was certain that, if possible, Alice would be as beet red as I was if she were human.

"_Mom_!" she whined. "Stop that! You're embarrassing her _and_ me!"

Amara and Rosalie were now laughing uproariously on the couch. Esme couldn't help giggling along with them, though she tried to cover it up. I stood there, feeling incredibly awkward, not really knowing _how_ to respond to this situation.

Sex wasn't something I thought about a whole lot. I mean, it's not that I didn't want to have it eventually—what I'd experienced with my "girlfriend" Vanessa, who I had yet to tell Alice about, was nothing close to sex. We'd been naked and groped each other a lot, but it wasn't what I'd thought it would be—I just…I dunno. I wanted it, but I wasn't sure when I'd want it and I wasn't sure if Alice would want it, though judging by her reactions, she probably would.

Alice had said it herself that mating was a very big deal for vampires. It was supposed to be both physical and spiritual. So I wanted to be ready in every way for when we shared in that experience. And right now, I honestly wasn't ready for it yet. I wanted it to be special for us, to be something we both enjoyed as me melded together and became one with each other. That's the kind of experience I wanted, not some super orgasm fest. Not that I would mind if that was a part of the experience, of course.

"Sorry girls," Esme said apologetically after she'd stifled her giggling. "I'll drop it for now."

"Thank you," Alice sighed. She glared at our sisters, who were struggling to stop.

"You two really shouldn't get so embarrassed," Rosalie chided. "Esme's right. Sex is sex. And it is a great thing. I should know, since Emmett and I have the best sex life out of anybody in this house. Just ask Emmett."

Amara snorted. "Ha! Please tell me you're joking, Rose. Since when is being fucked by a naked bear lead you to believe _you_ have the best sex life?"

"Oh, please," Rosalie scoffed. "You and Jasper never get it on."

"I'll have you know that our love life is far superior to yours. Combine Jasper's gift with my own natural skill and we have an amazing time. Besides, just because we go about our business in a more subtle way doesn't mean it isn't as good as or better than what you and Emmett have, thank you very much," Amara retorted.

"Well, mine has a better ass," Rosalie grunted, pouting. I smiled amusedly at their humorous argument. It had been a little awkward before, but now they were just resorting to childish insults to best the other. Definitely how I would try to solve things.

Amara smirked. "Jasper happens to have a very nice ass. And better hair, might I add."

"Mine has bigger biceps."

"Mine has a better six pack."

"Well-"

"_Mine _is sexier than _both_ of them combined!" Alice blurted. My face heated up again as Rosalie and Amara both looked at her oddly before giving me a once over. To my surprise, neither of them chose to respond to that and the two went back to watching television. Esme's lips were twitching wildly as she fought back more laughter.

Alice ran a hand through her hair nervously and mouthed a "sorry" to me.

"Do you, er, wanna go?" she asked quietly. Not knowing what else to do, I bit my lip and nodded briskly. She nodded in understanding and danced over to the garage door while I made my way out the front one.

"Have a good trip," Esme called from the kitchen.

"Try not to get jumped!" Rosalie and Amara sang from the couch. I stumbled when they said that, but managed to catch myself before scurrying along, trying to ignore their laughter ringing from inside of the house.

Sisters, I swear.

Alice drove out seconds later and blurred over to my side, opening the door for me.

"Thanks," I murmured.

She smiled in return and shut my door for me, blurring back into her seat seconds later. Without another word she drove off, away from the house and the laughter. We sat silently for a few minutes as Alice came from the forest area onto an actual road. I leaned my head back and let out a loud sigh, rubbing my temples.

"Siblings," I muttered.

"Tell me about it," Alice groaned, rolling her eyes. "I'm sorry if all of that embarrassed you."

I shrugged. "It's okay. I guess I should get used to it, though."

Alice nodded in agreement. "Yeah, you'll have to. It'll take some time, though, especially as our relationship…er…progresses. I'll try and get them to lay off, though. They really shouldn't be throwing so much junk at you when you're still new to the family and all."

"That'd be nice. Thanks."

She smiled and the remainder of our drive was much less awkward. It wasn't until I remembered what it was we were doing that I started to get a little more nervous. We were shopping. For bikinis. That both exhilarated me and terrified me in the same. The idea of me trying bikinis on wasn't something I was used to, but the fact that Alice would likely be there watching me…well, that was the main thing that scared and excited me.

We were already in Port Angeles by the time I'd started really thinking about it. Alice, of course, smirked as she got out of the car and ran at a human pace to open mine for me. Her smirk only grew when she saw the expression on my face as I got out, nervously fidgeting with my fingers.

"Um…" I don't know why I tried to speak, but my mouth started moving before I had a chance to actually stop it.

Alice giggled and pecked me on the lips. "You and I are going to have quite a bit of fun; don't you agree my sexy Bella?"

I bit my lip as my cheeks turned scarlet while Alice bounced about joyously as she wrapped her arm around me and pulled me along with her into the mall. It was the same mall we'd been in earlier in the week, only now it was just the two of us. We walked in together , Alice a bundle of giggles, me a bundle of a shitload of different feelings and thoughts as we quickly made our way over to our destination: the swimsuit isle.

Alice suddenly stopped and kissed my left cheek. "And don't forget what I promised you." She leaned into my ear, grinning. "If you do as I say, I'll reward you in the end. Okay?" She pressed her lips to my earlobe, making me shudder as images of Alice in a bikini flooded my mind. Was she trying to make me go insane? I think she was and damn was she succeeding.

"A-Alice…" I stammered. She placed a finger to my lips, smirk still in place.

"Uh, uh, uh. No arguing. Now go and wait in one of the changing room stalls and I'll be there in a few minutes with a stack for you try on. Off with you now."

I hung my head in defeat and silently trudged over to the dressing room. Oddly enough, all of the stalls were empty, which I guess was a good thing. I sighed and chose the endmost stall to wait in, walking inside and sitting down on the bench to wait. I was praying that Alice didn't bring a huge amount of bikinis. I only needed one, maybe two, and even then, I wasn't really the type to be overly comfortable wearing a damn bikini. Ugh.

About three or so minutes later, Alice appeared in the door with a huge pile of bikinis in her hands, which she gently set down on the floor before closing the door up and locking it. She turned around and beamed at me.

"I've requested that we get the dressing room to ourselves. The person at the counter was most pleasant when I asked," she said, smiling sweetly at me. "Now then, shall we start?"

I nodded and stood up, holding my hands out for the first bikini. Alice glanced at me hands and gave me a devilish smirk.

"Oh no, my dear Bella, that's not how it works. First you take your clothes off and then I give you one to try on." She pointed at my shoes. "Those. Off. Now."

"Alice…" I whined. "Do I have to strip with you watching me?"

Alice put her hands on her shoulders and huffed. "Why? What's so bad about me watching my sexy girlfriend strip down, hm? Besides, you need to get more comfortable being around me like this. We're both girls, for one thing, and we do live in the same house. Come on, Bella. Please?"

I bit my lip and sighed. She was right. I shouldn't be whining. It was just…odd for me to be doing this sort of thing. Still, I couldn't resist her, there was no way in hell. So without a word I removed both my shoes and socks and set them aside. Then I took off my jacket, followed by my shirt and lastly my jeans. That left me standing in front of Alice with nothing but my underwear.

"Damn," Alice breathed, staring up and down my form. Wasn't she used to it by now?

"What?" I asked, feeling a little self conscious.

"Have I mentioned how insanely sexy you are?" she asked, raking my body with her eyes once more until stopping at my eyes. "Would it be perverse of me to say that the fewer clothes you wear, the better? I swear, I still can't believe how gorgeous you are…"

I flushed at her bold comment and bit my lip tentatively. "Um, thanks," I murmured, choosing to look at the wall rather than at her. "I still think y-you're insanely gorgeous too."

Alice smiled softly as she struggled to keep her eyes from going down. "True, but I'm nothing compared to you, Bella. Even Rosalie believes that you are incredibly beautiful. I just wish that you would see yourself the way that I do."

I ran my hand through my hair, choosing not to respond to that. Seconds later I felt Alice's cool hands touch my shoulders, gripping them gently.

"Bella, look at me." I forcibly peeled my eyes away from the wall and looked into her smoldering amber ones. "How many times are we going to have this discussion? How many times must I tell you that you are beautiful until you believe me? Because I will do so each and every day, Bella, until you do. I don't care if I have to write it in the skies or sing it from the roof of the tallest building in the world, I will not stop until you believe."

Her eyes burned her love and truthfulness into me, destroying whatever I'd thought about saying in seconds. She really meant what she said, I could see that. I rested my forehead against hers and nodded.

"O-okay, Alice."

"Good." She handed me the first bikini on the top of the pile. "Try this one on."

I took the bikini from her and, due to old habits, turned around before discarding both pieces of my underwear. I was vaguely aware of Alice's eyes on me the whole time, specifically lower.

Wait, was she staring at my ass? Huh.

I slipped into the bikini, which looked a bit skimpier than I'd initially believed it to be, before turning to face her. Alice blinked and refocused her eyes on me, a look of embarrassment and a small tint of lust leftover. I couldn't help the smile that formed on my lips.

"Were you staring at my ass?" I asked incredulously.

Alice blinked, looking as though she would blush if she could.

"I, er, y-y-you s-see…" Alice stuttered. And I knew Alice never stuttered.

"You were!" I shouted, pointing my finger at her.

"N-no I w-wasn't," she squeaked.

I grinned. "Liar."

"Okay, okay! I was!" she admitted, hanging her head and pouting. "I can't help it. You've got a cute ass, Bella. You should know better than to tease me that way."

"I didn't tell you to stare at me," I pointed out.

"How can I not?" she countered. "You'd be gawking at me if I were in your place."

Fuck. She had me there and we both knew it.

"So what, then?" I asked sheepishly.

Alice surprised me by giggling. She walked up to me and kissed me softly on the lips.

"What say we just live with the fact that we're complete and total perverts for each other?"

I smiled a little. "Yeah, that works."

Alice smiled at that and looked over my bikini, placing her hand on her chin for dramatic effect as she narrowed her eyes.

"Hm. No, not that one," she said, shaking her head. "Here, I'll turn around while you take it off, then hand you the next one. Does that make you feel a bit better?"

I nodded and began to remove the bikini as she turned around. Once I'd finished, I extended my hand backwards and received the second bikini, which I slipped into quickly. Alice furrowed her brow as she scanned me over and shook her head again, not liking the look. I shrugged and we repeated the process again and again.

I'm not sure how long we spent in there, me putting bikinis on and Alice turning them down. I wondered why, since some of them I liked. Whenever I mentioned that, she placed them in a separate pile, but said that they weren't the "right one" for me for my trip tomorrow. So I kept at it until at last we came to a dark blue bikini. It wasn't super skimpy and it was both soft and comfortable, supporting everything just right.

"This one," she said, smiling approvingly. "It's perfect."

I glanced down at it and looked at her confusedly. "Why is this perfect?"

Alice rolled her eyes and walked up close to me, her fingers lightly tracing my stomach.

"For one thing, it helps accentuate your body's proportions amazingly well. It props your breasts up just a teensy bit, enough to wear they won't bounce around, yet they're still snug. I also believe that the dark colors bring out the beauty of having pale skin, something you really shouldn't be ashamed of. Lastly, they really accentuate your curves, Bella."

My cheeks reddened only slightly. I wasn't used to being complimented so many times in one day. It felt nice. Like, insanely nice. Not that my ego was swelling from her words, since there really wasn't much of an ego to begin with, but being complimented always did cheer me up.

I felt her left index finger trace my stomach before poking me in the belly button. I smiled at that and the adorable expression on Alice's face as she wiggled her cold fingertip around. I wasn't ticklish there, thank God, but it still felt a little weird. The good kind of weird, not the bad kind.

"What are you doing?" I asked amusedly.

She smiled at me. "I just forgot to mention how your bikini helps point out how adorable your belly button is. Don't you agree?"

I laughed and kissed her on the forehead. "You're silly. But thank you, I think so to."

She beamed at that and giggled as she removed her finger and kissed me. I started to deepen the kiss when something struck me. I pulled away from Alice, which she didn't like at all because she growled a little and pressed her lips back to mine again.

"Alice," I managed between kisses.

She growled again, but sighed and removed her lips from mine. "What?"

"What am I going to do about these?" I asked, waving my hand at the scars on my right arm. Her eyes bulged when she saw them, as if she had almost forgotten about them.

"Shit," she cursed. "I forgot."

I noticed an off look in her eyes when she said that. "What's wrong?"

She shook her head. "You have to hide those. The Quileutes _cannot_ see them, Bella. I can't explain to you know, but please, please, please keep those hidden from sight. Maybe Amara has an extra arm band or something like that for you to cover them up and you can make up an excuse as to why you have your arm covered. Damn it, how could I have forgotten those?"

"Well, you did say that, you know, normally people wouldn't notice…" I trailed off when Alice bit her lip and shook her head.

"No. It's best that you cover them up for this. Okay?"

I nodded. "Fine. I really do wish you'd tell me what's going on, though."

"I know, Bella, I know. I'm sorry. I really, _really_ am," she said, cupping my cheeks. I could see the sincere remorse in her eyes and sighed, leaning in to rest my forehead against hers. "It's just incredibly complicated and…and…"

I pressed my lips to hers to silence her. "Shh, it's okay, pixie feet. It's okay."

Her lips curled into a smile. "You know, I wasn't sure about it before, but I do kinda like that nickname. Just don't push it, okay? You wouldn't want me to call you playful names, would you?"

I blanched. "What are you…?" She laughed and pecked me on the lips again.

"You are too fun sometimes, you know that?"

We both just stood there, enjoying one another's presence and gazing into each other's eyes, enjoying the silence and our time together like we always did. Something suddenly hit me and I pulled away from her slightly.

"I do believe you have a promise to keep," I stated, putting my hands on my hips.

Alice cocked her head to the side curiously for a moment. Then her lips curled into an incredibly sexy smirk as she licked her lips. Fuck. Me. How was it that a simple movement like that got me excited so quickly? Oh God.

"You are correct, my dear," she purred. "So if you'll excuse me…"

She reached into the pile of untouched bikinis, and pulled one out too fast for me to see, then skipped out of the stall, leaving me staring after her. I gulped, of course, and remembered that I was still in my bikini. Quickly I shrugged out of it and set it aside, then pulled my underwear on. I was about to put my pants on when Alice's sweet voice interrupted me.

"You'd best put those pants down, Isabella, or I'm going back to change," she called. I swallowed hard and set my pants down, turning to face the doorway which opened painstakingly slow. Then Alice stepped in at a slow, even strut, rocking her hips as she did with that same sexy smirk on her angelic face.

I think my brain just died.

Alice was wearing a yellow bikini. It wasn't too big and it wasn't too small, just the right size to cover up her surprisingly ample bosom. I was _so_ not staring at that. Okay, I was. Shut up. Then of course there was her stomach, which was smooth and, while not muscular in appearance, sculpted nonetheless. Everything about her was unmistakably perfect and beautiful. And fucking sexy too. _Damn_. Alice noticed my eyes raking her perfect form, which caused her smirk to grow as she spun around, giving me a complete three sixty degree view.

Oh. My. God.

"What do you think?" Alice asked, now inches in front of me.

"Guh…" I gurgled, unable to form a coherent response. My brain just stopped working altogether at the sight in front of me. All I could so was stand there like a moron and gape at the most beautiful creature on God's green Earth. Lame as it may sound, let anyone who disagree be damned to the depths of Hell.

Alice laughed and closed my jaw, which I hadn't even noticed was hanging open.

"I take it you like it, then," she giggled, kissing me. I nodded my head dumbly, still gaping at her. Alice rolled her eyes and hugged me for a minute or so. "Alright, you've gotten your reward now, my Bella. You can see it again soon, I promise. Right now, what say we go and pay for what we're buying, shall we?"

Without another word, she was out of the stall, leaving me looking like a giant idiot. I swear a fly could land on my eye and I wouldn't even notice. Oh. Shit. Ow, ow, ow! Blink! I blinked and internally smacked myself for being so…so…awestruck. God. Stupid teenager brain. I sighed and shook my head as I slipped my pants on, then my shirt and lastly both socks and shoes. I had rather enjoyed this little outing, though a part of me desired much, much more.

I swear, sometimes hormones really stink. I'm just saying.

Alice danced into the stall moments later, fully clothed with her bikini in hand. She smiled at me before grabbing the ones we'd decided to get, plus the one I would be wearing tomorrow. She held all of those in one hand while she grabbed the pile that we didn't like or didn't touch with the other, inclining her head for me to follow her, which I did.

Alice quickly took care of all the discard pile by giving them to the guy behind the dressing room counter, the one she'd charmed into letting us use the dressing room by ourselves. She gave him another charming smile, which nearly made him collapse on the ground. I giggled at that, though I felt a twinge of jealousy. I pushed it aside, though, since Alice laced the fingers of her free hand through mine as we walked together towards the cash register.

In a matter of minutes we were driving home, a big grin on Alice's face and a content smile on mine. I was looking forward to tomorrow, truth be told. I'd miss Alice terribly, I knew that and I knew that she knew that too, but I was getting the chance to make some human friends, something I'd never been able to do before. Although it was a little odd for me to refer to them as "human friends". Being around vampires really was getting to me. Ha.

"What are you thinking about?" Alice asked, appraising me curiously.

I smiled. "Well, I was thinking about the beach trip tomorrow and how I'm mentally always referring to Angela, Eric and the others as "human friends" and how it's kinda funny that I say that since I'm still human," I said.

"I see," she said, nodding her head. "Bella?"

"Hm?"

She turned to look at me, her honey eyes smoldering. "Please be careful tomorrow."

This whole La Push secret thing was starting to piss me off. Like, seriously. What the fuck is so damn important about that place and the people living there that they can't tell me? And yet when I ask, they always tell me they'll explain later and they never do. It's quite annoying. But I know that if I press it too much, I might get into trouble. So I'll drop it. Besides, maybe someone on the reservation could tell me. Well, I mean, if I can find that Leah chick, maybe. I'm not about to ask some stranger, that's for sure.

Alice was still looking at me, waiting for me to respond. I sighed.

"I will, Alice. I will." I smiled at her reassuringly to try and prove my point. I would be careful, I knew I had to be, but she didn't have to worry too much. She smiled back, though she didn't seem fully convinced. Still, she dropped it, so that was the end of that.

The rest of the day went on relatively fast. We'd been gone much longer than I had originally thought, a whole three hours instead of one. I was amazed at how off my sense of timing was and wondered if it had anything to do with my slow change into a vampire. Or maybe it was because I was living with vampires, who had no sense of time at all. Both?

I slept rather soundly, cuddling into Alice like I always did. I waited for her to come back from hunting, since she hadn't hunted for a while, before she automatically pulled me into her arms and I snuggled into her. Cold and hard she may be, but she was an amazing pillow, that much I could say without a doubt. Plus, her purring, soft skin and her naturally sweet scent added to the dreamy effect that snuggling with her already created.

It was Sunday morning before I knew it and already I was feeling a bit nervous. I'd never been on this type of trip before, not once in my life. I'd been on a few field trips, sure, but this was different altogether. I hardly knew any of the people I was going with, plus it was a beach where there would most likely be a bunch of strangers roaming around. I was just nervous. Because being nervous is an irritatingly hard habit to break.

"Jasper says you should stop worrying so much," Alice cooed. We were sitting on the bed together; Alice curled around me, her forehead resting against mine as she rubbed our noses together, an adorable expression on her face like always.

"Trying not to," I muttered.

"What's wrong, Bella?" she asked.

I sighed. "I'm just a bit nervous is all," I admitted.

She stroked my cheeks with her thumbs. "I know, love. If you need me, I'm just a phone call away, I promise."

"Thanks, Alice." Alice smiled softly at me and kissed me.

"You should probably go get your stuff ready. We'll be leaving in about twenty minutes."

I cocked my head to the side. "Do you know where Angela lives?"

She nodded and tapped her forehead. "I know _everything_, silly."

I rolled my eyes at her as she giggled and got off the bed, bouncing about the room. I couldn't stop myself from smiling at that. Alice was a pro at cheering me up. With one last quiet sigh I forced myself off the bed and grabbed the stack of clothes I planned on wearing. From what Eric had told me, the weather was supposed to be perfect today. I wouldn't know since the Cullens always had a cool house. It wasn't freezing or anything, more of a relaxing cool than anything else, but then again, I doubted they even noticed it.

I'd already eaten, showered and brushed up, so it wouldn't take too long to be ready. I slipped out of my pajamas and put on my bikini, which, for some reason, felt skimpier than it had the other day. Blushing to myself, I put on a pair of shorts and a short sleeved shirt over it. I figured I'd wear sandals instead of shoes, since those would be more comfortable for me.

Once I was fully changed, all I needed now was the armbands from Amara. I decided that wearing one arm band would look really weird, so I figured I'd just wear two. I made my way downstairs, where Alice was waiting with the others, who were all staring at the TV. They seemed to do that a lot. Did they not have anything better to do with themselves? Edward snorted, but otherwise chose not to comment on that.

I was instantly wrapped up in Esme's arms as she hugged me and kissed my cheeks.

"Oh, I'm so happy you get to spend some time with your friends," she chirped. Then she pulled away and gave me a placid look. "You will miss me, though, right?"

"Of course I will," I stated softly. "How could I not?"

Esme beamed at that before kissing my forehead and moving back over to the kitchen.

I turned and looked at Amara. "Hey, Amara, do you have those armbands?"

Amara nodded and blurred up the stairs, appearing a few seconds later holding two black armbands in her hands. I had to roll my eyes at the color choice as I quickly slipped each one on, positioning them both just right.

"What's wrong with them?" Amara asked, hands on her hips.

"Don't you have anything that _isn't _black or red?" I asked curiously.

"I'll have you know black is the new blue, thank you very much," she huffed before sitting back down. Alice giggled as she jumped up and embraced me.

"You ready to go?" she asked.

I nodded. "Yeah, I'm ready."

"We should give her some flea shots before she goes," Emmett chuckled.

"I think she'll need vaccine for rabies, not fleas," Rosalie grunted.

Amara chuckled. "Maybe a chew toy, too."

"I think all she'll need is a leash," Edward stated.

"Well, I know that she'll need a bath when she gets back," Rosalie snorted. "Otherwise she'll stink up the whole house."

I furrowed my brow in confusion. I thought I always smelled good?

"Will you guys shut up?" Alice hissed. "You're not helping!"

They just smiled at us as Alice groaned and pulled me along with her outside.

"Ignore them," Alice muttered. "They're just spouting nonsense as usual."

"Hey!" Emmett shouted from in the house. I smiled at that.

It didn't take long for us to get in the car and drive off. Angela lived more in the center of Forks, but with Alice's maniac driving, we'd be there in about two minutes, if that. Neither of us spoke, though my mind was racing with questions. Alice looked fairly decent, though her eyes easily gave away the fact that she was worried. I double checked to make sure I had my phone with me in case I needed to call her.

By the time I'd looked up, we were at Angela's. Angela was outside, getting her car set up. She whirled around and gaped surprisedly at us as Alice made her way over to my door, opening it as she always did. I kissed her on the cheek, which made her smile.

"One of these days I'll open your door," I stated.

She giggled. "When it's your car, you can."

"Hey Bella, hey Alice," Angela greeted, walking over to us.

"Hi Angela," we greeted in unison.

"Are you coming with us, Alice?" Angela asked, glancing at her.

Alice looked up at the sky. There were several clouds overhead, blocking out the sun's rays and thus preventing her skin from glowing. But the clouds were dissipating quickly. Alice sighed morosely and shook her head, smiling sadly at me.

"Sorry, but no can do. I have things to attend to."

"Aw, that's too bad. But okay, maybe some other time," Angela said, smiling at her. Then she turned to me, smile still in place. "Are you ready to go, Bella?"

I nodded. "Where are the others?"

"They'll meet us there. Go on and climb into the car and we can get going," she said softly.

I started to walk towards the car when Alice gently grabbed my wrist. She pulled me back towards her and pressed her lips fully to mine. I was a little caught off guard at first, especially since Angela was there, but it didn't take long for me to forget. I kissed her back for a few minutes before breaking apart. Alice sighed and pecked my cheeks one last time, her eyes telling me what her mouth wasn't. Then she turned to Angela, a serious look on her face.

"You promise you'll look after her?" she asked.

Angela nodded, just as serious. "Of course."

Alice narrowed her eyes for a moment, then nodded and turned to face me. "Be careful."

"I will, Alice," I whispered. She smiled softly at me, kissed me one last time, then turned and got into her car. She revved the engine slowly, watching me the whole time as she backed up and drove off, back towards our house.

I turned to face Angela, who was smiling softly at me. "You too sure are cute together."

I blushed and rubbed my neck. "Thanks," I murmured.

"Ready now?" she asked.

I nodded and walked towards the passenger's seat. "Let's go."

**A/N: Alright, now that the fluff is done, it's time for La Push.**


	36. Reservation

**Disclaimer: I do not own Twilight or any of the Twilight characters. Those are copyrighted to Stephanie Meyer. I own all OCs and my own unique ideas. Nuff said.**

**Reservation**

Angela drove her surprisingly silent car across the streets, stopping at the light as it turned red. We had been talking on and off about different subjects since we'd left her house, like our relationships, Forks itself, the school and other normal things. She even inquired a little bit about my family, though her questions were subtle and basic ones. I could understand why she was so curious, considering how mysterious the Cullens tended to act around others. We were currently talking about La Push and what it was like. When she asked me if I'd been to any beaches, I had to admit to her that I hadn't.

"So this is your first beach trip ever?" Angela asked, slightly taken aback.

I shrugged. "Well, yes and no. I mean, it's my first trip to a beach with, er, friends and all. I think I've been to La Push before, maybe, but I can't remember. It's been too long. I think the last time I was here was when I was a little kid."

Angela looked perplexed. "I didn't know you used to live here."

I internally kicked myself for that. Then again, I wasn't sure how far the Cullens' elaborate lie extended. As far as I knew, they only covered how I'd come into the family and nothing more, so maybe I could get away with saying a bit more without any consequences. If anything, someone would have mentioned it if they felt it was important. So why not?

"Yeah, I did," I admitted. Angela seemed like a trustworthy person. I'd asked Edward about her before and he said that she had very "pure" thoughts. "I used to live here for a few years with my…_parents_…before they divorced and we moved away."

I had forgotten how hard it was to say that word when I wasn't referring to Carlisle and Esme, who in my eyes, were my parents and were always meant to be my parents. That's how I saw it, at least. Renee and Charlie had nothing on the two of them in my world. Nothing.

"I see," Angela murmured. She was clearly curious and wanted to know more, but she wasn't the type to brazenly throw out questions at me. That was something I liked about her, she respected my privacy and wouldn't ever ask me anything that she felt would invade it.

"You can ask if you'd like, Angela," I said softly.

Angela bit her lip. "So your parents…your, um, ex-parents, I mean. What were they like?"

I sighed. "I hated my mother and she never cared much for me. She used to verbally abuse me all the time, telling me I was worthless and I would never be able to get anywhere with my life. My father still lives here in Forks. He never showed me any sort of love back then, but now he says he's willing to try and make amends. I'm not sure about it, yet, but I've decided to give him a chance, at the very least. Then again, it's more because of his friendship with Carlisle that I'm doing it. I'm not holding my breath on him."

She nodded in understanding. "May I ask who your birth father is?"

I hesitated for a moment before deciding it was okay to tell her. "Charlie Swan," I replied. I winced as I said the name, since it reminded me too much of how things used to be.

Angela gasped. "The police chief?" I nodded. "Wow. That's…interesting. My parents are good friends with him and they mentioned that he had a daughter. I never thought that it'd be you, no offense or anything."

"I don't consider myself his daughter any more. He lost that privilege years ago and it's way too late for that to change," I said, shrugging my shoulders.

"I understand," Angela said, nodding. "Oh, we're almost there."

I glanced out the window to see that we were driving on a dirt path now, the beach a few miles ahead. The clouds, for the most part, were gone now, allowing for the warm rays of sunlight to pour down on everything. I had to open my window because the car was starting to get stuffy, which was not something I was used to.

"So the others will be there?" I inquired.

"Yes, Eric went and got both Katie and Ben and, knowing how Eric drives, he's probably already there, waiting for us."

I chuckled. "Trust me, Angela, no matter how fast Eric drives, Alice drives twice as fast."

Angela stared at me wide eyed. "Really?"

"Oh yeah, she's a regular speed demon," I replied, smiling.

"You two really love each other don't you?" she asked.

"She means the world to me," I answered truthfully. "I couldn't imagine myself being with anyone but her."

Angela smiled at me in understanding and appreciation as we neared the beach. I noticed that there was another car already there, which, as Angela had said, was indeed Eric's. Eric, Katie and Ben were all lounging near it; all of them smiling when they caught sight of Angela's car pull up next to it. She smiled at me before exiting, which I did after her. I had to admit it was weird not having Alice there to open the door for me.

"Hey Angie! Hey Bella!" Katie greeted excitedly.

Angela frowned. "Angie? Can't I just be Angela?"

The boys both chuckled at her humorous expression while Katie merely shrugged. Angela sighed and shook her head. Katie walked past her and enveloped me in a hug I wasn't expecting. Not only that, but I wasn't used to hugging someone whose body wasn't as cold as ice. It took me a moment, but I eventually relaxed into the hug and hugged her back. I didn't fail to notice Katie sniffing my shoulder before she pulled away.

"You smell good," she said, smiling at me.

"Er, thanks," I murmured.

"That's a little weird," Ben snickered.

Katie scoffed. "Would you rather I tell her she stinks?"

Ben thought on that before smiling and shaking his head. "Good point."

"Alright, enough dillydallying, let's go have some fun in the sun!" Eric shouted. I noticed he was holding onto a long blue surfboard with a bikini-clad girl in the center.

Katie and Ben both nodded in agreement. Eric smirked and started walking off towards the ocean, Katie grabbing her surfboard and smiling at me before chasing after him. Ben walked over to Angela and looked at me.

"So Bella, do you surf?"

I was about to respond when my cell phone's loud ring startled me. I frowned, having not realized I'd had it on, and pulled it from my pocket to see who was calling me. Alice, of course. I gave Ben and Angela an apologetic look, but they just waved it off with knowing smiles on their faces as I turned around and put the phone to my ear.

"Alice, what's-"

"Bella!" she shouted into the phone. "Oh Bella, thank God…"

"Alice, honey, what's wrong? Are you okay?" I asked, becoming incredibly concerned at the tone of her voice.

She sounded like she was breathing hard into the phone, taking a few unneeded breaths before responding. Oh God. Was she okay? Did she see something?

"Oh Bella, I was so worried about you. I…I can't _see _you, Bella. You just vanished out of my view and it scared me to death. Are you okay? Are you hurt? Bella please, please tell me if something happened," she choked into the phone.

"Alice, I'm okay," I soothed. "I'm fine, really, I'm fine. Please, calm down."

"O-okay…" she sputtered. "I just…God, I thought I'd lost you…"

"No! No, everything is fine," I repeated softly. "Alice, I promise you that I will be back there in a few hours in your arms, okay?"

"Alright," she replied, her tone far less frantic. "I love you."

"I love you too."

She hesitated for a moment before sighing and hanging up. I felt a wave of relief wash over me as I did the same, snapping my phone shut and stuffing it into my pocket. I ran a hand through my hair and steadied myself. Hearing Alice panic made me panic and I was worried something had happened. Then I thought about what she said. She couldn't see me.

What did that mean? Why couldn't she see me? That didn't make any sense.

"Is everything okay, Bella?" Angela's quiet voice interrupted my musing. I turned to see both her and Ben looking at me concernedly.

"Um, yeah, everything's fine. False alarm is all."

"If you say so," Angela murmured, not quite believing me. Ben frowned, but shrugged it off.

The two of them starting walking off towards the beach, so I followed along behind them, keeping my hands in my pockets as I did. I couldn't get Alice's terrified voice out of my mind and how scared shitless I was when I'd heard it. I hoped she would calm down a bit by the time I'd returned. I didn't want her thinking I was dead or anything of that sort.

"So Bella, do you surf?" Ben asked, repeating his earlier question.

I blinked. "Um, no, not really. I'd probably just make a fool of myself if I tried."

Angela giggled. "That's okay, neither of us can either. Heck, Eric and Katie aren't all that great themselves; they fall down more times than anything. But they do it to have a good time and they enjoy seeing how long they can last before falling."

"You remember that time Katie tried doing a handstand?" Ben chuckled.

"I take it didn't work out too well," I inquired.

Ben smirked and nodded. "Nope. She ended up crashing into Angela by accident."

"I had to buy new glasses after that," Angela sighed, shaking her head. "But it was a fun day, so I didn't mind so much. And the Quileutes that showed up were friendly, too. Well, most of them were. There a few of them that weren't, but they didn't hang around too much."

"What do you mean?" I asked curiously.

Ben answered. "Well, since the Quileutes live here, they're always out and about. Some of them happen to like mingling with people who come by, so it wouldn't surprise me if a few of them showed up just to chat. Like Angela said, some aren't very social, but most of them are friendly if you talk to them."

I nodded in understanding. We were now on the beach itself, which was surprisingly vacant. A few people with tan skin were walking about, talking amongst themselves, but otherwise it was just the five of us that I recognized. Eric and Katie were out in ocean, struggling to keep their balance on their respective surfboards. They ended up colliding into each other, which caused the three of us and several of the natives watching to laugh.

"Wow," I chuckled. "They really aren't very coordinated, are they?" Angela and Ben both laughed in agreement as Eric and Katie both popped their heads out of the water. They gave all of us thumbs up before clambering back onto their surfboards to try again. I giggled. I had to give them credit, since I would've given up after the first fall.

I stopped when something hit me, or rather, my nostrils. It was just…ew. One of the grossest, weirdest scents that I'd ever smelled before. I mean damn, it was rank. I had to cover my nose for a moment as my eyes watered from the intense smell, which reminded me of wet dog. But there were no dogs around here as far as I could see, which confused me. The scent dissipated seconds after it had appeared, confusing me even further. What the fuck?

"Did you guys smell that?" I inquired. Ben and Angela both turned and looked at me incredulously.

"Smell what?" Angela asked.

"It was…" I frowned for a moment and shook my head. "Never mind, probably just something in the air is all. No big deal." They both shrugged before continuing their own conversation, which I chose not to interrupt.

I looked around, wondering where that awful smell had come from, yet could find nothing. How weird. I shrugged to myself and kicked a bit of sand in the air. I was content on letting Angela and Ben have their own private conversations. I wasn't too close to them yet, so I'd feel rude if I just loomed near them while they talked.

I noticed that several of the Quileutes, mostly young looking boys with a few girls, were all staring. At me. I blushed, feeling both awkward and self-conscious with my choice of attire, internally cursing myself for ever agreeing to wear a damn bikini of all things. Ugh. They all had the oddest looks on their faces, a mixture of confusion, disgust and wariness. I noticed several were whispering amongst themselves, but I couldn't hear what they were saying. As I kept walking, though, I could hear a few words.

"She stinks like them!" one of the girls hissed.

"But she's human," one of the boys countered.

"She must go to the school with them," another boy reasoned.

"Then why does she reek like they do so much and not the others?" a third boy asked.

"Maybe we should ask her," a second girl suggested.

"No. Leave her be," stated a fourth boy, taller and older looking than the others.

"For now, at least," added another girl, also taller and older looking.

I nearly tripped over myself when I'd heard them mentioning that I was "human". What the fuck? Did they know about the Cullens being vampires? Is that what the big secret was? I wanted to know even more then I already did. God, I fucking needed to know now. The curiosity was going to drive me insane otherwise. Damn it.

Before I could dwell on it for too long, I noticed one of the Quileute boys slowly walking towards me. Narrowing my eyes, it took me a moment to realize that it was the same boy I'd seen that day when I'd seen Charlie. The only difference was, his hair was cropped short now and he seemed a bit taller. Not by much, though. He looked to be about 5'11, if anything, with a boyish face and a lanky body. Ew. He wasn't wearing a shirt. Conceited much?

Then again, it was hot out, so whatever. I just wasn't the type for looking at guy's chests, especially the guys who carried themselves like they were God's gift to women. Those were the guys I couldn't stand, with their damn 'I-think-I'm-sexy' grins and their fucking six-packs. My God, I hated guys with super toned abs. I don't know why, I just did. I guess it was my attraction to girls with soft, thin stomachs and curvy waists, but I detested guys like that. And judging by this guy, however young he was, he seemed to be that exact type of person. Joy.

"Hey," he greeted, a husky sounding voice that made me cringe.

"Hi," I muttered, not interested in talking to him. I tried to walk away, but he stepped in front of me, causing a hiss to escape my lips. I did NOT like being blocked off.

His eyes widened for a moment as he stepped back, holding his hands up in front of him.

"Whoa, hang on a moment. I just wanted to talk is all," he said.

I glared at him. "What is it?"

"You…you're the girl I saw a few days ago, right? You were leaving Chief Swan's house that day, remember?"

"Yes, what of it?"

"I just…uh…how do I say this? I think I might know you. Are you…are you Bella?"

I sighed. "Yes, that's my name."

His eyes widened in surprise. "Holy crap, I can't believe it. I thought that it was you, but I wasn't sure at first. And Charlie didn't say anything, so I started to doubt it. But then I kept thinking and I realized that it had to be you. Damn, Bella, it's been, like, forever-"

I held up my hands and interrupted him. "What the fuck are you talking about? I don't know you, pal, so I suggest you get the hell away from me. Now."

He frowned for a moment. "You don't recognize me? Well, it has been a few years, I guess. It's me, Jacob, remember? Jacob Black? You used to play with me and my sister when we were all little kids years ago?"

I blinked several times and cocked my head to the side curiously. Huh?

"Jacob?" I repeated the name confusedly. It did ring a bell, but it was very, very vague. I thought back on it, trying to delve into my memory as best as I could. Then I recalled playing with some kids as a child, one of them a tan skinned boy. I remembered his face, then looked at this boy's face and realized that they were in fact the same person.

The realization must have shown because he smiled wide at me.

"Yup, it's me, your old buddy Jacob."

I gave him a once over and blinked a few more times. "Jacob Black. Damn. I can't believe it's you. Wow, you really look different. You aren't short and chubby anymore, I see. Not to mention you cut your hair and…" I paused when I noticed an odd looking tattoo on his right shoulder, the same tattoo that several of the other Quileutes had. "I can hardly recognize you."

He laughed throatily. "Look who's talking! I could hardly believe it was you. You've gotten pretty tall yourself, taller then I'd thought. I see you're just as pale as ever, though."

"I can't help if I don't tan, jackass," I huffed. "So what have you been up to? And your sister, where's she at? I haven't seen her in forever too."

Jacob smiled and pointed his thumb in the direction of the group that had been staring at me. A few of them were giving me brief once-overs while the others were either talking amongst themselves or glancing at Jacob. I followed his thumb at the taller, older looking girl with cropped black hair, who had a disgruntled look on her face.

"That's her," he said.

I gawked in surprise. I remembered Jacob's older sister, Raina Black, from all those years ago, since she used to play with us. Now, though, she was almost unrecognizable. She was well built in both height and muscle, not overly buff, but well toned nonetheless. Her face was thin and her eyes narrow, but she was unmistakably beautiful. Nowhere near the levels of my family, of course, but still more than the average human, I'd say.

"Damn. She looks like she could kick your ass pretty easily," I mused.

Jacob scoffed at that and I swore that I heard the others, Raina included, laughing amongst themselves. Had they heard me? I was about to ask about it when that awful smell came back. I winced and covered my nose again, the foulness bringing tears to my eyes. Dear God that stinks. What the hell _is_ that? It was like rotting garbage mixed in with dog.

Jacob looked at me concernedly and took a step forward, mouth open to say something, when suddenly he stepped back, his nose scrunching as a look of sheer disgust came onto his face. He blinked several times and subtly sniffed the air before shaking his head.

"Gross," he mumbled under his breath.

"Do you smell that too?" I asked.

He looked at me curiously. "What?"

"That really stinky smell? C'mon, you _had_ to have gotten a whiff of it," I breathed, the smell now gone again. Seriously, what was up with that?

Jacob's face became unreadable as he appraised me for a moment. Then his face softened as he shrugged and smiled.

"Sorry, I dunno what you mean. Someone probably ripped one over there," he said, pointing at the group of Quileutes. A couple glared at him as he started to snicker humorously, which confused the hell out of me. I was certain they'd heard him, yet he hadn't talked very loudly.

There was definitely something going on here. And I didn't like it.

"Bella, there you are," I heard Angela say. I turned and saw her and Ben walking over towards Jacob and I. They glanced at him for a moment as they closed in on us. "We turned around and you were nowhere to be seen, so we got a little worried."

"Sorry about that," I murmured, rubbing the back of my neck.

"Who's your friend here?" Ben asked curiously.

"Oh! This is Jacob. We used to be friends when I lived here years ago," I said, waving my hand at him. "We just kinda re-met, since it's been years since we've seen each other. I used to play with him and his sister when I was little. Jacob, this is Angela and her boyfriend Ben."

"Nice to meet you," Angela said, nodding her head. Ben did the same.

Jacob smiled at that. "Well, I'm happy to meet you two as well. I take it those other two out on the waves are friends of yours?" he asked, looking at me.

"Yeah, that's Eric and his girlfriend Katie."

Jacob narrowed his eyes and looked out at the ocean. Angela, Ben and I did too. Eric and Katie were now fully riding a good sized wave, both posing humorously at us as they did. All of us laughed when Katie's board curved and once again she collided with Eric, causing them to topple into the water beneath.

"They're getting better," Jacob mused. He then turned to me, a curious smile on his face. "No boyfriend with you?"

I opened my mouth to reply, but shut it. Did he seriously just ask me that? Yeah, he did. And there was no way in hell I could miss that weird glint of hope that flickered across his eyes as he did, though it vanished quickly. I was stunned. We hadn't even been talking for five fucking minutes and already he was trying to hit on me? Fucking seriously?

Jacob must have noticed my irritation because he immediately looked abashed.

"Sorry, shouldn't have asked. Not my place. I didn't mean it that way, I swear. I was just, you know, kinda curious is all," he said, pouting at me. His pout was a little puppy-doggish, but nothing like Alice's. But his eyes relayed that he was being sincere, so my irritation dissipated as I let out a quiet sigh. Angela and Ben watched the display with worried looks.

"It's fine. But no, I don't have a _boyfriend_," I replied, hoping he'd get the hint. He didn't seem to, which made me internally sigh. Angela giggled, though and Ben snickered, both of them knowing the truth.

"You should keep Bella some company," Ben suggested, grinning as he did. "She's kind of on her own without her girlfriend to hang around with."

I hung my head at the mentioning of that, since I'd been trying not to think about how much I missed Alice. Angela lightly elbowed Ben, causing him to smack his forehead and give me an apologetic look. Jacob looked between us with a puzzled expression, trying to figure out what was going on, then shrugged and smiled again. He really liked smiling, it seemed.

"Yeah, sure, I'd love to keep my old pal some company," he replied, grinning at me. "You feel like going for a surf?"

"I don't surf," I stated. "But you could if you want. I was actually thinking of building a sandcastle, since I haven't done that in ages."

"Ooh! Sandcastles!" Ben shouted excitedly. "We should have a mini-contest!"

"Sounds like fun," Jacob crooned. "I'm in."

"Me too," Angela said.

The four of us all walked over to a good spot and took up separate positions, deciding to work alone rather than in pairs. We'd build a sandcastle as best we could, then get someone, maybe Eric and Katie, to judge which was best. I was hoping that being Alice's mate would mean that some of her artistic talent rubbed off on me subconsciously. I mean, I doubted it, but it would be nice. I would love to take a photo and send it to Alice, just so she was aware that I was okay.

I waited for a moment as I watched Jacob, Angela and Ben start theirs. We didn't have any buckets or plastic shovels like little kids used, so it was all up to us using our hands and our creative abilities. Ha. Yeah, I was fucked.

I didn't know what the hell I was going to make. I just started grabbing handfuls of sand and started piling them together. I spent about an hour and a half struggling to put everything together and keep it in place. Since we were closer to the water, it was easier to grab wet sand, which helped keep everything stable, but because of my lack of art knowhow, I was at a bit of a loss. I glanced at the others and was happy to see that none of them were faring any better.

Only Jacob seemed to be doing well with his. Jerk.

I sighed and closed my eyes to clear my head. I needed inspiration, and there was one person that I could think of to give me inspiration. Alice. I imagined her graceful, beautiful face, the thin eyebrows, the dimples, those angelic eyes and her smile, her black, messy hair pointing in every direction, the sound of her wind-chime voice. I used that, the image of my Alice, as inspiration and just started moving my hands randomly, not quite watching myself work.

Yeah, I know I'm insane. But when you live with a family of vampires, your girlfriend and soulmate is a vampire and you're turning_ into _a damn vampire, sanity is a bit overrated.

Another hour passed, most of my attention on thoughts of Alice. Not the dirty kind, despite what my mind wanted to think, but just of her. I hadn't even looked at what I was creating—or attempting to create—until I heard a grumble next to me. I glanced over to see Jacob glaring at his sandcastle, which, to my amusement, had toppled over. Angela's was looking good, like a classic sandcastle, while Ben's had a very interesting look. Then I looked at mine.

Mine hadn't turned into a sandcastle. It was, to my complete surprise, Alice's face. I gaped at it, stunned that I of all people had made it. It looked exactly like her, with every detail, from her hair to her eyes to her smile, was perfectly formed in the sand. Wow. Just, wow. I guess there was some artistic talent in me after all. I'd even illustrated both her necklace and her choker in the sand. Damn. I guess I should not pay attention to what I create more often.

I gave my creation a once over, making sure everything was perfect, which it was. Getting an idea, I pulled my phone out and accessed the camera option before standing and snapping a photo of the sand Alice. Then I clicked 'send' to the real Alice, hoping she would like it. It wasn't a permanent thing like her drawings were, but I hoped she'd like it nonetheless.

Seconds after I'd sent it, my phone vibrated. I flicked it open and smiled.

_It's beautiful, love. Thank you. I love you._

I sighed, thankful that she wasn't worrying as much anymore.

"Damn, Bella," Jacob breathed, staring down at my work. Ben and Angela both looked over from theirs and looked at it in surprise themselves. "That's pretty good."

"It is," Ben agreed.

Angela walked over and glanced down at it. "Is that Alice?" I smiled and nodded. "Aw, that's so sweet of you. Did you send it to her?" I nodded again. Angela giggled. "You two are so cute together, I swear."

I blushed at that. "Thanks."

"Who's Alice?" Jacob asked.

"My girlfriend," I replied automatically.

Jacob frowned as he absorbed that information. "Girlfriend? Like, _girlfriend _girlfriend?"

"Yes, that would be the one."

Jacob looked at me surprisedly, cocking his head to the side and studying me like I was a work of art. I furrowed my brow, annoyed at the look he was giving me. There was confusion, curiosity, uncertainty and wariness in his eyes as he frowned and shook his head.

"I didn't know you swung that way," he murmured.

I shrugged. "I figured it out a while ago, actually."

"I guess you really_ have_ changed."

I scowled at his tone of voice, but didn't comment on it. "You have no idea," I said softly.

He was about to respond to that when we noticed Eric and Katie, drenched, walking towards us with their boards in tote. They both set their boards into the sand and shook their messy hair as they came over to us, smiles on their faces.

"Hey guys! What's happening?" Eric asked, glancing idly at Jacob.

"Who might this be?" Katie asked.

"Jacob. I'm an old friend of Bella's," he replied. There was something off about his voice as he responded, though he still smiled. Huh. Eric and Katie both smiled and shook his hand before glancing at the three of us. Eric smirked and playfully nudged Ben.

"Yo bud, what's up?" Eric asked, nodding at him.

Ben shrugged. "Not much. Just building some sandcastles in the, er, sand."

"Dude!" Katie exclaimed, looking at my sand Alice. "Bella, that's awesome! You made that?"

I stared down at it fondly and nodded. "Yeah, I did."

"Nice job," Eric commended. "I'd definitely vote Bella as the winner."

"Me too," Katie agreed.

Ben and Angela both nodded in agreement. Jacob stared down at it, a strange look in his eyes. It was almost as though he were glaring, not at my creation itself, but at Alice. As if he knew who she was. Did he?

"Something wrong, Jacob?" I asked.

Jacob looked up at me. "Huh? Oh no, sorry. Just admiring the…detail in your creation is all."

_Yeah right. I can tell by the look in your eyes there's way more to it, you just aren't telling me, like everyone else I know_, I grumbled mentally.

"Hey, you guys wanna go check out the souvenir shop?" Katie asked.

I gave her a puzzled look. "There's a souvenir shop here?"

Jacob chuckled next to me. "Yeah, my people sell things like shells and things we made over there." He pointed towards a building further off with a sign hanging in front of it. "It's all genuine and I swear the prices are good. We don't rip you off like a lot of other places do, and if you feel dissatisfied, we'll gladly give you your money back, no questions asked. It's our policy here on La Push, you have my word."

"That sounds like fun, actually," Angela murmured.

"Yeah, I bet they've got some cool stuff," Ben agreed.

"You coming, Bella?" Eric asked.

I thought on it for a moment. "Nah, I think I'll stick around here and catch up with Jacob for a while. You guys go on ahead; I'll meet with you later on, okay?"

"Sounds good, Bella," Katie said.

They all smiled at me before walking off towards the souvenir shop. I watched them for about a minute before sighing and kneeling down, studying my sand Alice thoroughly. I could feel Jacob staring down at it over my shoulder, which was really starting to irk me.

I stood up and put my hands on my hips as I faced him. "Seriously, what's wrong?"

He narrowed his eyes, glancing in the direction where the group of Quileutes had been. Most of them were gone, save for the two older looking ones, Raina and the boy, both of whom were staring at Jacob. Jacob furrowed his brow and sighed, running a hand through his short hair.

"It's nothing, Bella, really." I raised an eyebrow, not falling for his bullshit. "You wanna go for a walk or something? Just to catch up?"

I sighed, seeing that I wasn't going to be getting an answer. "Yeah, sure, why not."

We started walking with each other. Or rather, he started walking and I followed, since I had no idea where he was going. He had his hands in his pockets and his eyes to the ground, lost in thought on something. I stuffed my hands into my pockets too, deciding not to speak until he spoke, no matter how awkward and irritating the silence was.

"So, uh, that girl you were with that day. Is that Alice?" he asked, not looking at me.

"Yeah, that's her," I muttered.

"Oh."

He was silent for a moment, his eyebrows twitching. "She's a Cullen?"

"Yup."

"Oh."

Again, more awkward silence. It was really starting to piss me off. I was about to stop and ask him about it when he suddenly turned, forcing me to follow after him. Then he stopped a moment later in front of a house, which I assumed to be his. An idle glance to the left revealed the pickup I'd seen that day, which confirmed what I had expected. But then I caught sight of another vehicle: a police cruiser. I furrowed my brow in confusion when the door to the house swung open and out sauntered two familiar faces.

The first was the man in the wheelchair that I'd seen with Jacob that day, likely Jacob's father or grandfather. His eyes quickly fell upon me, narrowing as they did in a scrutinizing way. Next to him, staring at me with surprise was Charlie, wearing casual clothes instead of his police uniform, which I'd expected him to wear.

"Hey Bella," Charlie greeted, awkwardly rubbing his neck.

"Hi Charlie."

Shit. This wasn't good. One of the last people I wanted to see was now standing right in front of me. Could this day get any more awkward?

Knowing me and how my luck worked out, I knew it could and would be without a doubt. Sigh.

I really hate my luck sometimes. And I had a bad feeling that it was going to get worse.

**A/N: Aw, no Leah? Sorry folks, not in this chapter.**

**For those of you expecting a bunch of drama to ensue when Leah shows up, you'll be leaving disappointed. It's much too early in the story for that type of thing to occur. That doesn't mean there won't be drama with Leah involved later on, though. You just have to be patient with it. Normally I'd make an apology, but I don't think there's a reason to. I mean, it's my story, right? But don't worry, Leah will be more involved as the story continues. I promise. :)**

**By the way, Raina Black is my OC, a variation of Jacob's two sisters Rachel and Rebecca, who weren't featured very much (if at all) in the books or the movies. Also, she is Sam's imprint instead of Emily. Reasons will be explained eventually and the character will get some screen time eventually too. Just more to look forward to in the future.**

**A big thank you to all of my amazing readers and for all the reviews. I didn't say it last time, but I'll say it now. I am very, very happy to have hit 1,000 reviews, and while some of them aren't positive, it still means something to me to receive them. So thank you. You guys are awesome. **


	37. Jacob

**Disclaimer: I take no credit for any of Stephanie Meyer's characters, only for my own.**

**Jacob**

Charlie stood there awkwardly, his eyes staring at the ground rather than at me. Jacob seemed mildly surprised to see him, but otherwise betrayed no emotions. And the man in the wheelchair just kept his eyes on me. I looked between the three of them and nervously ran a hand through my hair, not really knowing what to do or say.

I hated awkward silences. And for some reason, being around Charlie always meant an awkward silence. Why was that? Worse still, Charlie was shifting his eyes at me, as if he were waiting for me to be the one to break it.

What the hell? No way! Why should I have to be the one to break the silence?

Oh God, I hope I don't. I hate it when that happens.

"Hello Chief Swan," Jacob said, breaking the silence at last.

Charlie nodded to him. "Hey there, Jake. I see you, um, met Bella."

The man in the wheelchair blinked and looked at him surprisedly. "Bella? Your daughter?"

I winced at the word "daughter" and glared at Charlie, silently daring him to try and refer to me as that title. I was not his daughter, not anymore. Honestly, I wasn't sure if I ever really was his daughter in his eyes. But it didn't matter now; I was Carlisle and Esme's daughter. Charlie grimaced, not only at his question, but at the look on my face. He hesitated for a moment before sighing and shaking his head.

"She's, er, not my daughter anymore, Billy," he admitted, a look of sorrow and shame on his face. Jacob's eyes widened as he appraised me, the man in the wheelchair, Billy, doing the same.

Wait. Billy. This was Jacob's father, Billy Black. I remembered him now.

"What does he mean?" Jacob asked, puzzled.

I sighed. "I was just recently adopted by a new family; one that I know loves me and will take care of me."

"Is that true, Charlie?" Billy asked.

Charlie nodded somberly. "Yes, it is."

"Why?" Jacob inquired.

"It's a long story," Charlie stated, clearly not wanting to talk about it. I scoffed quietly, but made no comment. Charlie glanced at me for a moment before turning to Billy. "Listen Billy, it's been nice seeing you again, but I think I'd best be going. I got a call last night about another disappearance, so I need to go look into that. You take care of yourself, now."

Billy frowned, but nodded. "You as well, my friend."

"So long, Jacob and you too, Bella. Give the doctor my regards," Charlie murmured before walking off. He only looked back once, his eyes looking into mine, reflecting the pain he was feeling as he got into his cruiser and revved the engine up. I watched after him for a few seconds until his car disappeared altogether. It was then that I noticed both Jacob and Billy studying me, confusion and curiosity in their eyes.

"What?" I asked, disliking their looks.

"So what happened between you and Charlie?" Jacob inquired.

"Jacob," Billy chided.

"I'm surprised he didn't mention it," I muttered.

"He mentioned you from time to time, though never much," Billy stated. "He felt bad because he'd let your mother take you and the guilt was eating away at him. He wasn't the same until after the accident, then he got a lot better. He missed you, you know."

I rolled my eyes. "He should have thought of that before he neglected me when I was still his daughter. It's far too late for that. I'm only giving him a second chance because it's my new father's wishes. Otherwise, I wouldn't have even bothered to go see him that day."

"I see."

Jacob still seemed aghast. "How come you didn't mention this before?"

"I didn't think it mattered all that much," I replied.

"Well, no, not a whole lot, but still, Bella. I mean, we used to be so tight back when we were kids, even if we didn't see each other a whole lot. I just figured that you would, you know, trust me enough to tell me this sort of thing," he mumbled, shrugging his shoulders. "But I get it. It's been a long time and we've both changed, so it makes sense that you wouldn't trust me anymore. I do hope that we can restart our friendship, at least."

I thought about that for a moment. Alice and the others didn't seem too fond of anyone here, especially with all the insults and teasing and the warnings. I didn't understand any of it, truth be told, but I didn't see a reason to let it get to me just yet. If their reasons were good enough, then I would change my mind. But this was Jacob. He may be a bit annoying, but what he said is true, we did use to be good friends when we were younger.

"Of course we can," I answered. "I don't see a reason why we couldn't."

Jacob smiled at that. "Great! So, you wanna come inside?"

I glanced at Billy, who nodded his head. "You're welcome to come in, Bella. I'm curious to hear how things have gone for you lately."

"Alright, sounds good. I can't be gone too long, since I don't want to keep my friends waiting forever and all. They can only be entertained by a souvenir shop for so long."

"You'd be surprised," Jacob chuckled, walking inside. "Come on in."

I followed after him into his house, which looked vaguely familiar to me. The walls were a light shade of green, with various photos hanging, as well as a few trophies. Positioned on the far right wall was a shotgun that was likely Billy's from years ago. There was a large screen TV and a two piece couch in the center, the kitchen off to the left. I recognized the area that Jacob and I used to play in off to the side. It brought back some memories, though not all were good ones.

"Do you remember this place?" Jacob asked.

"Somewhat," I admitted. "Not all that well, though."

Jacob was about to respond when Billy rolled into the room and cut him off.

"So Bella, is your adoptive father a doctor?" he asked.

I nodded. "Yeah, he is. He's a really amazing person, both charming and incredibly kind. I don't even consider him my "adoptive" father, but more like my actual father. The same with my mother, she's amazing and sweet and a hell of a lot better than that bitch that I used to think of as my mother. They both love me and I love them, and I'm much closer with them than I ever was with Charlie and especially Renee."

"I see," Billy said, furrowing his brow. "Would you mind telling me their names? Maybe I know them."

Jacob gave his father a puzzled expression. I, on the other hand, froze on the spot. That look in his eyes told me that he knew something. I could see it. Shit. What did he know? And furthermore, what do I do? If I don't tell him, then he might get suspicious. But what happens if I do tell him and something bad happens? Damn it. Maybe I shouldn't have come here.

"Um…"

Jacob, thank God, came in for the save. "You don't have to if you don't want to, Bella." He gave his father a scolding glare. "It's not really any of our business, dad. C'mon now, this is Bella's first time here in years, we should at least treat her with some respect."

Billy scowled momentarily, but nodded, giving me an apologetic look. "My apologies, Bella. I should not be trying to intrude into your personal life. But regardless, it is good to see you again after all these years and I'm glad you and Jacob are having a chance to catch up. You should speak to Raina at some point too, though knowing that girl; I doubt she'll be free anytime soon."

"Why, what's she been up to?" I asked curiously.

Jacob and Billy looked at each other before Jacob answered. "Not much. She's been seeing her boyfriend mostly. I'm sure she wouldn't mind saying hello to you later today."

"Oh. Well, I don't want to bother her or anything," I murmured. "Speaking of which, you're sure this isn't a problem, Mr. Black?" Why I was being formal, I didn't know. I guess it was just because I wanted to emulate Carlisle and Esme in some way, so formality seemed like the best first step to that approach, no?

Billy actually chuckled. "Heavens no, Bella. And please, call me Billy."

"Mr. Black," Jacob snickered. "Sounds like something out of a movie."

I rolled my eyes, mildly amused by his childishness. "What have you been up to lately, Billy?"

Billy smiled. "Well, you may not recall, but I'm a member of the Quileute Council, actually. I work alongside several others to keep track of all things relating to our tribe and our land, including the money we make at our souvenir store, making sure our kids don't cause too much of a problem and schooling, for instance. It's a fulltime job, but it has a great deal of benefits, might I say. We hold meetings every weekend to inform our tribe of what's going on while having a traditional Quileute bonfire."

"Sounds cool," I said.

"Eh, it kinda is," Jacob stated, smirking at his father's sigh. "What? C'mon, pops, even you gotta admit that it's boring at times. Except the food. The food is always good."

"That, my son, is because of the fact that you, like every other youth here, could eat a truckload of food before you were satisfied. And that, Bella, is no joke," Billy said, a hint of mirth in his weathered eyes.

Jacob shrugged humorously. "S'true, no doubt about that. Hey Bella, you wanna see my room?"

"Um, sure," I replied.

Jacob beamed and motioned for me to follow him down their hallway, which I did, hands stuffed into my pockets. Jacob walked to the third door on the left side and opened it, beckoning me inside. No sooner had I walked in was I struck by that awful smell again, only this time it was even stronger. I had to resist the urge to gag as I covered my nose and held my breath in, trying to do so without Jacob noticing. And if he did, he made no sign of it.

After a minute the stench dissipated and I was allowed to breathe clean oxygen once more, though I noticed that his room had an odd smell to it. It wasn't necessarily bad, nothing like what I'd smelled moments ago, which was completely gone now.

Jacob's room was decent sized. Nothing spectacular, not like Alice's room. He had a single window and a large bed beneath it, the covers thrown about everywhere. The walls had various posters, some of celebrities, some of more spiritual looking things, the most prominent among them a large wolf. There was a desk, two medium sized dressers and a small closet too. All in all, it wasn't shabby, but it wasn't the kind of room that I'd like. Way too small for my tastes.

"So, what do you think?" Jacob asked, spreading his arms out and waving his hands around.

"No offense, Jacob, but it stinks in here," I replied, crinkling my nose.

Jacob stared at me blankly before guffawing. "Yeah, sorry about that!" he laughed. "Ha! Ah, Bella, I'm glad to see you haven't changed too much. But hey, I can't help it if it's a mess."

"Oh, I dunno, you could _clean_ it, you know," I suggested sarcastically.

Jacob rolled his eyes. "I do!" I narrowed my eyes and raised an eyebrow at him, pointing out a pile of what looked like dirty clothes on the floor. Jacob looked down at the floor embarrassedly. "Okay, so I clean it every month and a half or so. Sometimes more, it depends on how long it takes me to remember. But I _do_ clean it, I swear. I just haven't gotten around to cleaning it recently is all."

"Uh huh, sure you do," I teased.

"Shut up!" Jacob huffed. "I doubt yours is any better."

"Ha! I'll have you know my room is awesome, thank you very much," I gloated. It was awesome mostly because I shared it with Alice, but he didn't need to know that.

"Yeah, whatever you say, Bells," he said, shaking his head.

I growled lightly. "Don't call me 'Bells', Jacob. I only let people I'm close to call me that."

He frowned, slightly hurt, but shook it off and nodded. "My bad. I'll stick with Bella for now."

"Thank you. It's nothing personal, Jacob. It's just…a me thing, you know?"

"I understand, don't worry about it," he replied, smiling. He sure was full of smiles today. Jacob plopped down on his bed and gestured towards the chair near his desk. "Here, go on and sit down, make yourself comfortable."

I did as he suggested and pulled the chair out, sitting on it backwards to face him.

"You must work out a lot," I mused. No, I wasn't gawking at his body. Honestly, I didn't see the appeal to it. That was just me, though, since I was into girls.

Jacob, however, misinterpreted my comment and flexed his muscles, grinning rather proudly.

"Not as much as you may think. I'm just naturally this hot," he crooned. Ugh. Conceited much?

I propped my chin up with the palm of my left hand while resting my elbow on the back of the chair as I appraised him.

"Do you look at yourself in the mirror a lot on a daily basis?" I asked. "Because you seem like you're the kind of person who would."

Jacob rolled his eyes again. "Oh, please. I don't need to look in a mirror to know how good I look, okay. Besides, staring at yourself in the mirror is a chick thing, I thought. At least, it usually is, since most of the girls I know do it all the damn time. It's annoying, really."

I smiled at him and quirked an eyebrow. "How old are you again?"

"Sixteen," he replied, beaming proudly at me.

"Wow. Sixteen and you're already a conceited ass. Good to know," I laughed.

Jacob stretched backwards and leaned against his wall. "Hey, hey, hey, I'm not _that_ conceited. I don't spend half the day staring at my reflection in the mirror or some crap like that."

I laughed again, immediately thinking of Rosalie. Just the mentioning of the word 'mirror' made her turn. She really did love mirrors and she was definitely the kind of person who would spend a great deal of time in front of one, even if she didn't need to. Then again, if I was as hot as her, I'd probably do the same thing.

Jacob let out a loud sigh, interrupting my thoughts. "So tell me, Bella, what have you been up to lately? What brought you here to Forks? Did Charlie get you and you just decided to leave him or did something else happen?"

I cocked my head to the side and frowned at him. "Didn't you just get on your dad's case for trying to get into my private life?" I asked.

Jacob, realizing his error, grimaced and scratched the top of his head embarrassedly.

"Whoops. Sorry about that, I, uh, wasn't thinking."

I pursed my lips and thought on it. Should I tell him? We were friends before. I mean, I won't tell him all the details since it isn't his business, but I guess telling him a little bit wouldn't hurt anybody, right?

"I suppose I could tell you a bit," I replied.

He seemed to like that because he immediately resituated himself on his bed, crossing his legs as he appraised me. His dark brown eyes reflected a sort of childlike curiosity that made me giggle, because it reminded me of the expression I often wore myself whenever talking to anyone in my family about their pasts or about vampires in general. There was something else in his eyes that I couldn't quite pick up, but I shrugged it off before beginning.

"Well, you know that Charlie and..._Renee_…divorced years ago, right?" I asked.

Jacob nodded. "Yeah, my dad told me that she took you with her when she left."

I cringed when the memories came flooding back of that day and every day following it. They weren't the best things to remember, that was for certain. Jacob noticed my change in expression and shot me a sympathetic look.

"You don't have to tell me anything if you don't want to," he said.

I sighed. "No, I think that getting it out is a good thing." As long as I don't bawl like a baby again, especially not in front of someone like Jacob. He nodded his head and resumed being silent, waiting for me to tell him.

"Alright, I guess the main thing to understand is that Renee never really liked me. She never wanted a child and got stuck with me by accident, and while I did everything I could to please her, she always insulted me and told me I'd never be worth anything in my life. I put up with her verbal abuse, though, because I was desperate in trying to please her. It never worked. Then she found Phil and "fell" for him for his money and looks. They were together for about two years until Renee decided to leave. In the end, she left me and put me into foster services," I explained.

"I ended up being adopted and living a drab life with a foster family that wasn't as interested in me as they thought they would be. Eventually I'd had enough, so I ran away. A few months later, I wound up here and one thing led to another and I was adopted. It's all super crazy, really, how much has happened in such a short amount of time. A lot's changed, most of it for the better. I'm better off now than I was before, so I'm thankful for that."

Jacob narrowed his eyes as he absorbed what I'd said. Something seemed to bother him, though.

"You sound like you really like this new family."

I nodded. "I do. I love them and they love me. They're better than what I think I deserve, honestly, but every time I say that, they always tell me that I'm wrong. But they really are fantastic, every last one of them."

He furrowed his brow. "I see."

"By the way, what happened to your mother?" I asked.

Jacob winced. "She…she died a few years back. During the accident that caused my dad to be paralyzed. It was…a hard day for all of us."

"Oh Jacob, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to…"

He shook his head. "No, no. It's cool. You didn't know and now you do. But yeah, we all took it really hard, especially Raina. She took it the worst out of the three of us. She was always closer to my mother then I ever was, truthfully. It affected me the same, though." His face darkened as he spoke, the malice behind his words practically flowing through the air.

"Do you mind my asking what happened?"

Jacob's eyes narrowed as he appraised me, his eyes boring into mine. A twisted smile graced his face as he shook his head, looking out the window seconds later.

"You probably wouldn't want to hear it, Bella. Just know that it wasn't pretty," he replied.

There was definitely something behind his words, something foreboding, almost. I was curious, but I wasn't about to push it any further. Underneath his dark tone and the anger, I could tell that bringing it up was painful for him. So I dropped it and decided to go with a new approach.

"So, uh, what do you do here?" I inquired.

Jacob looked back at me, puzzled. "What do you mean?"

"Like, for fun. What do you do for fun?"

He blinked several times, his face softening instantly. "Oh! Well, I go cliff diving with the others a lot-"

"Whoa, hold on. Cliff diving? What the hell is that?"

"It's a recreational sport that me and a few of the guys and girls do to pass the time. We jump off of this really high cliff into the water. Sometimes we just jump for the hell of it, other times we make games out of it, like seeing who can do the craziest stunt or who can jump the farthest or do the most spins. Hell, we once had a competition to see who could make the biggest splash in one jump." He smiled fondly as he recalled the experience. "It's loads of fun."

I blinked, astonished. "So jumping off a cliff and nearly dying is fun?"

Jacob laughed. "Aw, come on, Bella. It's not like that. We don't jump where there's a bunch of rocks or anything. We're not that stupid." He paused for a moment, his smile growing. "Well, okay, maybe Paul is. I know Quil and Embry are, too. But the rest of us aren't. Besides, we've been doing this for years now. We're all pros at it."

"Who're Paul, Quil and Embry?" I asked.

He smacked his forehead. "Crap, I completely forgot to introduce you to the others. I'll have to do that sometime later, if you'd like. Anyways, Embry Call and Quil Ateara are my bros. We've all been friends since we were in school together. Those two are always cracking their lame-ass jokes at each other and the rest of us. Quil has curly hair and Embry has sort of flat hair. His is darker, too. They're both wrestling around most of the time, so you can't miss them. Paul Young is…well, he's the guy you want to stay away from. He's got a pretty short fuse."

"What about that tall guy hanging around your sister? Who was he?"

"That's Sam Uley. He's the oldest out of our group. He's a cool guy. Kind of intimidating at first, but he's actually one of the mellowest people you'll meet here. Oh, did you see the guy and the girl who looked like they couldn't keep their hands off each other?"

I thought back to being outside earlier and remembered exactly that, a boy and a girl who were hugging each other as they loomed near the others in the group.

"Yeah, I do. They were just hugging, though."

Jacob smirked. "You should be glad it was just that. That's Jared Miller and Kim Tsose. They're, like, a huge lovey-dovey couple, so I wouldn't be near them when they're together, which is pretty much always. I mean, they're both cool, but they're always intimate with each other and it gets annoying after a while."

"I think I know two people like that," I snickered, thinking of Rosalie and Emmett. Hell, Alice and I were like that, only it was more hugging and cuddling then anything. Not that I was complaining, of course.

"There are a few more of us that you probably haven't seen, so I'll give you the basic rundown of who's who if you'd like."

"Do you guys all hang out in some large group?" I asked.

He had an odd look in his eyes as he answered. "Something like that." I frowned in confusion. Jacob ran a hand through his hair and sighed. "We're, uh, close, you could say. Living here on the reservation, you get used to knowing everybody. It's like an extended family, I guess. A really big, annoying, hyper-active, dyslexic extended family, if you catch my drift."

I still didn't quite get it. I mean, I got that he knew all of these people, but there was something off about his voice that I didn't like. I could tell he was keeping something from me, which I could understand since I was doing the same. The way he was doing it, though…

"So anyways, there's Brandon and Colton Weaver. Their dad, Jeremy, is on the council like my dad," Jacob explained. "Brandon is taller with really curly brown hair and he's really quiet. He's just as mellow as Sam is, but he's a bit odd, if you know what I mean."

I frowned, unable to decipher the meaning behind his words, but decided against questioning it.

He went on. "Colton, on the other hand, is a bit shorter and has spiky hair and a much more; I guess you could say childish face? He's flirty and he thinks he's always chatting with girls. You'd best watch out for him. You'll know him just by the smile he's always got on his face."

I smirked. "Sort of like you?"

He frowned. "What? Hell no! I'm _way_ better than he is!" As if to prove his point, he tightened his arms, flexing his muscles at me. Ew. Seriously.

I turned away and held my hands out in front of my face dramatically. "Agh! Stop it Jacob, you're blinding me!" Jacob guffawed merrily as he put his arms back down. I rolled my eyes and crossed my arms in front of me. "Honestly, Jacob, you should realize that I'm not into that kind of thing. I'd have thought the whole girlfriend thing was enough proof for that."

Jacob's brow contorted as he scowled at the mentioning of the word 'girlfriend' again. He looked like he didn't understand when I'd made it perfectly clear that I was gay. Or did I have to spell it out for him to get it? Was he _that _dumb?

Before I could ask him, though, he continued from where he'd left off.

"There are a few more girls hanging around here, actually. If you see a girl with medium length black hair with blonde streaks in it, that's Crystal Stone. She's a nice girl. Pretty lazy, actually, and she's not the smartest person in the world, but at the same time, she's real intelligent. It's hard to explain without you knowing her, I guess. One girl I think you'd get along with is Serena Bryant. She's always friendly to people and practically always in a good mood, too. She's the girl with the cropped hair and the tribal tattoos on her left arm."

"Last but not least, there's the Clearwaters. Their mother, Sue, is also on the council, taking over for her husband, Harry, who passed away recently. There's Seth, who's the youngest at fifteen. He's a goofy kid, but everyone likes him. It's hard not to, you know. And then there's Leah…"

I blinked. "Leah?"

Jacob's ground his teeth together. "Yes. Leah Clearwater. You should stay away from her, she's nothing but trouble. Besides, you probably wouldn't like her anyways."

"What do you mean?"

"She's not someone you need to be around, Bella, trust me," Jacob growled lowly.

I snorted. "She didn't seem that bad when I met her."

Jacob narrowed his eyes at me. "You've met?"

"Yeah, I met her while I was shopping in Port Angeles. We didn't talk for very long, but she was friendly to me and told me to look her up while I was here-"

"Wait, you met her in Port Angeles?" Jacob asked. I nodded. "I knew it. I knew she'd left. Stupid. Sam and Raina aren't going to like that..."

"What do you mean?"

Jacob rubbed his temples. "Er, it's nothing. We have rules is all and _Leah_ is always breaking them."

"Oh. Well, I was actually going to ask you about that when you finished talking. I kinda wanted to see her, maybe get to be friends with her," I admitted.

Jacob scowled rather menacingly at me. "I wouldn't if I were you," he warned, shaking his head.

I ground my teeth together. "Jacob, that's not something for you to decide, okay? Look, if you won't tell me anything, then I'll go and find her myself. Besides, I'd rather form my own opinion on someone than go off of what one person says about them. I don't know why you dislike her so much, but I'm sure it's nothing big."

He surprised me by slamming his fist into the wall. I jumped back, startled at the action and by the damage done. Jacob's entire body was shaking madly as he gritted his teeth, both hands balled into tight fists. I could see the veins bulging not only in his hands but on his neck, too. He glared scathingly at me as he stood up, suddenly making me feel incredibly small in front of him.

Something inside of me was telling me to prepare myself, for what, I did not know.

"You don't know shit," Jacob spat angrily. "You don't know a damn thing about her or what she tried to do. So don't act like you do, damn it." His tone was full of a fury I'd never seen in him before, and my first reaction was to spring from out of the chair and move to the doorway. I kept my eyes glued to him as I slid out of his room and moved towards the front door.

Billy, who had been watching TV, noticed me and became concerned when he saw my face.

"Bella? What's wrong?" he asked.

I didn't answer him, I glanced over my shoulder back at Jacob's room, uncertain what to do. Part of me wanted to run back to the others, the other part actually wanted me to stay and defend myself from him. I didn't understand and my inability to decide was what kept me glued in place, even when Jacob's form appeared in his doorway.

"B-Bella, wait!" Jacob called. He rushed over to me before coming to an abrupt stop several feet away from me, a look of shame and sorrow on his face. "Bella, I'm…I'm sorry about that, I really am. I didn't mean to snap at you like that, I swear. I…I just, um, I haven't been feeling well lately and it's made me real cranky. I'm sorry, though, that's no reason to yell at you."

Even though he sounded sincere, my instincts were telling me to be wary of him. I didn't move or acknowledge what he'd said to me; instead I watched his every move. I hadn't realized that my body was crouched down in a defensive position until both he and Billy looked at me oddly, at which point I noticed it myself. That didn't change anything, though, because I wasn't sure what Jacob was going to do next.

Jacob quickly noticed that I was watching him with cautious eyes. He stopped moving altogether and just stared at me placidly, his eyes pleading with me to understand his words and pleading for forgiveness. Billy sat in silence, uncertainty on his face as his eyes darted between the two of us before resting on Jacob.

"Jake, maybe you should let Bella get some air," Billy suggested, breaking the tense silence that had set in.

Jacob grimaced, but nodded in affirmative, stepping away from me. "Sorry, Bella."

I hesitated momentarily, then relaxed my stance and slowly made my way out the door. My head was spinning as the door shut behind me, but everything just seemed to fade away when a cool breeze blew past me, caressing my skin and easing me. It reminded me of Alice's cool hands brushing against my cheeks, which always seemed to relax me.

Alice.

Oh how I missed her so. Like, insanely so. It was almost painful to be away from her, though I was able to suppress the feelings for the most part.

I sighed morosely and walked off of Jacob's porch, letting the breeze blow my worries and thoughts away. I needed to clear my head and try and understand what the hell had just happened inside. I mean, clearly I'd accidentally crossed a line with what I'd said, since mentioning Leah seemed to do nothing but agitate Jacob. But then he got extremely angry and punched his wall.

Wait.

He fucking punched a hole into his wall. I remembered the size of that hole, too. And yet he didn't even look fazed by what he'd done. It didn't even register with him, it looked like. This also reminded me of something I'd noticed but didn't pay attention to. His room. There were multiple small holes on his walls everywhere. There was even some broken off pieces on his desk and his dressers, like he'd ripped off chunks of them as though they were paper.

The more I thought on it, the more I started to realize why Alice had told me to be careful on the reservation. There was definitely a lot more going on then what the people here were letting on and I was starting to get tired of being in the dark. I didn't think I could approach Jacob about it, though, especially not after that little display in his room.

However, it had sparked my curiosity. What had Leah done to piss Jacob off so badly?

"Bella?" Jacob's voice interrupted my line of thought. I turned to see him looming near his porch, hands in his pockets. He was staring at the ground, a frown on his face.

"What is it?" I asked snappily. Okay, I'll admit that my voice was a bit harsher then I'd intended it to be, especially since he winced at it, so I decided to soften it up a bit. "I mean, uh, what…what do you want?"

"I just wanted to apologize again," he murmured, looking into my eyes. I could see the sincerity in them, even if I was still a bit wary.

I pursed my lips and sighed. "It's fine. I'm sorry I got you upset, I didn't mean to."

He waved it off with his hand. "Don't worry about it. There's just some tension going on is all and it's really affecting me. Again, I'm real sorry for blowing up at you. I promise I won't do it again, okay? You don't deserve that kind of thing, especially since I'm trying to rekindle our friendship. So, uh, we cool?" He gave me a goofy grin, his eyes hopeful.

I laughed. "Yeah, we're cool. Besides, I've got a bit of a temper myself."

"Now_ that_ is a scary image," he teased.

I smiled at him. He had no idea.

Jacob suddenly froze, his eyes flickering to something past me. His hands balled into fists again as he glared at something behind me. I frowned and turned around to see the object of his glare, even though a part of me already knew what, or rather who, it was.

"Well, well, well. Look who it is," greeted a familiar voice as I turned fully, coming face to face with the owner of that voice, wearing shorts, a half shirt and a large smirk on her face.

Leah.

**A/N: *insert dramatic music* Yeah, Leah's here! Yay for sexy wolf girl! But like I said, don't expect a whole lot for now. Drama must build first.**

**I actually enjoyed this chapter. Which is strange, since I actually hate Jacob. Ah well.**

**Oh. Random note. For all of the canon characters in this story, I am basing their appearances off of their movie incarnations. I don't care what other people's opinions of the movies or the actor choices are, I think most of the actors (especially Ashley Greene) nailed their characters appearance wise. For Victoria, think Rachelle Lefevre, since she played an awesome Victoria (nothing against Bryce, mind you, I think she did well as Victoria). So yeah, the only main difference would be the heights for some characters, like Alice (Ashley Green is 5'5, Alice is 5'2).**

**I am, however, in need of suggestions for the wolf OCs at a later point in time. I may have one for Raina, but that's it (and even that is an uncertainty). Any suggestions are appreciated. I prefer people with short hair and somewhat tan skin (young, too). If any of you have any ideas, please feel free to let me know. Thank you.**


	38. Legends

**Disclaimer: I am not Meyer, therefore I do not own Twilight or it's characters. I am merely borrowing them to have some fun. I DO own all OCs and my own ideas, though.**

**Legends **

Leah appraised me, a curious look in her eyes as she scanned my appearance. I noticed two things about her as she did. Firstly, she had the same tattoo that Jacob had in the exact same place. Come to think of it, I'd seen that tattoo a lot today. Secondly, her nose crinkled slightly as she breathed in, clearly smelling something offensive. It must not have lasted long, though, because as her eyes met mine, her face returned to normal.

She prepared to say something when an irritated growl was heard from behind me.

"What the hell are you doing here, Leah?" Jacob demanded. She didn't respond to him. She didn't even acknowledge his existence. Jacob stormed over to us and stood behind me. I could feel the anger emanating from him as he glared her down. "I asked what you were doing here."

Leah's eyes narrowed as she finally looked at Jacob, glaring scathingly at him.

"I don't see how it's any of your damn business, Jacob, but if you must know…" She paused and looked back at me, her smirk returning. "I figured I'd just stop by to piss you off a bit is all. Oh, and I came here to say hello to Bella, too."

Jacob growled again. "There. You said hello. Now _leave_," he snapped.

I was taken aback by the amount of venom in his tone and idly stepped away from him. This didn't go unnoticed by either of them, Jacob grimacing at the move while Leah narrowed her eyes, returning her glare full force to him.

"Don't tell me what to do, Jacob Black. You are not my master," she seethed. Her tone softened as she took a step towards me. "Besides, you should know better than to be so rude around a woman. And would it kill you to put a damn shirt on? I'm sure Bella's sick of having to look at those disgusting washboard abs of yours. I know _I_ am."

"You're just jealous," Jacob snorted.

Leah scoffed. "Please. Why should I be jealous of you when we both know that I'm _much_ sexier in comparison? Besides, the only people who would possibly find you attractive are hormonally challenged pre-teens with nothing better to do with their time."

I tried hard not to laugh at the expressions on their faces as they talked. It was plain to see that both of them thought very highly of themselves, but in a different way. Jacob had sort of a conceited arrogance about him while Leah's was more of a…well, sexy arrogance, I guess. And while I did like Jacob and I could see him as being somewhat attractive, I was definitely on the same page as Leah when it came to which of them had the best looks.

Then again, neither of them held a candle to Alice. She was in a league all her own and no one, not Leah or Amara or Esme or Rosalie, could make me change my opinion.

"So Bella…" Leah's voice interrupted my train of thought. "Would you like to go for a walk?"

I was about to reply, but Jacob cut me off. "Bella and I were in the middle of a conversation, actually."

"_Actually_," I interjected, slightly perturbed by him cutting me off. "_We _just finished our conversation, _Jacob_." I had to emphasize each word just right so that he would catch my drift, which he thankfully did. I turned and smiled at Leah. "I'd love to go for a walk."

Leah beamed at that while Jacob scowled and looked at me like I'd just stabbed him in the back.

"But Bella, we've hardly caught up…" he whined.

I sighed. "Jacob, there are other days in the week for us to catch up. Besides, if you're not feeling well, then I don't want to bother you."

He looked at Leah, then back at me. Then his face contorted into one of rage as he clenched his fists at his side. I felt Leah tense up next to me as Jacob's whole body started to shake again, much like it had in his room.

"Fine! Go! Go and spend time with the soulless _harpy_. But don't come crying to me when you see what she's _really_ like," he spat. Without another word, he spun around and stormed off into his house, slamming the door roughly behind him.

I stared after him, astonished. What the fuck was that all about?

"Asshole," Leah hissed under her breath. I felt her hand on my shoulder and turned to see her giving me an apologetic look. "Sorry about that."

I didn't know how to respond so I merely shrugged. Leah gestured for me to follow her as she started walking away, which I did. The two of us walked in silence for a few minutes, just listening to the sounds of the ocean and the wind blowing.

"So what brings you out here, Bella?" Leah asked after a moment of silence.

"I came here with a few of my friends from school, just to hang out," I replied.

Leah smirked. "And to visit me, right?"

I shrugged. "Well, I guess so. But I mean, we barely even know each other. All we did was bump into one another at the mall and exchange names."

"That's true. I wouldn't call us friends just yet, but that doesn't mean we couldn't be friends, does it? It's not every day you run into somebody and they don't try to bite your head off for it, which I guess is why I reacted the way I did. Plus, I thought you seemed like a nice girl and I was right. Then again, I tend to be right, so it wasn't that big of a surprise," she said.

I smiled. She definitely had a lot of confidence in both herself and her appearance. She reminded me of Alice, at least concerning self-confidence, and Rosalie, especially with her personality.

"What are you smiling at?" Leah asked curiously.

"Oh, it's nothing. Just thinking to myself is all." She frowned at my lack of a response, but shrugged it off. "So what's it like to live here?"

"Dull," Leah snorted. "Other than cliff diving, there's barely anything to do."

"Is that why you snuck off to go to the mall?" I inquired.

Leah rolled her eyes. "I didn't "sneak off", okay? I just left when no one else was around."

I stopped walking and she stopped to. "How come you aren't allowed to leave La Push?"

She ran her fingers through her hair as she stared out at the sea, hesitating to respond.

"It's complicated," she replied. I watched her as she spoke, listening intently. "It's not that we aren't allowed to leave, per say. The Council, though, they have these really stupid rules that we're supposed to obey. And one of those rules is not leaving the land without a reason to do so because of the, er, complications involved. We have to ask for their permission and all this shit if we want to go out, which I think is ridiculous. So I just do what I want when no one's looking."

"You like breaking the rules." She smirked and nodded. "What about the consequences?"

"Being yelled at gets old after a while, but truthfully, I've gotten good at not getting caught. And it's not like I do it all the time, despite what you might think," she explained.

"Why is it so important for you to stay here? I mean, is it some tribal tradition or what?"

Leah cocked her head to the side as she looked at me. "You're a very curious girl, aren't you?"

I chuckled. "Yeah, I've been told that a lot. Sorry if it bothers you, I'll shut up."

"No, not at all. I like a girl who isn't afraid to speak her mind, even if she's a bit shy most of the time," Leah said, smiling. I felt my cheeks heat up with the way she was looking at me, her lips curled into a sultry smirk. "You know, that blush is pretty cute too."

I lowered my head. "Uh, thanks," I murmured. "I'm…taken, just so you know."

Leah didn't respond at first. I looked up to see that her face was unreadable. For a moment, I'd feared that I may have hurt her feelings, but then she shrugged and smiled at me.

"Well, then I'd say she's a lucky girl, whoever she is."

Internally, I sighed with relief. "Thank you." Then something hit me. "Wait, how did you know that I was…?"

"Gay?" Leah asked. I nodded sheepishly. She laughed. "For one thing, I could tell by the way you were gawking at me when I first came up to you. Then there was when we first met at the mall and the way you tried to hide your blush when I noticed you staring at me. It's pretty obvious, though. Don't sweat it, Bella. It doesn't really bother me anyways since I'm bisexual."

"Oh."

I fidgeted with my fingers, cursing myself for being so damn obvious. But then, it didn't matter because I already had someone I was deeply in love with. And no one could replace her. So why was I so worried?

"Mind if I ask you something?" I shrugged and nodded. "What's it like at that school you go to?"

"Not that great. When you're the new girl in a town as small as Forks, you get a lot of unnecessary attention. Plus, everyone kind of found out about me being a lesbian, which only caused more problems. I'm thankful that the Cullens were there to-"

Leah twitched. "Wait, you know the Cullens?" she asked.

I nodded. "Yeah, I know them, why?"

"They're dangerous," Leah replied. "You should stay away from them, Bella. They're not the kind of people you want to be around."

I gaped at her. She knew. She had to know, right? Why else would she think they were dangerous? Was this why everyone was wary of me being here? Did the Quileutes know? I had to find out, had to make sure for myself.

"They can't be _that_ bad," I stated, running a hand through my hair. I tried to sound as nonchalant as I could in order to avoid any suspicions. Best not to tell her that I was in the Cullen family now, not until I'd heard what she'd said.

Leah's eyes narrowed as her face darkened. She didn't look at me, she looked around, eyes darting every which way before resting on me. I watched her lips twitch as she seemed to mentally fight herself over something, probably whether or not to answer me truthfully or to just let it go. Her eyes shut for a few seconds as she let out a quiet sigh. Then her eyes reopened and I could see that she had made her mind up.

"It's a long story, but I'll give you some of the details. Come with me, though. We can't talk here."

I nodded and followed her as she spun around and walked in the opposite direction. We walked past several buildings, including the souvenir shop. Outside of the shop was Eric, Angela, Katie and Ben, all chatting with one another. When they saw me I waved to them, silently motioning to Leah. I hoped that they would get that I was going to talk with her and that maybe they'd think that she was an old friend of mine like Jacob. They seemed to take the bait and smiled at me, mouthing things like "take your time" and "don't worry about us, we're good".

I really was starting to appreciate them. They were all really good friends.

I also noticed several of the other Quileutes as we walked together, most of them watching either Leah or myself. Some of the looks were humorous ones, some wary and a few seemed relatively nonchalant. I didn't fail to notice one of the boys walking towards us, a big grin on his face.

"Hey there lusty Leah, what's cracking?" he asked, flashing her a smile. Leah groaned loudly as he trudged over and stopped in front of us. I gave him a brief once over and, remembering Jacob's descriptions of the other boys, realized that this must be Colton Weaver.

"Beat it, Colton. Can't you see I'm with a friend right now?" she asked, clearly annoyed by his presence.

Colton pouted. "Aw, don't be that way, Lee-Lee."

Leah's hands balled into fists. "Do. Not. Call. Me. That." She annunciated each word with seething venom that made Colton step back warily. Her body was shaking, much like Jacob's had before, as she glared him down.

"Sorry," he muttered. That was when he noticed me. "And who might you be?"

Leah answered for me. "Not interested, Colton. She's already taken, anyways." Colton frowned momentarily, then looked at Leah curiously. Leah pursed her lips. "No, it's not me, you jackass, okay? It's someone else. Just leave it alone, okay? We're busy."

She gently grabbed my shoulder and pulled me along with her, brushing past Colton who muttered something under his breath before walking off dejectedly. We continued walking for a few minutes, past the beach until we were near a large forest. Once we were there, Leah turned left and walked over to a small shady area where there were two flat rocks in the ground. Leah sat on one of them and gestured for me to sit on the other.

I waited patiently for her to begin, which she did after taking another minute to think.

"My people, the Quileutes, have a lot of legends that they pass down from generation to generation. Some detail how we became who we are, some are how we came live here on this land. There's one that says that our people are the descendants of wolves, which dates back to when our tribe was first formed," Leah explained. Her voice took an odd tone as she finished, her eyes not meeting mine as she spoke.

"But the legend that you need to know about is the one regarding the cold ones," she growled.

"Cold ones?" I asked incredulously, pretending to have no possible clue of what she meant.

She nodded. "Yes. Cold ones. Blood-drinkers. _Vampires_." She hissed out the last word as a whisper, but I heard it nonetheless. "They are the natural enemy of our ancestors."

I stared at her with astonishment. They _did_ know what the Cullens were. There was more, though, to her story. Much more. I could see it in her eyes, which flickered with a mixture of emotions. Hate, anger, pain and sorrow.

"I don't understand. Why are they your natural enemy?" I inquired.

She ground her teeth together. "They're _everyone's _enemies, Bella."

"Leah, I-"

"Look, I can't say a whole lot on it. Just know that the _Cullens_ are a danger to anyone who gets close to them. That's why they aren't allowed on our land, because our people have forbidden it," Leah explained, eyes boring into the ground at her feet. There was a definite threat behind her words as she spoke them, enough to make me feel a little nervous.

I gulped.

"Um, Leah?"

She looked at me intently. "Yes?"

"Let's say figuratively speaking, one of the Cullens _did_ come on your land. What would be the consequences of that?" I asked, trying to be placid about it.

Leah smiled ominously. "Then there'd be trouble."

Fuck. I really shouldn't have come here after all. But what if I get the same treatment since I was human? Well, I mean, I guess I won't be human for much longer, but still. That worried me. I was starting to think that leaving La Push would be a good idea. I couldn't ask Angela to take me, though, because that would be rude. Maybe I could walk?

"Are you okay, Bella?" Leah asked softly.

"Huh? Oh, y-yeah, I'm fine."

I smiled at her to try and convey my meaning, but I could tell she wasn't buying it.

"It's pretty obvious that you aren't, Bella. Anyone with a working pair of eyes could see that just by looking at you. So don't try that "oh, it's nothing" crap on me, okay? I'm not the kind of person to let that lame excuse slide. You seem troubled. What's up?"

This girl wasn't going to drop it, was she? Damn. Well, I wasn't sure if it would be safe for me to tell her that I was a Cullen, at least not now. Truthfully, I wanted to know more about these legends pertaining to my family. That and I wanted to know more about what she meant when she said that the Quileutes were descended for wolves. I could tell there much more to the stories then what she was telling me, but it seemed like she couldn't tell.

"I was just thinking about what you said is all. Tell me, what did you mean earlier when you said that your people descended from wolves? I don't really get what you mean by that."

Leah bit her lip. "There's a whole lot of mystical mumbo jumbo about how our ancestors bonded with wolves and all that crap. I honestly don't know much on it myself. I do know, however, that my people view wolves as sacred animals, so hunting them is off limits on our lands. Other than that, I have no idea what all that nonsense means," she replied.

"Oh."

"Yeah, sorry, if you really wanted to know, you'd have to ask someone on the Council. That's better said than done, though, since they're always busy. Plus, I don't think they would share information with an outsider, no offense. That's just their rules."

"So wait, you shouldn't even be telling me this?" I asked, surprised.

Leah shrugged. "Probably not, but it's not that big of a deal. I think that everyone should be warned about the _Cullens_."

I flinched at the way she'd said their name. She'd said it that way several times before and it was starting to get on my nerves now.

"Could you stop saying their name like that?" I requested, trying to keep my voice even.

"Why? It's not like they're here or-"

"Just stop!" I hissed. Leah looked taken aback by my tone. I grimaced when I realized that I was letting my anger get the better of me and bowed my head apologetically. "Sorry. Can we, you know, change topics? Like, um, your family or something."

She furrowed her brow and stared at me, obviously trying to assess the reason for my tone, but gave up after a few seconds and sighed.

"Then what do you want to talk about?" she inquired.

_Something not relating to my family would be nice. Actually, it's best to avoid the subject of family altogether._

"Um, tell me a bit about your…family." _Fuck! Stupid mouth!_

"I live with my mom and my little brother Seth," she said. "My brother is a goofy kid who's as naïve as he is adventurous. He's always curious about learning new things, which is cute and all until he starts to pester you with twenty questions. But I love the little squirt to pieces and I'd do anything to protect him, which I seem to be doing a lot. He means well, though, so I guess I don't mind most of the time."

"And then there's my mom Sue. She took over my dad's position on the Council after he passed away from a heart attack a few years ago. She was always a strong woman, and now she gets to prove it to everyone else. We don't always so eye to eye on things, but she's my role model and I've always respected and admired her. I wish I could be normal like she is…" Leah trailed off as she stared downwards, eyes burning with sadness.

"Leah…"

She blinked and shook her head. "No, it's nothing. Sorry, I don't mean to get all sentimental on you. Sometimes my mouth just moves on its own and I can't stop it, which sucks because it happens so damn much."

I laughed. "I know the feeling."

"Yeah, I've noticed that," she agreed, smiling. "So tell me a bit about your family, Bella."

Er…

"My family? Well, uh, I was…recently adopted by a small family."

"Oh? That's good."

I nodded, trying to hide my nervousness. "Yup, it is. They're great, too, all of them."

Is it sad that even mentioning them made me miss them all so much? I'd only been here for what, a couple of hours, and I felt like I'd been gone for a couple of years? I didn't understand why I felt this way. Was this part of the whole mate experience? Or was it because of my slow transformation into a vampire? Ugh, I hated feeling like this.

As if on cue, my phone started ringing. I pulled it out from my shorts and glanced at it, unable to keep the smile from spreading across my lips. Once again, it was Alice.

"Hey Alice," I greeted into the phone. I noticed Leah stirring across from me, but I figured she was just getting comfortable. No reason to worry.

"Bella!" she shouted excitedly. "I miss you!"

"I miss you too, but it's only been a few hours, if even that!" I pointed out.

She sighed loudly. "I know, but it's painful to be away from you for too long. Do you feel that too?" she asked.

I ran my free hand through my hair. "Yeah, actually. I was just starting to wonder about that myself before you called."

"It's like I'm psychic or something," she giggled into the phone.

I rolled my eyes. "Shut up, you. Maybe you could ask Carli…" I stopped mid-sentence when I saw Leah's eyes bulge. Oh shit.

"Bella? What's wrong?" Alice asked.

"Um, it's…it's nothing, nothing at all. I dropped my phone is all," I lied.

Alice growled. "Bella, don't lie to me. Are they there with you? Have they touched you? Those stupid mongrels, they'd better not lay a fucking finger on you!"

"Everything's fine!" I squeaked, looking away from Leah. I was kicking myself over and over again on the inside, cursing my stupidity. Why was I always cursed with such bad luck? I grimaced, knowing I needed to be fast. "I love you, Alice. I'm fine, I swear. I'll see you in a little while, okay? Bye!" I hung up without giving her the chance to respond and turned my phone off as fast as I could while trying to stand up.

Bad move.

I ended up tripping over myself during the process and toppled to the ground, almost getting a mouthful of dirt. I didn't, thankfully. I felt a pair of warm hands grasp my shoulders and help lift me up second afterwards; already knowing that it was Leah's.

"T-t-thanks," I stammered. I tried to move, but the warm hands kept me firmly in place. I had no choice but to look at Leah, whose eyes were narrowed as she studied me concernedly.

"Bella," she said, her voice neutral. "What was that about?"

I blanched. "I, um, my g-girlfriend just wanted to see if I w-was okay?" I answered.

Leah's eyes narrowed even more as her brow creased into a frown.

"Your girlfriend?" I nodded. "Alice?" I nodded again. "Alice _Cullen_?" I hesitated, knowing she'd found out, but sighed and nodded a third time. Leah's hands were off of me in an instant and to her sides, balling into fists as her body quivered. "_She_ is your girlfriend?"

"Y-yes," I replied quietly.

Leah twitched angrily and ground her teeth together. Without another word she stormed off in the direction we'd come from. She moved so fast I barely had a chance to register what I'd seen until she was already halfway back to the beach.

"Leah, wait!" I shouted.

I ran after her, even though it was a stupid thing to do and I had no idea why in God's name I was doing it. Leah vanished from my sights as she sharply turned left, the house blocking my line of view. Once I'd gotten there, I turned to see where she'd gone, but was surprised to see no trace of her whatsoever. Like, literally. It was as though she had just vanished into thin air.

I did, however, notice that foul smell again. Garbage and wet dog. Seriously, that shit was just plain gross. I covered my whole mouth with both hands, trying not to gag on the foul stench emanating in the air. God, what the hell _was _that? And why did I smell it so much when there wasn't a damn dog in sight? Come to think of it…

I thought about something. The others had made a variety of dog related jokes, like stuff about leashes and fleas. The scent I'd smelled, while incredibly rank, reminded me a lot of wet dog. And then there was what Leah had told me, how the Quileutes were supposedly the descendents of wolves. But what did all of that mean?

Could it be…?

No! No way in hell. Just no, that's insane. Then again, this is coming from the girl who is dating a vampire and _becoming_ a vampire. So…

No, no, no. I'm losing it. Why am I focused on finding Leah? I should leave. Or at least get back to the others.

I blinked. Ah shit, the others. I'd completely forgotten! Damn it! One of the main reasons I'd come on this trip was so I could bond with other people and make friends with them, not abandon them outright. Shit. Now I see why I always had a hard time making friends, other than the obvious shit like my clumsiness and temper.

Seeing that Leah was a lost cause, I groaned inwardly and bolted back to where I'd last seen Angela and the others, praying that they would forgive me for totally ditching them for a hot girl I hardly even knew. Whoa, did I just think that? Well, she _is _pretty hot.

And besides, it's not a crime to find other people aside from girlfriend attractive, right? I'm not cheating on her or hitting on other girls, now am I? No, I'm not. No big deal, case closed.

I was happy to see that the others hadn't gone far from where they'd originally been when I'd last seen them. Eric and Katie were clutching their surfboards excitedly, probably about to go back out to surf again. Angela and Ben were both laughing along with them as I scurried over to the group, feeling abashed for leaving them.

"Ah, there's Bella!" Eric shouted as I neared them.

"Hey guys," I murmured embarrassedly.

"Hey yourself, sunshine. Been wondering when you'd rejoin us," Katie said playfully.

I sighed. "Yeah, I'm sorry about all that. I just got up with talking is all."

Katie patted my shoulder. "Don't sweat it, Bella. It's all good. We're just glad that you decided to come back to us, you know? We were starting to miss you."

"We thought you'd be flirting with that hot native chick all day," Eric teased, nudging me in the ribs slightly with a smirk on his face.

"Eric!" Angela shouted, hands on her hips. "Be nice, you know that wasn't what she was doing at all!"

Ben nodded in agreement. "Bella's not that kind of person, are you Bella?"

"Hell no!" I shouted, gritting my teeth. "I would never cheat on Alice. Never! She's _mine_!"

Eric held his hands up in surrender. "Whoa there, easy Bella. I was only joking, honest."

I bit my lip. "I…I know. Sorry, didn't mean to snap. It's just that I, uh, I don't like it when people question my commitment to Alice, you know? I love her and she loves me and we would never cheat on each other, no matter what."

"I believe you," Eric said, clearly impressed with me.

"Not that a three way wouldn't be hot," Ben snickered, covering his mouth afterwards.

Katie laughed. "Damn right it would be."

I blushed scarlet and stared down at my feet. The others, save for Angela, all laughed in agreement with each other. Angela came over and gently touched my shoulder, giving me a sympathetic smile. I smiled back appreciatively at her, though in truth I didn't mind the teasing too much, since it reminded me of my siblings, Emmett especially.

"So what was the deal with that girl?" Eric asked curiously. "She a friend of yours?"

Somehow, I didn't think she would be anymore. "Yeah, she's an old acquaintance like Jacob."

Katie chuckled. "Speaking of whom…"

I glanced in the direction she was looking in to see none other than Jacob, trotting towards our group with a goofy grin on his face. His eyes met mine and his grin widened, which actually irritated me. He had the audacity to smile at me after shouting at me like that? Who the fuck did he think he was? I glared at him in return, which caused him to stop in his tracks.

He looked rather startled at first, confused as to why I was glaring at him. Then it dawned on him and he hung his head sheepishly, stuffing his hands into his pockets as he slowly started walking towards us again. I decided to ignore him for the time being and returned my attention to the others, who had started talking once again.

"What's the water like?" I inquired, wanting to get involved with the conversation.

"Pretty cold, actually, but it's not too bad," Katie replied. "You should definitely go try it out, it's rather refreshing in my opinion."

"Are you kidding me? It's freezing out there!" Ben disagreed.

Angela nodded. "The weather wasn't as warm as it was supposed to be today."

"I don't think it's too bad," Katie said, shrugging. "Warmer then it was yesterday."

Eric sighed and shook his head. "Man, I was really hoping this would work out better. We really got to plan our trip out next time so that everything goes accordingly. Sorry guys, I guess this day was a dud."

A wave of relief washed over me. That meant we were going, right? I could see Alice and the others again and not have to stress out about Leah.

"Bella!" Jacob called. I frowned, realizing that I'd completely forgotten he was walking over to us. Well, he was actually a few feet away now, smiling again as he stopped near me. He nodded his head at the others. "Sup guys, how's it hanging?"

Eric chose to reply. "Pretty good. We're just chatting about making plans for doing something else, you know? The weather wasn't on our side today."

Jacob pouted. "Aw, don't say that. The weather's perfect! Well, it is for this time of year anyways. Say, if you guys aren't afraid of heights, I could show you our cliff diving location if you want. What do you guys say; you could definitely have some fun with that, huh?"

The others all seemed to consider that. Angela looked like she didn't like the idea in the least bit, while Ben, Eric and Katie all seemed mildly excited about the prospect. I, on the other hand, was not interested, nor was I interested in sticking around La Push for much longer. I couldn't help feeling paranoid about the Leah situation and feared there would be consequences.

What if she told the others that I was a Cullen?

Shit. Alice was right, I shouldn't have come here. This was a bad idea, plain and simple.

"What's wrong, Bella?" Jacob asked, breaking me from my thoughts.

"Nothing, nothing. I was just daydreaming is all," I lied.

"She misses her Alice," Katie teased. Damn right I did. "Don't worry, Bella, she'll still be there when we leave. It's not like she'll disappear or anything."

"Yeah, r-right," I chuckled uneasily. "Listen, I just remembered that I have some important stuff do to. And I hate doing this to you guys, but I think I should get going, you know? I've got homework, chores and a few other things to take care of."

I tried to sound legit, but failed horribly. At least, I thought I had. The others, however, actually seemed to buy my lame excuses. Even Jacob did, his head hanging sullenly at the news.

"What do you mean you have to leave?" Katie whined. "You just got here!"

"Come on, Bella, don't be like that. You can do your homework later," Ben stated.

"Seriously, girl! Besides, you live with a super smart family, so it's not like you'll have trouble with it," Eric added.

I ran a hand through my hair. "I know guys, I'm sorry. But it's important, you know?"

They all continued to groan and whine that I should stay, which flattered me, honestly. But I needed to get back and tell Carlisle and Esme about what had happened. I'd screwed up and I was afraid that doing so was going to make things end badly for my family. I didn't want that.

"Would you like me to drive you back?" Angela asked softly.

I was surprised at the offer, but quickly shook my head. "No thank you, Angela. Don't worry, I'll call ahead and get one of them pick me up. I appreciate the offer, though. Besides, I don't want to take up more of your time."

Angela waved it off. "I don't mind at all, really, and it would save your family the trouble of having to come and get you. I would just need directions, since I have no idea where you guys live at."

"Where _does_ your family live, exactly?" Katie inquired.

"Um…"

"We shouldn't be poking around in their private business, guys," Ben stated.

Thank you Ben Cheney, you are a lifesaver.

As if he could read minds, he smiled at me. "If you really need to leave, Bella, then I guess that's okay. But we should definitely plan for something better next time and we should plan it so you could invite Alice along."

"I think you should try inviting your other siblings, too," Eric suggested.

I grimaced. Shit. No Eric, no!

"I think so too. No one ever invites the Cullens to anything," Angela added quietly.

Fuck. Fuck, fuck, fuck, FUCK!

Jacob frowned at me. "Cullens?"

Eric chuckled. "Yeah, man. Bella here is the newest addition to their family."

I froze. Inside, I was screaming obscenities at my friends for blabbing and revealing who I was to the whole damn world, at myself for ever coming here in the first place and at Jacob for being right fucking next to me.

Why did this have to happen? Why me? Why now? Why today? Damn it!

Jacob's face was unreadable as he stared at me. I turned away from him and started walking away from the group, not bothering to look at anyone or say anything. I was angry, annoyed and most of all, terrified. I needed to get out of here and now.

"Bella, wait!" Katie shouted. "Don't go!"

"Sorry, have to!" I ground out, not looking back.

"Bella." Jacob's voice was a nearly muted whisper that I did my best to ignore. I didn't have the time for him right now.

I was already halfway across the beach, nearing the cars. In my haste I had forgotten about my chronic clumsiness, but Mother Nature decided to help remind me. In seconds I tripped and fell face first into the sand. The impact was soft, but the sand in my mouth was not something I really needed at the moment. I stood up and spat the sound out, shaking my head furiously to get out the sand and rocks that tried to embed themselves in my thick locks.

Once I'd managed to do that, I dusted myself off and started to advance when I stopped abruptly.

"Ew, what he fuck is _she_ doing here?"

Oh no...

"Oh great," hissed an all too familiar voice.

Lauren Mallory, Forks High's resident bitch and the one girl who hated me most in this entire town, was standing several feet in front of me, a disgusted and angry glare on her face. Worse, she wasn't alone, because standing with her was Jessica Stanley, Tyler Crowley and of course, Mike Newton. They all had a variety of different facial expressions, ranging from the appalled look on Jessica's face to that creepy-ass look on Newton's. Lauren slowly started advancing towards me, her eyes set to kill.

Fuck. My. Life.

**A/N: Poor Bella. She just can't catch a break, it seems. I'm sure things will get better for her, though. Eventually.**

**Like I said, this isn't the end of Leah, not by a long shot. Just be patient.**


	39. Complications

**Disclaimer: I take no credit for Twilight or it's characters, only my OCs and my own ideas.**

**Complications**

"Why the hell are _you_ here, dyke?" Lauren spat. "You've got a lot of nerve showing your face after the shit you pulled at school."

I flinched. "Excuse me? What _I _did? You and your stupid bimbos _attacked_ me," I snarled, letting my irritation from how badly things had gone today to seep through my tone. Jessica and Mike both looked mildly fearful, while Lauren just looked more perturbed.

"You deserved it!" she shouted, taking a step towards me.

I narrowed my eyes and stood my ground. Was I afraid? A tiny bit. But I was more pissed off than anything else and damn if I wasn't sick of this bitch always making my problems one hundred times worse.

"And just look what you did to my beautiful face!" she whined.

She pointed to the black bruise that was prominent on her right cheek, left over from when I'd socked the bitch two days ago. Though I was rather proud of what I'd done, right now all I wanted to do was take another swing at her "beautiful" face and knock the bitch senseless.

"You got what you deserved," I repeated. "Just be thankful you didn't get your hair shaved like your other idiot friends."

Lauren glowered at me. "Fuck you, lesbo. Thanks to you and your piece of shit family, not only are my friends forced to wear wigs, but now we've all been suspended! You and your sisters should have been the ones suspended for all the shit you did to us! Hell, you and your bitch shouldn't even be allowed to come onto school campus anymore!"

I felt a venomous fury start to overtake me as I balled my hands into tight fists.

"What the fuck did you just say?" I hissed, walking directly up to her. Our heights were about even, so we were at eye level as we both glared at one another. My glare was stronger, though, since I saw a bead of sweat drop from Lauren's brow. She didn't back down though.

"Lauren, just leave it alone," Tyler grumbled. "Can't we enjoy the day for once? Please?"

"Yeah, Lauren," Mike agreed. I could tell that he was utterly petrified of me, which made the confidence swell up within me.

"Shut up!" Lauren hissed. "How can we enjoy our day with this dyke still here?"

"Lauren…" Tyler groaned.

Lauren didn't pay attention to him and jabbed my shoulder with her finger.

"Get out of my face."

"No."

"What?"

I grabbed the neck of her shirt with my right hand, surprising both her and myself. "I said no, bitch."

I had no idea where the confidence to do all of this was coming from, but I went with it. I was sick and tired of her close-minded, gay bashing bullshit. I was sick of being treated like crap by her and by practically everyone else at the school. And I was sick of her talking bad about _my_ Alice and my family, damn it!

"Let her go!" Jessica squealed, not budging an inch.

I was vaguely aware of the fact that my name was being called from behind me, but I ignored it.

I glared at Lauren, holding her gaze. I watched as her eyes widened in fear and found myself smiling at that, but only for a few seconds. I tossed her down to the ground and took a few steps forward until I was hovering over her, fists clenched tightly.

"Now you listen to me," I growled. "I have had enough of you running your damn mouth, you got that? I'm tired of it and I want you to stop. I don't give a shit if you like me or my girlfriend or my family, but I do give a shit that you keep badmouthing them. You have _no_ reason to talk shit about _any _of them, you hear me? So quit it or _else_."

For a moment, it looked like she was going to actually take my advice and shut the fuck up. Her little entourage, what little they were worth, was speechless. Mike looked like he was about to wet himself while Jessica was struggling not to shake. Tyler was just petrified, frozen where he was standing with wide eyes and a gaping mouth.

Lauren, however, did not stay silent for long. "S-screw you, dyke!" she shouted, staggering to her feet. "I don't have to listen to you! You should be apologizing to me for all the shit I've had to go through since you showed up in this town! I-"

Enough.

I have had _enough_.

I was tired of her insults. She'd done that enough and I wasn't going to stand for it anymore.

I hardly even felt it when my left fist shot outwards and collided with her jaw, connecting roughly and sending her tumbling down to the ground. I noticed several small drops of blood escaping from her mouth, but I wasn't concentrating on that. I was concentrating on keeping the overwhelming desire to rip Lauren's head off at bay. I was trembling where I stood, glaring scathingly at the girl on the ground, who was dazed and confused as to what had just happened.

Jessica screamed and hid behind Mike, who just stood there like a moron, Tyler too.

"No more," I seethed.

Lauren blinked several times and rubbed her cheeks, tears starting to trickle down her cheeks as she stared up at me, eyes wide with fright. I reached down and grasped the upper part of her shirt, yanking her to her feet and forcing her eyes to meet mine again.

"I have had enough of you, your insults and your mockery. I have heard enough. So get this through your head, Lauren Mallory. And this goes for the rest of you and for anyone else who has a problem with me or my family. Stop it."

I closed my eyes for a moment, struggling to keep my other hand from doing something it shouldn't. When I reopened my eyes, I heard several muffled gasps, but paid them no mind. I was also aware that Eric, Angela, Katie, Ben and Jacob were all behind me, watching on with equally shocked expressions on their faces.

"I've always had a rough life. I had to deal with an ignorant father and an uncaring mother when I was a child. When they divorced, I had to put up with my mother's verbal abuse day in and day out. Then she left me because she never even wanted me, forcing me into a foster family and forcing me to accept the fact that my own parents thought I was worthless. I did what I could to tell myself otherwise, but it never worked."

I stopped and took in a deep breath, releasing Lauren. She didn't budge, though.

"I ran away from home and faced a shitload of problems that left me with a lot of scars. I kept fighting though, regardless of how hard it was. Then I ended up here and I found Alice. I didn't just find her, though, I found the Cullens. And even though I was skeptical of them and even though I didn't think I was worth their time, they took care of me. They fed me, bathed me, clothed me and gave me more love in a single day then my previous parents did my entire life."

"For the first time in my life, I actually feel like I've found somewhere I belong. Not only that, but I've found love, something I never thought would be given to me and something I sure as hell never thought I'd be giving. Yeah, I'm not perfect, but when I wake up each morning with someone who tells me that I am repeatedly, it means something."

I took a step forward, keeping my eyes on Lauren.

"You and your friends and everyone else at school, except for them," I stopped and pointed behind me, waving my finger at the four people who were friendly to me. "Have treated me like shit since day one, when I never did a damn thing to you. Yes, I am a lesbian and yes I am damn proud of that fact, but that's no reason for any of this. You have disrespected me, you have disrespected my family and you've disrespected my girlfriend for the last time, because I won't stand for it anymore."

"So you listen and you listen good," I hissed, letting the threat drip from my voice. "If you ever say one more bad thing about me. If you ever say one more bad thing about anyone from my family, my brothers, my sisters and especially my mother and father. And if you ever say one more bad thing about Alice, even the littlest of insults, I swear to you I will hurt you. I don't care what the consequences are, I don't care what happens to me, I will fucking _hurt _you. Do you understand me, Mallory?"

There was nothing but silence surrounding me as I finished.

"I asked if you _understood_ me." I repeated louder, gritting my teeth.

"Y-y-yes," Lauren stammered feebly.

"Good. Oh, there's one more thing. My name isn't '_dyke_', it isn't '_freak_' and it sure as hell isn't '_lesbo_'. My name is Bella Cullen, you got that?" She nodded. I turned my glare onto the other three morons. "Do you understand?" They all nodded too. "Good. Now beat it."

Without any more hesitation Lauren spun around and bolted past the others, knocking Jessica down as she did. Mike and Tyler took off after her, not even bothering to help Jessica who squirmed to her feet and followed.

I waited until they got into their car and drove away before I took a deep breath and turned around. Angela and the others were gaping at me, save for Jacob who was looking away, a mixture of different emotions flickering in his eyes. I didn't spend too long looking at him, though, and focused on the others.

"Holy shit," Angela breathed. I was surprised to hear a swear word from Angela.

Ben nodded. "Tell me about it."

"That was _awesome_!" Katie shouted, wrapping me into a hug. "And…whoa." She took a step back and cocked her head to the side as she stared at me.

"What?" I asked.

"Bella, your eyes…" Katie said. "They're black."

I blinked in astonishment. I noticed Jacob looking at me oddly, too. "They are?"

Katie reached into her pocket and pulled out a small mirror, opening it and showing it to me so that I could see my face. My jaw dropped when I saw that she was right. My eyes, normally a chocolate brown color, were indeed coal black. It was like looking at the face of someone else entirely, which scared me a little. I blinked several times and, to my amazement, my eyes slowly returned to their natural color.

Damn. What was that all about?

My thoughts were interrupted when I felt a hand touch my shoulder. Jacob.

"Bella, can I talk to you?" he asked in a low tone. "Alone."

I frowned at his tone, but nodded, knowing that it was likely inevitable. I smiled at the others, who were all still shell shocked by what they'd seen, and followed Jacob as he walked away from them, over to the side of one of the houses.

Once we were out of hearing range from the others, Jacob spun around, face contorted into one of anger and disbelief.

"What the _hell_ was that all about?" he growled.

I took a step back and narrowed my eyes. "What was what about, Jacob? I was defending myself from those assholes is all, I don't-"

"Not that!" he seethed. "You…you're a _Cullen_?" He spat the word out like it was dirt, which irritated me. I managed to keep my temper in check, though.

"Yes. They adopted me a few days ago."

Jacob shook his head furiously, his body shaking. "No. No, no, _no_! They can't _do _that!"

"They can and they did," I hissed. "If you have a problem with it, I don't give a damn. They're my family and that's that. Now if you're quite finished, I think I'll be going home now."

"NO!" he roared, grabbing my shoulders tightly. I winced at the force of his grip and tried to pry his fingers off of me, but to no avail. And why the fuck was his skin so damn _hot_? Was he a fucking inferno or something? Shit!

"No," he repeated forcefully. "You can't go back there, Bella. They're dangerous. You shouldn't have even been _near_ them in the first place! And you're _dating_ one of them? I thought you were joking about that before! Are you out of your fucking _mind_, Bella? Don't you know what they are?"

"I don't care! Let me go, damn you!" I snarled.

Jacob didn't budge. "No, Bella, listen to me-"

"Get OFF!"

Suddenly Jacob wasn't holding me anymore, he was flying backwards. I blinked in surprise as Jacob hit the ground roughly, rolling twice before stopping. What the fuck? I remembered that that had happened several times before, like when I'd been with James in the forest and when I'd been in the locker room at school. But there was something different about it this time; it was as if I had gotten a better feel of whatever it was I'd done. It was almost like…

I didn't get a chance to think because Jacob was on his feet; grinding his teeth together as his whole body shook furiously. I instinctively stepped away from him again, remembering his outburst from earlier. He started towards me, eyes set in a fiery glare.

In the blink of an eye, there were four bodies moving past me, three boys and one girl. I recognized the girl as Raina, and from Jacob's descriptions I recognized the others as Sam, Quil and Embry. Quil and Embry had their arms locked around Jacob, struggling to hold him in place.

"Calm it down, man," the curly haired boy, Quil, said.

"Yeah, ease off Jake," Embry added.

Raina didn't speak; she merely scowled at her brother. Sam on the other hand glanced over at me, a perplexed look on his face as he appraised me.

"Your name is Cullen?" he inquired.

I nodded hesitantly. "Yes. They adopted me a few days ago."

He frowned for a moment, then nodded. "My apologies, but perhaps it is best that you leave for now. I am sorry for the inconvenience caused today, both for Jacob here and for what occurred earlier on with those others. We normally don't allow such behavior here."

I nodded. "Yeah, I'll go. Sorry."

He nodded and turned back to face Jacob. "Jacob, get a hold of yourself."

Raina turned and gave me a sideways glance, but still did not speak to me. Her eyes returned to her brother shortly afterwards as she wrapped an arm around him. Quil and Embry released him and Raina pulled him along with her as they disappeared into the forest. Seeing that now would be a good time to leave, I sighed and started walking off.

Unfortunately, I found myself being blocked by someone. I scowled and looked up to see another Quileute boy, glaring at me hatefully.

"Just where do you think you're going, leech lover?" he spat.

"Leech lover? What the hell do you mean?" I asked, confused.

He growled at me, his body violently vibrating. "You know exactly what I mean! You-"

"PAUL!" Sam yelled from behind me. Paul's head snapped up to Sam's. "Enough. Let her go."

"But…but…she's-"

"We will deal with that later, Paul. But leave her be, she's done us no harm. Now step aside."

Paul grimaced and begrudgingly moved out of my way, though he kept his glare on me as I slowly moved past him. He grumbled something under his breath that I didn't catch, but I didn't bother to pay attention to it as I distanced myself from the group of Quileutes. Them and their crazy spastic shaking. What was up with that, exactly? Did they all have a disease or something?

"Hey, Bella!" I heard Katie shout. "There you are, we wondered what was going on. Is everything okay? We saw some of the Quileutes go over to where you and that other guy went."

"Everything's fine, Katie, honest," I lied. I seemed to be doing that a lot lately, and while I didn't normally like to lie, it was best for now.

She shrugged. "If you say so. Oh! Hey, we were wondering if you would be interested in going to grab an ice cream with us. They actually have a little place to get food on the reservation and they're open. You wanna come?"

I shook my head. "No thanks, I gotta get going. Tell the others thank you for me and that I'm sorry, okay? I really am."

"Don't sweat it, Bella. It's cool. And you're welcome. We'll definitely have to plan for something better next time. Like a movie or something."

I smiled at that. "That actually sounds cool, thanks. Later Katie," I said.

"Later Bella," she replied.

I watched her run off and shook my head, feeling a little bit better. But not much. I stuffed my hands into my pockets and trudged towards where the cars were. Truth be told, I had no idea how the hell I was going to get back home without a ride. Maybe Alice would see me walking and come and get me? But she said she couldn't see me before. Weird.

As I passed Angela and Eric's cars, I noticed a figure out of my peripheral vision. It was Leah.

Leah was leaning against a tree, eyes closed and arms crossed. I noticed that she was wearing a different outfit entirely, though it consisted of the same type of clothes, that being shorts, sandals and a low cut sleeveless shirt. As if by magic, Leah's eyes shot open when I looked at her and she started walking towards me at an even pace.

I wasn't sure what to do or what to say, so I just stood there until she was standing a few feet away from me, looking at me rather placidly.

"Hey," she murmured.

I ran a hand through my hair. "Hi."

We didn't move or say anything else for what felt like ages. She just stood there, staring down at the ground with her hands in her pockets while I did the same. I had thought the silence between me and Charlie had been awkward, but this was on an entirely different level of awkwardness. At last Leah let out a brisk sigh and looked at me rather than her feet.

"Look, Bella…I…" she trailed off, uncertainty stopping her from continuing.

I fidgeted with my fingers. "Leah, about earlier-"

She held up a hand to stop me. "That's what I wanted to talk about, yeah." She paused and shook her head. "Shit, I don't know why this is so damn difficult for me. I…fuck. I'm sorry about how I reacted earlier."

"O-okay," I murmured. "I didn't mean to upset you, honest."

"I know. It's…really complicated, though. I mean, shit, I still can't believe what I heard and that…fuck, never mind. I can't really go into detail right now, though I'm guessing you'll find out about it later on. Sorry, Bella. I just wanted to make sure I apologized," she sighed.

I nodded. "Thank you, Leah. I appreciate it."

Leah shook her head. "I don't think you should be thanking me, Bella. I don't think you should be in the situation you're in right now, for that matter, but you are and I don't know what the hell to do about it. Be careful, okay? That's all I'm asking. I have no fucking clue what's going to end up happening after you leave, so, you know, prepare yourself."

"What do you mean? What are you talking about?" I asked.

She grimaced. "I can't talk about it. We're not supposed to talk about it. Sorry. I keep saying it, it's complicated. I know that's a shitty answer, but what can I do about it?"

"You could break the rules a little and tell me," I suggested.

"That'd be nice, but this is one rule I can't break, Bella. It stinks to admit it, but even I have my limitations for what I can do and say here." Leah ground her teeth together and ran a nervous hand through her hair, stopping to rub her neck. "Some other time, maybe, but not now."

I stuffed my hands into my pockets. "Fine, whatever. I gotta get going."

"Yeah," she mumbled. I scoffed quietly and started to walk away from her. "Bella, wait!"

I turned only slightly. "What is it?"

"I'm…truly sorry…about all of this," she said softly. Her eyes burned with sincerity and remorse for being not only being so secretive, but for all the trouble that today had caused me. There was something else there that I couldn't recognize, but it was gone before I could analyze it further.

"I'm sorry too."

She nodded her head and her shoulder slumped as she turned around and began to walk off. Now it was my turn to call after her.

"Leah."

Leah turned and gazed me intently. "Yes?"

I bit my lip sheepishly. "I hope we can still be friends."

Leah's lips twitched as she heard the words escape my mouth and stared downwards, uncertain of how to respond. I could see the gears in her head turning furiously to come up with some kind of response as she stood there nervously. Then she seemed to find her response, because she stopped looking nervous as she stared into my eyes.

"I hope so too," she murmured.

With that said, she turned again and walked off, only glancing over her left shoulder at me once as she distanced herself from me before disappearing altogether from my line of view. I stared after her for a moment, wondering what the deal was with the Quileutes and my family, but decided that maybe now I'd finally be getting some answers at home.

Ah, home.

Thoughts of Alice began swirling in my head, causing all the other thoughts to dissipate altogether. I smiled to myself as I started walking away from the cars towards the road to the reservation, imagining her angelic voice, her beautiful eyes and her tender hugs and kisses. I could hardly wait to see her again, even if we'd only been separated for a few hours. It was so strange, this pull I felt to go back to her. It was like it hurt to be away from her for too long, which confused me, but heartened me at the same time.

I'd have to ask Carlisle about that. If anyone would know, it would be him. Perhaps Esme would know too, for that matter, so I could always ask them both. Plus there was that awful smell and the whole black eyes thing that I would need to bring up, since they'd likely have the answers to those questions too. Knowing Carlisle, he'd want to know anyways. What I wasn't sure about was what had happened to Jacob. That had been the third time anything like that had happened, but I wasn't sure if it was coincidence or…

Okay, yeah, it wasn't coincidence. There was more going on with me than what I thought and I needed to get to the bottom of it and soon.

"It certainly took you long enough."

I snapped out of my temporary daze. I recognized that voice. Rosalie.

I turned to my right and saw that she was leaning casually against a tree, blonde locks swaying in the slight breeze that blew over us. A few inches away was her red BMW, parked perfectly under the shade of the trees nearby. Rosalie had her arms crossed as she appraised me, an odd look on her face as she inclined her head for me to come over.

I smiled as I walked towards her, delighted to see Rosalie, even if she wasn't overly fond of me.

"Hey Rosalie," I greeted. She nodded her head at me rather than respond, but at least she didn't full out ignore me like she often did. "Should I get in the car?"

Rosalie frowned and shook her head. "Not just yet."

I looked at her confusedly. "Why not? I asked.

She didn't give me a response this time and instead walked over to me until she was a few inches away. Then she leaned downwards and breathed in a few times, crinkling her nose and scowling to herself before sighing and running her fingers through her long hair.

"You stink," she said, shaking her head.

I was puzzled. "I stink?"

"Yes, you stink. And I won't be having that in my car. Wait here a moment." She blurred over to her car and pulled out a long purple purse.

"Wait, I thought I couldn't stink to a vampire?" It was a statement, but it came out more as a question, especially since Alice had said it was near impossible for vampires to find humans offensive in any way. So then why did Rosalie say I stunk? It wasn't an insult, oddly enough, more so a statement then anything.

Rosalie shrugged as she reached into the purse and pulled something out before blurring back to standing in front of me, a neutral look on her face.

"Under normal circumstances, no, you wouldn't. Let's just say that the air over on the reservation is fouler to us and it's attached itself to you. And I would rather not have you stinking up my car, no offense. Now, hold your arms outwards to your sides, please."

I furrowed my brow in confusion, but did as she asked. She lifted her left hand and I saw what she was holding. It was a bottle of sprays that people would use to make rooms smell better, only smaller and more compact in size. She covered my eyes with her right hand and started spraying me head to toe with it before doing my arms separately. Then she blurred behind me and did my backside for a minute or so until she had sprayed every inch of me.

When she was finished, she was in front of me once more, leaning in to sniff me.

"It'll do I suppose. Alright, now you can go on and get in."

"I'm sorry," I murmured as she and I walked to our separate doors. Rosalie merely jumped in to her side while I had to open the door, fearful of causing any sort of harm to her car. I did not want to get Rosalie angry at me again, hell no.

Once I'd buckled up, I noticed Rosalie looking at me, a puzzled look on her beautiful face.

"Why are you apologizing?" she asked.

"The smell," I replied sheepishly.

Rosalie rolled her eyes and stuffed the spray bottle back into her purse. "You have no reason to apologize for that. It wasn't something you could control; therefore there is no reason for an apology. Only apologize if there is a reason behind it, Bella."

Her tone was surprisingly soft, especially for Rosalie. Was she starting to like me, I wonder?

"Alright, I won't," I replied. It was best to do what she said, regardless.

Rosalie nodded, satisfied by my answer. But she didn't start the car. She merely sat there, lost in thought for a few minutes. I wasn't sure what to think. I'd never spent much time with Rosalie save for that one time she'd apologized for what had happened at the mall. Other than that, I'd had little to do with her, save for hearing a few teasing jokes here and there. It was a little awkward, truthfully, to be near her without her saying anything. And worrisome.

After what felt like forever, Rosalie finally shifted in her seat and spoke.

"How was your trip to the beach?" she inquired.

I was a little caught off guard by her sudden curiosity, but I shrugged it off quickly and replied.

"It was okay."

"Did you go into the ocean?"

I shook my head. "No. I thought about it, but I didn't in the end."

Rosalie chuckled. "Alice won't be pleased that you didn't put the bikini she bought you to use."

I hung my head, feeling rather guilty for that. "I know. I hope she won't be too upset with me."

I felt Rosalie shift next to me and looked up to see her looking apologetically at me.

"I…I'm sorry. I didn't mean it that way. I doubt she'll be upset at all. Besides, she's thrilled enough that you went shopping with her in the first place."

That eased me a bit. "Oh. That's good to hear." She nodded in agreement. Another minute of silence passed between us.

"Is this as awkward for you as it is for me?" she asked.

"Pretty much," I replied.

Rosalie groaned. "Damn it. Well, I guess it's better for this to be a little awkward then for this not to happen at all."

"What do you mean?"

Rosalie turned her head so that her eyes met mine. "I wanted to spend a bit of time…talking…with you. I've been thinking a lot about it and I realized that I shouldn't be so harsh to you, so I decided that I would try and take some time to, you know, bond. That's why I offered to be the one to come and pick you up."

I gaped at her. "You did?"

_That_ was surprising. I mean, it was nowhere near as surprising as Rosalie actually wanting to spend _time_ with me, but still. For her to want to come and pick me up is...

That was…wow.

Rosalie noticed my reaction and nodded, a small smile forming on her face.

"You know, I spent most of the drive over here trying to decide on how I was going to approach actually starting a conversation with you without making it seem too awkward or odd. I couldn't really think of any way, truthfully, until I heard you threatening those peons from school."

"Y-you heard all of that?" I stammered.

Her smile grew. "Every word of it. I have to say, I'm impressed. Not only did you stand up for yourself, you stood up for the rest of us, too. And you apparently nailed the little bitch pretty good, since I saw her holding her cheek when she drove off. I have to say, you're not bad."

She turned the keys in the ignition, starting the car at last. After a brief glance at me, likely checking to make sure I was buckled up, she turned her car around and drove off.

"You've got my respect, Bella. You're alright in my books," Rosalie stated, her eyes showing that she meant what she said.

"Thank you, Rosalie. I'm glad we're on better terms now."

"As long as you don't hurt Alice intentionally, which I can tell you would never do, we'll be on good terms. Since you told me that you wanted to be my friend that one day, I've been thinking on it more and more and, even though I was bitchy at first, I…I…" She paused and bit her lip, mulling over something in her head. "I like you."

"Thanks," I murmured.

Rosalie smiled warmly at me, the warmest I'd ever seen. "Good. Now that's enough sentimental bullshit for one day, I'd say."

I laughed at that and our drive home was much more pleasant.

"Hey Rosalie?"

"You can call me Rose," she stated softly. "Otherwise, yes?"

"How's Alice doing?" I asked. I'd been worried about her since she called the first time while I was there. The franticness in her voice scared me and I was fearful as to how well she was coping, even after I sent her the picture I'd taken.

"She's doing fine," Rosalie replied. "She misses you insanely, but I'm certain that the feeling is mutual. She was rather freaked out when she said she couldn't see you in her visions at first, though. _That_ was fun." She rolled her eyes sarcastically at the comment, likely remembering what had happened. I myself was curious and a tad concerned.

"What happened?"

She sighed. "Alice suddenly jumped off the couch and announced that she couldn't see you anymore and it scared the shit out of her. She started pacing around back and forth for a few minutes while we tried to calm her down, but she wouldn't listen to us. It became too much for her and she bolted out the door to try and go to La Push herself. We all chased after her and after about ten minutes of chasing we caught her and dragged her back to the house. It took Carlisle, Esme _and_ Jasper to calm her down enough to get through to her."

"Carlisle suggested that she call you, so she did. She was so frantic, though, that she dialed the wrong number three times. Each time she became more and more paranoid, so finally I snagged the phone from her and dialed your number in. When you answered, you should have seen the look on her face. It was like a giant meteor that had been seconds away from destroying the Earth suddenly vanished into thin air. That was how relieved she was that you were still breathing, even if she couldn't see you."

I blanched, feeling horribly guilty for causing her so much pain. Rosalie noticed this and placed a gentle hand on my shoulder.

"Don't feel guilty, Bella. You have no reason to, and Alice will most definitely tell you that herself. She just worries about you. She loves you with every fiber of her being and I think it causes her pain when you aren't around."

"I know the feeling," I admitted. Rosalie removed her hand and looked at me curiously as she turned a corner without even needing to look at the road. "I mean, I felt the same way the entire time that I was on La Push. I missed her insanely, it was almost physically painful. Hell, I missed all of you while I was away, almost to the same level."

"Interesting," Rosalie mused. "You'll have to tell that to Carlisle."

"I planned on it, actually. Oh, that reminds me, did she like that picture I sent?"

Rosalie laughed. This wasn't a humorous laugh either, it was a real laugh. It was the first time I'd ever heard Rosalie's true laugh, which was utterly majestic. I sat there and closed my eyes, enjoying the surprisingly sweet music even after she had stopped laughing.

"You would not believe how excited she was when she got that picture. She stared at it for a whole minute before squealing like a schoolgirl and jumping around happily, singing about how talented you were and how amazing you were. She was so jumpy she had a hard time writing you back, so Esme did it for her. We all had a good laugh at it and I have to admit, I thought it was rather cute for you to do. It certainly made Alice's day, that's for sure," she replied.

My cheeks heated as I blushed, imagining Alice prancing about and complimenting me in the same. She always did compliment me, even if I didn't think I deserved praise to begin with.

"She loves you, Bella. I cannot describe to you the sheer intensity of her love and adoration for you, no matter how hard I try. Her whole world revolves around you and there is nothing she wouldn't do to make you happy. Just having you happy makes her as joyous as can be. That's another reason why I want to bond with you, because doing so makes all of us happy."

I felt tears welling up in the back of my eyes for reasons I didn't know and fought to push them back, not wanting to ruin the tender moment that Rosalie and I were having by crying like a baby in her presence. I sniffled quietly, though I'm certain Rosalie heard it. She chose not to comment on it, though, as we started down the path that would end up at our house.

"I think so too, Rose. Thanks," I whispered.

"It's what sisters are for," she replied, smiling.

It didn't take long for us to reach the house. I could already see my love in the doorway, beaming ear to ear with a wide smile that only grew when the car came to a stop. I smiled the same at her, to the point where my face was hurting. I didn't care though, I was happy to be home and to be with my Alice again.

If only I had only good news to share with them. Because I had a very bad feeling that the things that had happened at La Push would come back to haunt me very soon.

**A/N: Yay for badass Bella moment!**

**I aim to put in a lot of those. She may be clumsy and a little dense, but she is NOT weak. Or at least, that's how I'm aiming to characterize her as the story continues.**


	40. Revelations

**Disclaimer: I take no credit for the Twilight series or characters, that's all Meyer's. I do take claim for all original characters and original ideas. **

**Revelations**

"BELLA!" Alice squealed.

I had just shut the door to Rosalie's car when I was tackled to the ground by my pixie angel, landing softly on a patch of grass near the car. Her cool lips pressed against mine as I wrapped my arms around her. She did the same and started to give me frenzied kisses on my lips, letting her lips linger for a few seconds each time. Then she started to move her lips across my face, kissing every inch of it from cheek to eyebrow to nose. Once Alice had done that, she gave my lips one long, loving kiss, letting her lips linger until I needed to breathe.

Alice rested her forehead against mine, smiling warmly at me as we gazed intently into one another's eyes. It felt amazing to be in her arms again, kissing her. It felt like it'd been an eternity since we'd seen one another and I was certain my eyes were reflecting those feelings because I could see Alice's were.

Alice suddenly blinked and leaned in to sniff my shoulder.

"You stink, Bella," she said, crinkling her nose adorably.

I rolled my eyes. "Is that your way of saying 'hi Bella, I missed you'?"

She scowled and captured my lips, trailing her tongue across my bottom lip. I moaned softly, opening my mouth and allowing her tongue entrance. Her cold tongue swirled around the inside of my mouth; the pleasurable sensations making my eyes practically roll into the back of my head. She continued this for another minute before removing her tongue and planting one last kiss on my lips, smiling at my dazed expression.

Alice giggled. "_That_ is how I say hello to you, my sweet Bella. But you still stink."

I sighed and hugged her as tight as I could. "I know, Rose told me the same thing when she picked me up. She sprayed me with some of that scented stuff, though, so I figured that would make me smell a little better."

"Ew, she put her stinky spray on you? Ugh! I hate that stuff!" she whined, her nose scrunching up even more and making her look even _more_ adorable.

Rosalie, who was standing at the doorway, huffed. "My scented sprays do _not_ stink!"

Alice rolled her eyes and sniffed me again, frowning. "I miss your old smell. Anything that isn't naturally you stinks."

"I can't help it. It's not like I mean to _not_ smell like me," I grumbled. Geez that sounded weird.

She rubbed her nose against mine, sighing contently. "It's fine. I love you, Bella. I don't care if you stink or if you smell Godly, I love you and I will always love you. Besides, all you have to do is take a shower and you'll smell like you again. It's no big deal."

I closed my eyes and smiled, reveling in the closeness that I'd missed. "Alright, I'll go take a shower," I replied.

She smiled at that and stood up, slowly lifting me with her. No sooner was I on my feet; however, was I suddenly tackled back down again. Alice was scowling as she pressed her forehead to mine, narrowing her eyes at me.

"That reminds me. Don't you _ever _hang up on me again, Isabella," Alice growled. "Do you have _any_ idea how scared I was? You could have been hurt and I wouldn't have known or been able to do anything about it! You could have been killed, Bella! Don't you know what that does to me, knowing that could have happened?" Her dark honey eyes smoldered with concern and showed me how scared she truly had been.

I grimaced and felt horribly guilty for putting her through that, imagining her angelic face broken and crying tears that would never fall because she thought she'd lost me. I felt a surge of pain at the thought and pushed back tears that threatened to fall from my eyes.

Alice noticed this and her face softened up instantly. "Oh, oh baby, no. No, no, no, I'm sorry; I didn't mean to upset you. Oh, come here," she cooed. She sat up and pulled me into her arms, letting me bury my head into her left shoulder as I curled my arms around her. Alice gently stroked the back of my head with her left hand while rubbing my back with her right.

"I'm sorry, Alice, I shouldn't have-"

"Shh, it's okay, baby, it's okay. I'm sorry. I don't mean to snap, but I worry about you constantly, you know? But I'm sorry, baby. I promise I won't snap at you again."

I let out a watery chuckle. "I know this sounds lame, but I like it when you call me baby," I murmured into her shoulder.

Alice giggled and continued to rubbing soothing circles into my back and my head.

"Well, you're my baby, mine and no one else's."

I heard two soft grunts of disagreement from inside the house and smiled as Alice kissed my cheek and giggled again.

"Okay, you're mine, Carlisle and Esme's baby. There, is that better?"

I smiled as I breathed in her sweet scent several times before kissing Alice on the lips.

"You're a dork, you know that?" I asked.

She smiled broadly. "But I'm _your_ dork, right?"

"That you are, Alice," I replied. "Shall I go inside and take a shower now?"

Alice stood up and pulled me to my feet again, pressing her body into mine as our lips touched, her cool hands cupping my cheeks and pulling me further into her. I snaked my arms around her once more as our lips moved against each other's rhythmically. We broke apart minutes later, both of us with goofy grins plastered onto our faces.

"I do _so_ enjoy it when you kiss me," I said.

"And I do _so_ enjoy kissing you," she replied with a smirk. She leaned in and captured my lips once more, gently pushing me back so that I was lying on top of Rosalie's car. We continued to kiss one another, Alice's kisses increasing in passion and speed as she started to move her hands around my body, one entangling in my hair, the other touching my lower back.

"Not on my car, damn it!" Rosalie hissed loudly from inside the house.

I heard several chuckles and Emmett's booming laughter echo outside as Alice laughed and pulled me off of Rosalie's car. As much as I wanted to continue, I would rather _keep _my life and have the chance to kiss her again then face Rosalie's wrath. I found myself laughing a little too as Alice looped her left arm around my right and led me inside of the house.

Esme was there in an instant, greeting me with one of her trademark Esme hugs, which I happily relaxed into. She held me for a minute or so before releasing me, but not before subtly sniffing my shoulder, nose crinkling only slightly.

"Whoo-wee, someone needs a bath!" Emmett boomed humorously. He was sitting on the couch, Rosalie to his right, Edward to his left. Jasper and Amara were both seated in one of the large chairs near the couch. They all laughed in unison as I blushed, hiding myself in Esme who rubbed my back.

Esme shook her head and tsk-ed. "Children! Enough! Leave your sister alone and behave." After shooting them a scolding look that silenced their laughter she turned and gave me a gentle smile as she leaned in and kissed my forehead. "How was your trip, honey?"

I winced at the mentioning of the trip, something that didn't go unnoticed from either of my parents or Alice. Alice squeezed my hand while Esme looked at me with concern in her eyes. Carlisle walked over to us and gently squeezed my shoulder, the same look of concern on his face as well.

"It was, um…" I trailed off, not knowing where to begin.

"Perhaps you would like a shower to calm your nerves?" Esme suggested.

I nodded. "That would be great, actually. Thank you."

Esme smiled and hugged me once again before letting me go, Carlisle doing the same. Alice then wrapped her arm around me and walked with me up the stairs and into the bathroom. I noticed that there was already a towel and a change of clothes for me to put on, which I furrowed my brow in confusion. Alice giggled and kissed my cheek.

"I kind of knew ahead of time that you'd need a shower."

I rolled my eyes, but smiled softly at her. "Thanks pixie feet."

"No problem, stinky," she replied joyously, pulling me into a brief, but loving hug.

I scowled at that and prepared to counter it, but Alice shushed me with a quick kiss before dancing out the door, leaving me alone. I silently cursed her for not giving me the chance to form a proper comeback, but shrugged it off. I didn't care too much since I was overjoyed to be back home with Alice and the others.

With a sigh, I shrugged out of my clothes and removed my bikini, setting them on a neat pile near the door. I knew that Alice would probably grab them and toss them into the washer, which formed a rather amusing mental image of Alice pinching her nose as she carried them, which made me laugh quietly to myself.

Once I was fully naked, I thought of something. Out of curiosity, I idly sniffed my right forearm, wondering if I would be able to smell what it was that they smelled. Doing so rewarded me with that same foul stench that I'd smelled on several occasions at La Push, which made me cringe as I pulled my arm away in disgust.

Well, it was official. I really _did_ stink.

Without anymore hesitation, I stepped into the shower and turned it on, reveling in the cold water as it poured down on me and slowly started to heat up. I was amazed by how little the coldness fazed me, since I used to be the type of person who hated cold water. Now it hardly even bothered me. In fact, it was incredibly relaxing, which I guessed was due to the fact that my girlfriend was probably the same temperature.

As I washed myself thoroughly, I noticed something that I hadn't noticed before. There were two hand sized bruises on each of my shoulders in the exact same spot. I was aghast because I hadn't even felt them there before. Now, though, I was rewarded with a sharp pain in each spot, which made me wince and caused me to get shampoo in my eyes.

Ow. Ow, ow, ow!

My hands were moving desperately to try and get the soap from my eyes, but the burning feeling was causing far too much pain. I yelped as I struggled to keep my balance in the meantime, which only proved to be even harder.

Seconds later, I felt a pair of cold arms wrap around me and the familiar scent of chocolate and strawberries filled my nostrils. Alice. I wasn't able to make any kind of response because of the frenzy that I was in, but being in Alice's arms always seemed to calm me. Suddenly I felt a cool tongue started gently gliding across my right eyelid, licking away the soap before moving on to the left eyelid. Her tongue lingered for a moment, swirling around each eye and lapping up any soap that was left over. Once that was done, her hands moved up to my face and I felt water being lightly rubbed into my eyelids.

After a few minutes, I was able to open my eyes. The burning pain was still there, but it had lessened greatly. I blinked several times and saw that Alice was no longer there, likely giving me my own private space to finish taking a shower. I did so quickly so that I would avoid getting soap in my eyes again and made sure to be gentle when washing my shoulders. The pain was still there, unfortunately, which made it difficult to wash them, but I somehow managed to do so without falling or spilling soap anywhere, thankfully.

I speedily got out and dried myself off with both the towel and hairdryer, which I noticed was a new addition to the bathroom, likely just for me. Once I'd finished with that I slipped into my change in clothes and walked down the stairs, running both hands through my hair to make certain that it was dry all the way.

I was greeted by an angry snarl that ripped through the air, causing me to freeze where I stood.

Alice was fighting to get out of Emmett and Rosalie's grips. Esme was standing in front of her trying to calm her down. Alice suddenly stopped and turned, her black eyes meeting mine. I gulped, uncertain what was wrong.

"Alice what's…?"

Alice growled. "Your shoulders."

"Wha-"

"Your shoulders!" she snarled. "They _touched_ you! They _hurt_ you! I'll KILL them!"

She managed to tear out of the hold that Emmett and Rosalie had had her in, but before she could get much farther she was blocked by Jasper, Amara and Edward. Alice curled back her lip and let out a threatening growl, crouching in a defensive position, ready to attack. Jasper moved behind her and wrapped his arms around her, pinning her arms to her side.

I could tell that Jasper was using his gift to calm her down since she her struggling slowly started to lessen. Amara and Edward stayed in front of her in case they were needed to stop her from running out the door while Esme watched concernedly. Carlisle walked over to me with a similar look of concern in his eyes, though it was concern for me instead of Alice.

"Bella is this true?" he asked softly. I bit my lip and nodded sheepishly.

Carlisle frowned. "Would you come with me to my office? I'd like to see myself."

I nodded. "Alice…"

Alice, who had slumped into her brother's arms, turned back to face me, her black eyes smoldering with love, worry and hurt. It broke my heart to see her that way and I wanted nothing more than to go and hug her.

"She needs to hunt first," Edward stated softly. "Come on, Jazz, Ama, let's take her hunting."

"Right," Amara agreed.

The four of them disappeared out the door in a flash while the rest of us watched on. Emmett and Rosalie gave each other a look and they both followed after them, leaving only Carlisle, Esme and myself to the house.

Esme sighed and walked over to me. "Come on, dear. Let's go talk."

I nodded and walked with Carlisle and Esme up the stairs, Esme wrapping an arm around my waist as we did. Carlisle blurred ahead and opened the door for the two of us as we walked inside before he shut the door and followed us. Esme grabbed a chair and set it down for me to sit in, which I thanked her for. She smiled warmly at me for a moment, but her face quickly became serious as both she and Carlisle stood in front of me.

"I take it that there was some trouble on the reservation," Carlisle stated softly.

I nodded. "Yes."

"What happened?" Esme inquired.

"Um, well…" I fidgeted with my fingers as I considered how to begin. "Basically, I, uh, kinda let it slip that I was a Cullen."

Carlisle pursed his lips and nodded. "I see."

"I-I didn't mean to, honestly. I didn't know what kind of reaction I'd get when I admitted to someone that I used to be friends with that I was dating Alice. He didn't think I was serious at first, I could tell by the look in his eyes. When I was talking to a girl that I'd met before, I was curious, so I asked her questions about why you guys couldn't come onto their land. Then Alice called me and I kind of let it slip when I was on the phone. I got scared, that's why I hung up."

Carlisle and Esme both looked at one another, clearly having a silent conversation with their eyes. I couldn't tell what they were thinking because their faces were relatively emotionless as they gazed silently into one another's eyes.

I hung my head. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have asked the questions and I shouldn't have told anyone who I was. But then after that, I ran into some of the kids from school, Lauren Mallory and a few other of the kids who usually harassed me. The main girl said some things and I got upset, so I punched her and I told her off, which is when I said out loud that I was in this family and some of the other Quileutes heard it."

Carlisle put his hand on his chin, a thoughtful look on his face. "Indeed. Rosalie informed us of what happened. Let me first of all thank you for defending us the way you did. I may not be the kind of person who uses violence for my point to be understood, but you did so for a good reason and for that, I am incredibly proud of you."

"We're both very proud of you, Bella, for standing up for yourself and for what you love," Esme added, smiling lovingly at me.

"I still told them…" I sighed. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have said anything. I just couldn't stand being in the dark anymore about the whole La Push ordeal, so my curiosity ended up getting the better of me. I'm really sorry."

Carlisle placed a gentle hand on my shoulder. "Bella, you have no reason to apologize. If anything, we should be apologizing for not telling you about our relationship to the Quileutes sooner. You cannot help if you are upset by being kept out of the loophole and I certainly would next expect you to not be curious. So I apologize, Bella, for keeping you in the dark."

"As do I," Esme said. "We considered telling you, but we weren't certain of the consequences of telling you. That seems rather moot now, especially since there should have never been a question of it. We should have told you. There's no excuse for not telling you. You are a member of this family and within time you will be a vampire, therefore this is knowledge that you will need when the time comes."

"Alright," I murmured.

Both Carlisle and Esme smiled placidly at me before Carlisle seemed to remember something.

"May I see your shoulders, Bella?" Carlisle asked.

"Sure," I replied.

I lowered my shirt so that both of my shoulders were visible. Carlisle walked closer to me and analyzed the two bruises, using his cool fingertips to gently touch each bruise. I winced only slightly under his touch causing Carlisle to frown sullenly as he removed his hands. Esme glared down at my shoulders, eyes darkening slightly.

"Who did this to you, Bella?" Esme asked, struggling to keep her voice even.

I bit my lip. "It was the boy I said that I'd been friends with when I was a kid. His name's Jacob and he wasn't too thrilled when he heard that I was not only adopted by your family, but that I was dating one of you too. He got really mad and grabbed onto my shoulders while trying to tell me that you were dangerous and that crap. It's weird, I didn't notice the bruises leftover until I'd gotten into the shower and they didn't start hurting until then too."

"Your mind was elsewhere, you probably didn't feel it because you were thinking too much about everything that had happened to you," Carlisle offered. Esme didn't say anything, her black eyes continued to glare at my bruises. "But it could also be a sign of your slow transformation into a vampire as well."

That reminded me of the things that I had wanted to speak with Carlisle about.

"Carlisle?"

"Yes, Bella?"

"I, um, noticed a few things while I was over there. A few changes, I mean. You said to mention anything that I noticed, so I thought I'd bring them up."

He nodded in understanding. "Of course, Bella. What is it that occurred?" he asked, genuinely curious about the topic. I had to suppress a chuckle at the look on his face; it was almost one of childlike innocence that strangely fit Carlisle.

"Well, there are two things. The first was that I kept smelling this really odd smell," I said, crinkling my nose when I remembered the acrid stench.

"Odd smell?" Esme inquired.

"Yeah, it was this horrible, putrid scent that was like garbage and wet dog mixed together. All I know is that it stunk badly, but it came and went shortly after I started smelling it." Carlisle and Esme both gave each other a knowing look before nodding for me to continue. "And the other thing is that after I told off Lauren Mallory and her little group, my eyes were…black."

Esme's eyes widened while Carlisle cocked his head to the side, his eyes reflecting how intrigued he was by what he was hearing.

"Interesting," he mused.

"What does it all mean, though? I thought you said that my change would be gradual. So then why am I experiencing all of these different things like the temporarily increases sense of hearing or smell or my eyes turning black. I don't understand."

Carlisle frowned, absorbing my questions. "In all honesty, Bella, I've never encountered anything like this before in all my years. The fact that you are still alive still amazes me more than anything, truth be told. I am sorry to say, though, that I do not have an answer for you. I would still like to run a few tests in order to gather some more information on the course of your transformation. I realize that this is confusing to you and I am dreadfully sorry, but until I have a better idea of your condition, I cannot give you an exact answer."

Well _that's_ just peachy. Sigh.

I hung my head again and sighed. "I guess I understand."

He placed both his hands on my shoulders, honey eyes smoldering with sincere sympathy.

"I am sorry. I wish there was something more that I could do for you at this time, but I am unfortunately as uninformed as you are at this moment. I promise that I will do everything that I can to help you, Bella. That is the least that I can do."

I smiled, touched by his sincerity. "Thank you."

"As will I, honey," Esme promised, kissing my forehead.

"Thank you, Esme. That means a lot to me." She smiled at that and the room fell silent as I thought about everything that had happened today. "Does that mean that you'll tell me what the deal with the Quileutes is, then?"

Carlisle and Esme both frowned and looked at each other for a moment.

"Perhaps now would be the best time," Carlisle stated.

"Yes," Esme agreed. She looked down at me. "Bella, dear, did you perhaps notice any odd qualities about some of the younger Quileutes?"

"Well, they all had the same tattoo on their shoulders, I noticed that. And then there was the fact that several of them had the same problem where they would start violently shaking, like they were about to burst out of their own skin," I replied.

Esme sighed. "That is partially correct. You see, Bella, the Quileutes are…not normal humans."

"I gathered that much, honestly. But what _are_ they, then?"

Carlisle pursed his lips. "Tell me, Bella, did you happen to learn anything regarding the Quileutes' past?"

"Um…" I paused to think back. "I remember Leah, the girl that I first let it slip with, mentioning that there's a legend that the Quileutes are descended from wolves. I didn't quite understand it and she didn't elaborate much, so it just left me confused..."

The more I thought on it, the more my mind was screaming at me how obvious it was, but for some reason my conscious was blocking it. Was it that obvious and the only problem here was that I was in denial about the whole thing? I mean, if vampires can exist, wouldn't it make sense if there were other inhuman beings out there?

Could they be…?

My thoughts were broken when I felt a familiar pair of cold arms wrap around me. Alice was back and she was pulling me into her arms, cradling me protectively to her body as she nuzzled my neck. On instinct I was already mimicking her actions and wrapping my arms around her, hugging her as tight as I could manage, since I knew it wouldn't hurt her.

"Did something happen?" Carlisle inquired.

"What's wrong, dear? Where are the others?" Esme asked.

Alice bit her lip. "I had a vision. The newborn, she's moving. She's coming _here_." I heard Esme mutter something under her breath as I breathed uneasily into Alice's shoulder. She must have felt what I felt because she instantly sat down and placed me on her lap, holding me lovingly.

"Alice…" I murmured.

"Shh, it's okay, baby. I'll protect you," she cooed sweetly.

"Did you tell the others?" Carlisle asked.

Alice nodded briskly. "Yes, Edward was near me when I got the vision. He informed the others and they all went to set up a perimeter around the area."

"What is that going to do?" I asked curiously.

Alice blinked, surprised that I had asked. "Oh, I guess I never mentioned this to you before. We vampires have, I guess you could call it a unique ability that we can use both when we're hunting and when we mark our territory. I'm not quite certain how to explain it, though…"

"If I may, Alice?" Carlisle offered. She nodded. "What you would call it, Bella, is the ability for us to "extend" our natural scents."

I furrowed my brow in confusion. "I'm not following."

"You know how we naturally smell good to you?" Alice asked. I nodded. "Well, we can make so that we can push our natural scents outwards. It'd be like if you and I were standing on opposite ends of a room, I could make it so that you would be able to smell me. Normally, vampires use this to draw their prey in, since our natural scent is mouthwateringly delicious to humans. But we also use our scent to mark our territory, extending it outwards and creating an invisible barrier, if you will, that shows that the land is owned."

"That sounds pretty cool, actually," I mused.

Alice shrugged. "I guess so. But it doesn't help that it only draws in humans for when we hunt, not animals. When animals smell us, they usually tend to run away. I guess it's because they're naturally more aware of who the predator is."

"Alice, did you see for certain that the vampire was heading to this exact location?" Esme asked.

"Yes, Esme, she's starting to head for Forks," Alice replied. "I'd been keeping tabs on her movements, which was hard to do since she kept changing her mind about her destination. I do know, however, that she'll be in Forks within the next three days. She hasn't made any decisions other than that, so I don't know why she's coming here or what she'll be doing, but you can bet that I'll be keeping my eyes on her."

"What of the other two nomads?" Carlisle inquired.

Alice bit her lip and stared down at the floor. "I haven't seen any decisions from them as of late, honestly. The last I saw was of them heading in the same direction as the newborn in order to meet up with her, but I never saw them meet. They either changed their minds or they made a snap decision and I didn't see it. Either way, I've practically lost sight of them. It's like they know that I'm watching their every move, so they're moving less and at random."

Carlisle and Esme exchanged worried glances. I grimaced, suddenly now concerned with what it was that Victoria and James had in mind. And then there was this new vampire and how she somehow had to fit into the equation. There was just too much coincidence with her appearing shortly after they failed to catch me. Had they created her during the time that I had been on the run from them? But then why abandon her? It made no sense.

"What are you thinking?" Alice asked, staring intently at me.

I sighed. "I'm just worried about this whole mess. I want it to go away so I don't have to think about them anymore. I'm tired of being paranoid every time the news talks about missing people or people found dead in the streets. And I'm tired of all the nightmares of them mocking me and threatening to hurt you and the others and-"

Alice shushed me by holding a fingertip to my lips before removing her finger and leaning in to kiss me. I lost my train of thought real fast as she cupped my cheeks and started slowly kissing me like she always did, with slow, rhythmic movements filled with nothing but love, warmth and passion. When she broke away, she did so slowly, her eyes smoldering with the same emotions that she had poured into her lips.

"Stop," she commanded gently. "Stop worrying." Kiss. "Stop stressing." Kiss. "Just stop thinking about them altogether, Bella. I have said it time and time again and I will keep saying it because you don't seem to get it. I. Will. Protect. You. I will not let them hurt you again, and I will do everything in my power to keep that promise. We're all going to do our part in making sure that you are completely safe, so I want you to stop concerning yourself with it. Okay?"

I blinked and nodded. "Okay."

How could I not worry, though? This was my family. She was my girlfriend, my best friend. I couldn't live with the idea of any of them being hurt by James and Victoria, because I knew damn well that they would torture them the same way they had tortured me. I'd had nightmares about it several times whenever Alice was away and I was asleep, though they would quickly go away when she returned and curled into me. But they still haunted me in the back of my mind.

They needed to be stopped. No, not stopped. Killed. They needed to be torn into shreds and thrown into a fire, ending their miserable lives once and for all. I was sick of being forced to think of them every time I saw the bite marks on my arm, sick of hearing their twisted voices and their bone-chilling laughter echo in the back of my head.

I wanted them dead. Alice wanted them dead. The others wanted them dead, even Carlisle and Esme, though they didn't vocalize it. I could see it in their eyes, though, how much they hated Victoria and James for everything they'd done to me.

A part of me wanted them to come back. It wanted them to pick a fight and get what was coming to them when they realized how much better the Cullens were compared to them. There'd been several occasions where I'd had dreams of Alice ripping Victoria's head off. It was weird, since I usually didn't have violent dreams and I usually didn't enjoy having violent dreams, but for that image, I was more than happy to make an exception.

I figured if anything the increase in my violent thoughts was a reflection of my changing process, which seemed to be the cause of a lot of things happening to me lately. I did hope, though, that I would be able to better control them as I continued to change. I did not need another accident like what had happened with Jessica that day, no matter how much I hated her.

I had to admit though, standing up to Lauren felt good. Not good, _fantastic_. It was weird, too, because I'd been thinking of Alice when I stood up to her. I think that being around Alice has really helped me out a lot, maybe even more then I realize.

"Perhaps we should inform the Quileutes," Carlisle murmured, more to himself. "It would be good to go and speak with them regardless concerning the situation with Bella. I don't think it necessary to tell them that she will become a vampire any time soon, though they will find out eventually one way or the other. Or maybe we should tell them and explain to them the situation so that there are no misunderstandings…"

Alice snarled. "Fuck them! After the way they treated my Bella, I couldn't care less about the damn mutts. It'd be easier with them gone anyways."

"Alice!" Esme scolded, though I could tell from her eyes that there was a part of her that agreed with her daughter's words.

Carlisle pinched the bridge of his nose. "Alice, dear, we raised you better than that. I realize that you are upset by how Bella was treated and both Esme and I agree with you. But wanting them all killed for that is wrong and you know it. Need I bring up the fact that our relationship with the Quileutes is not the best right now? It's strained and I would rather better it then worsen it."

Her shoulders slumped as she rested her head on mine. "Fine, tell them if you want to," she grumbled, not pleased in the slightest. "But don't expect much from them, Carlisle. I dare not think of how they'll react when they find out about Bella's condition."

"Condition?" I asked.

Alice frowned and kissed my forehead. "I didn't mean it like that, love. Sorry."

"No, no, it's okay. My mind is just sort of everywhere at the moment."

"Bella…" she warned.

I shook my head. "Not about them, Alice. Just thinking, you know? Which reminds me…" I turned to look at Carlisle. "You never got around to telling me what it is the Quileutes are."

"You're telling her?" Alice asked.

Carlisle nodded. "We think it best that she knows, Alice. She's a part of our family and she will eventually become one of us, so we feel that she has the right to understand what it is the Quileutes are for the future. Don't you agree?"

Alice thought on it for a moment, looking placidly into my eyes before nodding to her father.

"I think she deserves to know, yes. Besides, I planned on telling her about it anyways, if even you and Esme decided against it. I can't stand her feeling left out, so I was going to tell her later tonight when everyone was out hunting." Her lips curled into a bright smile. "This just saves me the trouble, so thank you."

I was starting to get antsy, my legs shaking as I tried to keep patient.

"Um, are you gonna tell me?" I asked, unable to contain myself anymore.

Carlisle, Esme and Alice all laughed softly as I groaned impatiently. Alice kissed both of my cheeks and nuzzled my forehead.

"You're cute when you're like this," she giggled.

I rolled my eyes, a small smile forming on my lips. "I can't help it, the waiting is driving me insane!"

"Yes, I know, sweets."

Carlisle cleared his throat, grabbing our attention. "If I might, I believe Bella would like to find out before nighttime," he joked.

"That'd be nice, yes," I replied. "So, what exactly are the Quileutes?"

He smiled, clearly amused by my curiosity. "Well Bella, think back to what it is that you found out about their ancestry, if you will. They say they descended from wolves and they view wolves as sacred animals in their culture. Also take into consideration the various…shall we say "nicknames" that Alice and the others have given them. What does all of that add up to?"

I frowned, hating the fact that he was making me think about it. Damn it. With a quiet groan, I started piecing everything together as I had done before. Then it hit me. It hit me like a fucking brick wall, all at once.

No way…there was just no fucking way.

"Werewolves?" I asked, gaping at Carlisle.

He smiled and nodded. "Werewolves."

**A/N: Oh my God! They're werewolves! Gasp! :O**

**Kidding. ****I figured that would be a good place to stop for now. It was originally going to be a little different, but I decided against what I had intended and changed it around, saving that part for the next chapter.**

**Anyways, hope you enjoyed. The next few chapters will be a bit of fluff and a bit of information. After that, though, things get more...interesting.**

**Oh, and forty chapters! Huzzah! (Even if this is technically number thirty nine, whatever)**


	41. Consequence

**Disclaimer: I take no claim for Meyer's characters, only for my own characters and ideas.**

**Consequence**

Werewolves.

Mother fucking _werewolves_?

I'm pretty sure I looked like a goldfish at that moment, the way my mouth was opening and closing, no words forming as I gaped at Carlisle. I still couldn't believe what I'd just heard, which was amazing considering I was in a room full of vampires. So why wouldn't werewolves exist, right? I mean, that makes perfect sense. Not.

"Are you fucking serious?" I asked. "They're actual werewolves? Like people who turn into mutant wolves that walk on two feet when the moon is out? _Really_?"

Again I received several soft chuckles from both my parents and my girlfriend, whose lips were twitching wildly in amusement at my reaction, no doubt. I scowled and crossed my arms petulantly, cursing them in my head for laughing at my lack of knowledge. I can't help it; it's not every day that you find out you were just on a beach full of real live _werewolves_, for God's sake.

"Aw, I'm sorry Bella," Alice cooed, kissing my cheek. "You just have the funniest reactions sometimes, I can't help but laugh. You're so adorable."

Carlisle quelled his chuckling and smiled apologetically at me. "I'm sorry for that, Bella. It's just that what you believe to know about werewolves is rather mistaken, much like the general information that people seem to believe about us. The Quileute wolves are in fact much different than your culture's stereotypical werewolf. In fact, I'm not certain that they are werewolves at all, but rather they are shape-shifters who assume the forms of wolves."

I blinked. "So they don't turn into giant half-human wolves at night?"

He shook his head. "No. They transform into giant wolves instead."

"Don't you guys, I dunno, _eat_ wolves?" I asked.

"Ew," Alice grimaced, crinkling her nose. "Bella, do you have any idea how bad they _stink_? I'd rather be forced to eat your crappy human food and garbage than try and _drink_ from those stinky beasts any day of the week, thank you very much."

"It's true, they don't smell very good to us," Esme stated. "I'm assuming that we probably stink to them too, for that matter. But we would never consider drinking their blood, because they are still humans, just a little extra."

"How the hell did they become werewolves anyways? Get bitten like vampires?"

Carlisle shook his head. "That is a mystery to us. It is likely that only they know their origins, though I sincerely doubt that they would ever be willing to share with us. It is sad that our kinds are considered natural enemies to each other. It has created a very strong hate between our groups, even if we do not drink from humans as most normal vampires do."

"However, we were able to establish a treaty with them years ago, prior to you, Alice, Jasper and Amara joining the family. When we first came here, we met with the leader at the time, a man named Ephraim Black. We desired to create a treaty with him and his people, you see. And even though there were only three wolves in their pack at time, I didn't see a reason for violence and instead I wished to coexist, so our groups forged a treaty. As long as we refrained from biting a human in any way and kept to our land, they would not attack us, nor expose our true nature to any of the humans in the area," Carlisle explained.

"Oh," I looked up at Alice. "I guess it's a good thing that I didn't take my shirt off and that I wore those armbands just in case, then."

She nodded. "They would have likely thought it was us right off the bat, knowing them. Damned mongrels, they always get pissy with every little accident that happens in Forks, always jumping the gun and blaming it on us."

Esme sighed. "It's sad that they allow their bias of vampires in general to effect their opinions the way that they do, but I suppose I can't fully blame them. I wish there was some way that we could coexist without the hate and the tension between our groups, but it seems unlikely."

"The Quileute Council is not very fond of our family, Bella. We have met several times over the past few years and they made it quite obvious how they felt about having a peace treaty with vampires. However, they do not nullify the contract because doing so would be considered a disgrace to their Chieftain in the past, so for the time being, they put up with it. I do believe, though, that they are waiting for the right excuse to abolish it," Carlisle stated sadly.

"Haven't they realized that you're all good people?" I asked. "You're a doctor for God's sakes, Carlisle, not to mention the fact that you abstain from feeding off of humans and feed off of animals instead. So what's the problem?"

"Even in the world of immortals there is conflict, Bella," Carlisle replied. "It is something that we must all adapt to as best we can. Esme and I try to keep from starting conflict and, should there be some form of it started, we try to settle it peacefully. Violence is not something that either of us enjoys. There is far too much of it already in this world, which is saddening, so we aim to be different. It doesn't always work, though, and sometimes conflict is inevitable."

Understanding dawned on me. "You've gotten into fights with the Quileutes before."

Both Carlisle and Esme nodded somberly. Alice bit her lip and rested her head in the crook of my neck, breathing in slow breaths. It was silent for a moment as no one knew what to say, the only noise being Alice's quiet unnecessary breaths.

"What's wrong, Alice?" I asked gently.

Alice flinched and peered at me with shame written on her face. After one last breath, she pressed her forehead into mine, gazing into my eyes. I gazed back intently into those beautiful golden orbs, reveling in how much I loved them. One of the things I loved most about her eyes was how well I could read her from them. They always showcased her emotions, even if her face did not, which helped me know when something was bothering her.

"Bella, I…I had an accident with them several years ago," she admitted sorrowfully. "I was driving one day on my own, looking forward to going shopping that day. While I was driving, I was suddenly hit with a vision, but it was foggy and unclear. By the time I realized what it had been trying to tell, it was already too late. I ended up crashing into someone. It was a man and a woman, both of them from the reservation. They were both severely injured."

She looked away from me, staring at the floor instead. "I panicked and called Carlisle and told him about it. I couldn't stay because there was too much blood, so I had to leave while I called for him to send an ambulance. It was fast, but not fast enough. The woman ended up dying from internal injuries shortly afterwards while the man survived, though he was paralyzed from it."

I gasped when I realized I knew who she was talking about.

Billy and Sarah Black.

So _that's_ what happened to them. Now it made sense…

She tentatively bit her lip. "I was horrified with what I'd done. I didn't leave the house for months because I was so paranoid that my visions would screw up and I would hurt someone again, which I wouldn't have been able to take. Things were worse when I found out that both the man and the woman had been Quileutes, which meant that the wolves would find out about the accident at some point and they would surely try and kill me. They never did though, so I'm assuming that the man never told the others, though I don't know why."

I thought back to speaking with Jacob in his room, his dark, foreboding smile. Did he know?

No. He couldn't have known. If he did, then he would have reacted differently when he found out that I was dating Alice. Then again, considering his reaction to me being a Cullen, he might have known that the Cullens were somehow involved. I wondered about it and it started to worry me, especially if the wolves decided to do something about me being here.

That reminded me…

Leah.

Would this mean that we wouldn't be able to be friends? And Jacob, too?

Truthfully, I wasn't thoroughly pleased with Jacob after how he'd acted. A part of me could understand his reasoning, I suppose, but trying to order me around while gripping my shoulders was no way to treat someone, reasons aside. Still, he had seemed sincerely apologetic for the last two times he had acted out and we did use to be close.

I didn't like the idea of having people who I wanted to be friends with turn into my enemies. It just didn't feel right, especially if it would ultimately lead into a fight of some kind, which I sure as hell didn't want. Would there be a way to avoid it? I pondered that for a moment but pushed it aside quickly, realizing that I have no knowledge of the situation between my family and the wolves. I'd have to bring it up with Carlisle at a future point in time.

Thinking on it, something didn't add up.

"If they didn't try and kill you, then how did it turn into a conflict?" I asked.

Alice sighed. "Only one wolf wanted to fight, the female Alpha of the pack."

That confused me even more. "Alpha?"

"The wolf pack of this generation is led by two Alphas, one male, one female. They are both mates, that much we know, but aside from that our knowledge of them is limited. I do believe that the male's name is Sam Uley, though," Carlisle stated.

Sam Uley? He was the leader of the wolves? Wait. That meant…

"Raina," I breathed.

I was met with three pairs of curious eyes.

"Who?" Alice asked.

"The girl, his mate, her name is Raina Black. She's the older sister of Jacob, the boy I used to play with a long time ago when I was a little kid. We used to play together too, though she was a bit more distant. They're the kids of the two that were in the accident."

Realization sunk into Alice as she bit her lip again. "That would explain why, then."

Disturbing images popped into my mind of a giant wolf fighting Alice, snarling venomously at her as it pounced with an open mouth, aiming to take off her head.

"Did she hurt you?" I asked. I thought on the question I'd just asked and shook my head. "No, wait, there's no way a wolf could hurt you, right?"

"These are no ordinary wolves, Bella," Esme reminded me. "They are our natural enemies and as such, they are as strong, as fast and as durable as we are, if not more so. One wolf alone is enough of a match for a vampire in combat."

"But…" I looked at Alice and cupped her cheeks. A small smile graced her lips as she put both of her hands on top of mine and squeezed them.

"Our fight never really went anywhere," she admitted. "We dodged each other's attacks, but before we could actually battle, the others arrived and she ran off without a fuss, mostly thanks to Jasper's gift, no doubt. Though it was strange, I couldn't predict what she was going to do. In fact, my gift didn't work at all when she was near me, just like today when you were on La Push, I was only able to get a fuzzy image of you and nothing more."

"It would seem that the wolves are somehow able to avoid being seen in your vision," Carlisle mused, clearly intrigued at the idea.

Alice scowled. "That makes them even less trustworthy then they already are. Those damned stinking mongrels able to slip out of my visions." Her eyes hardened as she looked at me. "That is even more of a reason for you to avoid La Push. I'm sorry to say, Bella, but you're forbidden from going there. It's bad enough that I can't protect you there, but the fact that I can't _see _what the wolves decide makes it even worse!"

"I understand," I murmured, brushing my lips against hers. "It's not like I'd be welcomed back with open arms, though, considering that I'm a Cullen and that I'll be a vampire in the not-so-distant future and all."

"That is true," Carlisle agreed. "This brings me back to a previous point that we should set up a meeting with the wolves in order to inform them of the situation at hand. Perhaps if we warn them about other vampires being in the area, they may take more kindly to the news."

Alice snorted. "I doubt that, Carlisle. They're mutts. They can't be reasoned with; they're too blinded by their one-sided Council's rules and by their own bias against us. Have you forgotten the number of times they've blamed us for deaths caused by other vampires in the past?"

"I know, Alice, but it wouldn't be right to not inform them," Carlisle reasoned.

She growled quietly, not commenting back. I could understand her reasons for why she felt the way she did, but I could also see it from Carlisle's viewpoint. He was the kind of person who abhorred violence and couldn't stand seeing anyone get hurt, even if they were naturally supposed to be his enemies. So it made sense that Carlisle would want the werewolves to be aware of what could end up happening.

For the life of me, I still couldn't believe that the Quileutes were werewolves. But it all seemed to fit together rather well, and since there was no reason for Carlisle and Esme to lie to me, I was stuck with having to swallow that new information down.

I swear, I think my life is a nightmarish fairytale. Still.

"I agree with Carlisle," I stated. I turned to Alice and cupped her cheeks. "I think that giving them some information might help out with this whole situation. Besides, I don't want a fight started because of me. I've already caused enough trouble by attracting two psychotic vampires that want me dead, so I don't see a point in doing the same with a bunch of werewolves. And Alice, what happened wasn't your fault. I can see in your eyes that you blame yourself, but it was an accident, plain and simple."

Alice pinched the bridge of her nose. "Damn it, Bella, stop blaming yourself for these things!"

"None of it is your fault, honey," Esme stated.

"So please stop, Bella. Please," Alice begged.

I bit my lip and nodded sheepishly. "Alright, alright, I won't say anything on that. But still, Alice, I think Carlisle has a point."

Carlisle seemed pleased. "Thank you, Bella."

"Ugh! Fine, go tell the stinking mutts if you must," Alice groaned.

"We can do so another day," Esme said, glancing at her husband. "Right now we need to plan out how we're going to deal with the newborn vampire and defend ourselves from the other two before they make their next move. When we get a chance, then we can speak with the wolves."

"I think that is best," Carlisle agreed.

"If we're done here, then, I'd like to spend a bit of time with Bella," Alice said, kissing my cheeks again. "I know it's only been a few hours, but I missed her…"

"And you'd like to spend some alone time with her," Esme finished. "It's quite alright, dear and you two are more than welcome to share some time with one another. I think it's a sweet thing to do considering all that's happened lately.

"Is that alright, Carlisle?"

"Of course, Alice, do as you please," Carlisle replied with a smile. "I would, however, like to spend some time with Bella running a few simple tests later on, though. I think it best that I learn some more on her changes before she returns to school."

I grimaced. School. I was definitely not looking forward to that, not at all, especially after everything that had happened during my first week. On one hand, Lauren and her bimbo brigade were all suspended, so I knew that I wouldn't have to deal with them. However, since it was going to be sunny, that meant that Alice and the others wouldn't be there, which scared me a little. I mean, it wasn't that I didn't think I could take care of myself. What I'd done today concerning that bitch Lauren proved otherwise. I would just miss them all, Alice especially.

"That's fine," Alice said. "Come on, Bella."

She lifted me with ease and gently set me down on my feet before standing and looping an arm around me as she walked out of Carlisle's office. I turned and gave a brief smile to both Carlisle and Esme, which they returned as I shut the door behind me. I walked with Alice into our room and sat down on the bed, pulling my shoes off as she closed the door behind her.

"So Ali-"

I didn't get a chance to continue since Alice had pounced on top of me, crashing her lips against mine in an instant. She wrapped both arms around me, her right arm around my waist, her left around the back of my head, her hand holding it as she continued kissing me. I moved my hands to the back of her head, running my fingers through her soft locks, kissing her back as passionately and lovingly as she was, and letting out a soft moan when I felt her tongue lick my bottom lip, asking for permission into my mouth, permission that I was more than happy to give.

As we kissed, I noticed something, or rather, I smelled something. Her scent. That sweet, mouthwatering mixture of chocolate and strawberries with a hint of vanilla that I loved, seemed stronger then it normally was. I could smell it radiating off of her skin, like an aura. That's when I realized that Alice was showing me what she had mentioned before about how vampires could control their scents that way.

I felt as though her scent was wrapping around me. I could smell only her, taste only her, _feel_ only her. It was…amazing, it felt as though her scent had melded with me. I moaned again as her tongue finally inserted into my mouth, gliding around the inside of my mouth. My tongue attempted to fight with Alice's over control of my mouth, but lost in mere seconds because I couldn't do that and enjoy the pleasure at the same time.

I don't know how long we kissed for. I lost track of time and all thought process with the combination of Alice's heavenly lips and her scent wrapping around me. Eventually, though, the need to breathe outranked the amazing tingling feeling surging through me and I was forced to break away, gasping for air several times. Alice kept our foreheads pressed together and allowed for her lips to brush against mine as she smiled.

"Holy…crap…" I panted. "That was…awesome…"

I noticed a few beads of sweat dripping down my brow and saw that Alice did too. Her dark honey colored eyes watched a few beads drop down onto the bed before placing her finger on my cheek and capturing one with her fingertip. Without a second of hesitation she placed her finger in her mouth, letting out a quiet moan as she licked her lips.

"Delicious," she purred.

I smiled and captured her lips once more. "I agree." I breathed in and out several times, loving how strong Alice's smell was. It made my mouth water even more, causing a small bit of drool to escape my lips and drop onto my shirt. Alice and I both noticed it and giggled.

"Well, I'm glad you enjoyed it," she murmured. I could feel her scent slowly dissipating from around me. "That was my way of, shall we say, making up for last time."

"Thank you," I replied.

Alice rolled off of me so that she was lying on her side, pulling me into her seconds later. I happily snuggled into her, nuzzling into the crook of her neck while she did the same. Her body soon began to vibrate, her purring causing a peaceful, lulling calm to overtake me.

"I really did miss you, Alice."

She smiled warmly. "As I missed you, love." She leaned in to capture my lips in a tender kiss, holding it for a few seconds. "By the way, I heard from Rosalie what you said and did on the reservation to those assholes from school."

I blinked, surprised. "She told you?"

Alice smirked. "She told us all, actually."

"Oh," I blushed slightly, wondering how much Rosalie told them.

Alice cupped my cheeks and made me look at her, her eyes shining with nothing but love.

"I can't even begin to express how deeply proud I am of you, Bella. I'm proud of you for standing up not just for yourself but for all of us, for me especially and I'm proud of you for teaching that stupid bitch a lesson, even though I feel that she deserved worse. But regardless, thank you Bella, for doing what you did." When she finished, she gave me another loving kiss.

I shrugged as nonchalantly as I could, trying to ignore the heat in my cheeks.

"It was no big deal. And honestly Alice, you were the inspiration. Just like for that sand picture of you that I somehow managed to make."

"I loved that! That was so sweet of you!" she squealed, hugging me as tight as she could without causing me any pain. "You're too good for me, Bella. And I must say, you're more artistic then you seem to think. It took skill to make that. I only wish I could have been there to take a picture of it so that I'd have a larger one."

"Maybe we could go to the beach sometime…?" I suggested.

Alice beamed at me. "I'd _love_ that. And you can finally show off that sexy body of yours when you wear nothing but your bikini to the beach. I happen to know that you never removed your normal clothes today, but I'm not complaining."

I frowned. "How did you…?"

"Rosalie told me, of course," she replied, grinning at my blush.

Damn it, Rosalie…

Alice giggled. "Like I said, I'm not complaining Bella. I'm actually happy that you didn't show your body off, since I want to be the only one who can see it. I'd get jealous if you did otherwise, so thank you, even if you didn't do so purposefully."

I rolled my eyes at her, a small smile playing on my lips. "That means you'll wear the bikini you bought for yourself too, doesn't it?"

She licked her lips. "Oh yes, my dear," she purred seductively.

We both burst into laughter which we kept up for a few minutes before stopping, the peaceful silence between us returning. It was nice, almost nice enough to make me forget about everything that had happened today on the reservation.

Leah. Jacob. Werewolves. Treaty. Enemies.

Those were the words floating around in the back of my head, even as I lay in my love's arms. I managed to push them aside, though, because I knew worrying about them was pointless and I knew that Alice would figure out that I was worrying. So instead I focused on enjoying Alice and nothing but Alice, cuddling with her in our bed instead.

We stayed that way for what seemed like hours, the two of us holding each other with the only noise being her soothing purring. It was only when Alice shifted that I realized that I had started to fall asleep in her arms, not that I was complaining. That was when I heard the sound of the door opening and shutting downstairs, realizing that the others had returned at last.

"Do you want to go downstairs?" Alice asked.

I nodded. "Only if I can stay in your arms." Lame, I know, but how could I resist?

"Always," she giggled.

That said Alice scooped me into her arms and jumped off the bed before gracefully moving out of our room and down the stairs. Carlisle and Esme were there too as our siblings clamored into the house, Emmett the last one inside. Alice plopped down in the couch, pulling me to her lap as she always did. I curled around her so that I was sitting with one side facing her, the other side facing the others, just so I could better hear what was said.

"We've marked as much of our territory as we could," Edward announced, taking a seat on one of their easy chairs. "Now it's just a matter of time before our newborn friend arrives in town. When she does, though, we'll know."

"How would you know?" I inquired.

"Vampires have a sixth sense that lets them know when an intruder crosses into territory that they've marked with their scent," Jasper explained. "So we'll know the instant either this newborn or the two nomads cross over into our area."

Emmett pounded his fists together. "And that's when we jump in and rip them to pieces!"

"We don't know if this newborn is aligned with them, Emmett," Esme pointed out.

"She was moving in the same direction as those other two jackasses, Alice said so herself, so that makes her an enemy in my book," Amara grunted. "Besides, Alice wouldn't have seen her beforehand if she wasn't dangerous in some way."

Esme sighed. "Alright, as long as you're all careful."

"Aw, mom, we always are!" Emmett boomed.

"Not always, Em," Rosalie scoffed. "Need I remind you of the last encounter we had?"

Emmett pouted and hung his head petulantly. I cocked my head to the side, curious.

"What happened?" I asked.

"We got into a fight with another coven that was traveling through here and things got messy real quickly. We ended up defeating them, but we avoided killing them on Carlisle and Esme's orders, so we let them go. Emmett got his ass handed to him, though," Alice replied, smirking.

Emmett snorted. "Not as bad as _you_ did, pipsqueak."

"It's true, Alice got _way _too overconfident and it cost her," Edward snickered.

"She always gets cocky when she fights," Amara added.

Alice growled, baring her teeth at her siblings. "Shut up! It was a onetime deal!" she hissed.

"Nuh-uh, it happens _all_ the time!" Emmett laughed.

"It's true, Ali," Rosalie chuckled.

"How many times has Carlisle had to patch you up afterwards because you overestimated yourself or underestimated your opponents?" Jasper asked humorously.

Alice snarled at them, but it only made Emmett laugh louder. The others were all laughing as well; even Carlisle and Esme had small smiles that they were trying to suppress. Alice looked around them with both irritation and embarrassment in her eyes, eventually giving up and burying her face into my shoulder.

"I hate you guys…" she grumbled. I smiled and pulled her close to me, resting my chin on her shoulder and running the fingers of my left hand through her hair.

Carlisle and Esme both looked at one another and nodded before Carlisle cleared his throat, quelling all of the laughter in the room. Alice peeked up from my shoulder as well, though she had no intention of moving anytime soon.

"I'm glad you're all doing your part in keeping our family safe. I'd like to bring up two topics of interest, though, both of which relate to Bella." I blanched and instantly hid myself in Alice. I heard Esme sigh as Alice hugged me tightly. "It's not bad, Bella, I promise. It's merely important that we discuss what may end up happening concerning the wolves."

"You told her?" Edward asked.

"Yes, we thought it was time she knew about them," Esme replied. "Especially now that they all know that she is a part of our family."

"Huh. So they found out, huh?" Amara asked. "Ah well, it's not like they wouldn't have discovered it anyways. And it's a good thing that Bella knows what they are too. At least we don't have to hide it anymore, though I didn't think there was a reason to hide it to begin with."

"True and true," Carlisle agreed. "However, we need to be prepared for confrontation of any kind should the Quileutes consider this a problem. I want you all to be on your best behavior should they decide to come to us, do you understand? I don't want a fight breaking out if there is no reason for it, especially when Bella is here."

"I'll protect her," Alice growled firmly.

"Alice, honey, you can't protect her from everything," Esme said softly. "Considering that your foresight doesn't seem to work around the wolves, it would be unwise to attempt to fight them off regardless. I-"

"Esme!" Alice shouted. "I swear, you act as if I'm helpless! I can fight without using my gift, thank you, and everyone in here knows it. And I'll be damned if I let any of those mutts lay another _finger_ on my Bella."

Esme sighed again. "They won't, Alice. We'll all make sure of that. I'm merely saying that you shouldn't go picking a fight with them. That goes for the rest of you, too. Only fight them if they attack first, do you understand?"

I heard several grunts of acknowledgement, Alice doing so last and out of reluctance.

"What's the likelihood of them coming here?" Edward asked.

"Very probable," Carlisle replied. "That is why I want you all to be on your guard, should it be necessary, understand? Now then, the other thing I wanted to mention was that, as most of you are aware, I've been meaning to run some tests with Bella concerning her changing process. With that said, I'd like to run those tests today and I would appreciate if I had the house to myself. It's not that I want to drive you all out, but certain tests are best done in private. I also believe that Bella would be more comfortable that way as well."

"Aw, where's the fun in that?" Emmett whined playfully.

"Be nice, Emmett," Esme chided.

"Do I have to leave too?" Alice asked. "I just got her back…"

"Honey, one of the tests will involve human blood and we both think it best that everyone be absent for it," Esme explained.

I pulled myself away from Alice's shoulder a bit. "Why have a test involving blood?"

"I'd like to test how you react to it. Judging by how you've described your reactions in the past, I think that it would be a good idea to, shall we say, train you a little, at least so that should you feel any urges that you would be able to suppress them," Carlisle replied.

"I can control myself just fine around blood," Alice grumbled.

I thought about it. There were a few things that I wanted to talk with Carlisle alone about.

"Alice?" She looked at me, a pout on her face. She already knew what I was going to ask."C'mon, pixie feet, I promise I'll make it up to you later, okay? I kind of want to talk with him in private. Please don't take it personally Alice, you know I love you and I want for you to be with me, but I need this time for myself, okay?"

She was about to protest but I cut her off by pressing my lips to hers and giving her a pleading look, hoping that she would understand and that she wouldn't be too hurt about it. At last I could see her resolve fade away as her shoulders slumped. She rested her head on my shoulder and nodded with a loud grumble. I kissed the top of her head.

"Thanks, Ali. I promise I'll make it up to you. Just don't be too upset at me, please?"

Alice sighed. "I'm not upset with you, Bella. You should know that. I just hate leaving you."

"I know babe, I know."

Rosalie's grunt interrupted us from our moment. "Hey! Quit moping Alice! You and I are going to go shopping for some new clothes for both us and for Bella. And we're dragging the others with us, no 'if's', 'ands' or 'buts' about it."

Emmett grimaced. "But-"

"No!" Rosalie growled. "You are going and so are the rest of you, even if I have to dismember you all and piece you back together there myself. We're all going shopping and that's final!"

Edward, Emmett and Amara all groaned. Jasper, though not the most pleased person in the world, shrugged and nodded. Esme, though, seemed overjoyed as she jumped up from her seat and clasped her hands together.

"Splendid! A family shopping trip! What a wonderful idea, Rosalie."

Rosalie smiled proudly. "Thank you, Esme."

"Oh, but don't even _think_ of trying that on me, young lady," Esme warned, face serious. There was a tiny hint of mirth in her eyes, however, though Rosalie clearly didn't see it.

"Yes ma'am," she murmured, hanging her head slightly.

Esme smirked at that, pleased. "Now then, off we all go!"

She shooed everyone out of the house, save for Alice, Carlisle and myself.

Carlisle smiled warmly at me. "I'll be waiting upstairs for you, alright Bella?"

"Alright, I'll be there in a moment," I replied, getting off of Alice's lap.

Alice pouted childishly as she stood up and wrapped herself back around me.

"I don't wanna go," she whined. "I don't want to leave you."

I rubbed our foreheads together. "I know, Alice, I know. I don't want you to leave either, but like I said, I'd really like to have this time for myself. You're making me feel bad, Alice, so stop that, okay? You can rush back home after we're finished. Go have fun trying on dresses and staring at that sexy body of yours in a mirror. Hell, go put a dress on Emmett, too."

"Hey! Don't give her ideas!" Emmett boomed from outside.

I noticed a small smile form on Alice's face before she starting giggling adorably. She leaned in and captured my lips, intertwining her fingertips around mine as she kissed me.

"Thanks for the idea," she giggled. "And you're right, I'm sorry for making you feel bad. That wasn't my intention. I'll go have fun and I will definitely make Emmett wear a dress. It's rather funny, actually." She kissed me again. "Love you, baby. I'll be back soon. Don't overdo it on the tests Carlisle, okay?"

"I won't, Alice. I promise," Carlisle stated from his office.

"Alright, bye Bells," she murmured, kissing me once more before dancing out the doorway.

I heard the sound of cars pulling out of the driveway and waited until I could no longer hear them before I slowly made my way up the stairs and into Carlisle's study. He was sitting patiently at his desk, looking over some notes that he'd written. Once I'd shut the door he stood up and gestured towards the chair that I had sat in earlier.

"Please, have a seat, Bella," he said.

I nodded and did as he asked, seating myself and looking at him with both intrigue and expectance. Carlisle seemed to be thinking to himself for a moment as he stood near his desk, tapping his chin with his index finger as he stared at nothing in particular. After a moment he gathered his thoughts and turned to look at me, a methodical look on his handsome face.

"Now then, there are a few small tests that I would like to perform, with your consent of course. I would not want you to be uncomfortable in any way and should anything cause you pain, I will stop immediately, I give you my word on that. Also, if there are any questions that you have during this time, whether on myself or your change or whatever it is you are curious about, please feel free to ask them and I will happily answer them to the best of my ability. Does all of that sound good to you?" he asked, studying me with placid eyes.

Feeling a little silly, I gave him a mock salute. "Yes, sir," I replied as seriously as I could.

Carlisle chuckled, his eyes full of mirth. "Oh dear, there's no reason for that."

I giggled. "Sorry, only playing. But yes, I understand Carlisle."

"Good. Now then, let's begin, shall we?" he asked, more to himself, I think.

"What test will we be doing first?" I inquired.

He strode over to behind his desk and pulled out a small container. Upon opening the container, he pulled out a vial with something red inside of it. Blood.

"I would like to run a test on how blood affects you, first of all. I am going to dab a little bit of this on a piece of paper and I would like for you to tell me how you feel when I do and we'll go from there. Is that clear?" he asked.

I nodded the affirmative and he smiled at me for a moment before doing just what he'd said he would. He opened the vial and dabbed a little on a q-tip before slathering the blood onto a piece of paper on his desk. Then he stepped to the side and looked at me, watching and waiting for anything in particular to happen.

At first, I didn't react. I just stared at the bloody piece of paper, making a random note to myself about how it looked more like paint then like blood.

That was when I caught a whiff of the blood. It was…strong. Intoxicating. Mouthwatering. I breathed in, soaking in the heavenly scent of the blood, which was practically taunting me with its potency. I felt my body tense and my eyes twitch as the scent filled my nostrils. The upper part of my right arm, the location of the scars, started to burn a little.

Without another thought, I lunged for the paper, mind swarming with thirst.

**A/N: So, to comment on something that was commented on in the last chapter for the "shower scene". First of all, weird as it was, Alice wasn't licking Bella's eyes. Her eyes were closed, therefore, it was her eyelids. The action was meant to be, as someone smart put it, sort of like a mother bear type thing, which is something relating to Alice's maternal instincts. I didn't intend for it to be "gross", more so tender. But I'm the writer, so I naturally see it differently.**

**I'll say this again, though. If you don't like something I write, don't insult it. Constructive criticism I can handle, but blatant insults I won't tolerate. **


	42. Tests

**Disclaimer: *Insert some witty phrase here* Twilight is copyright Stephanie *insert random insult* Meyer. I take no credit for it, blah, blah, blah. I only claim OCs and ideas.**

**Tests**

A loud snarl ripped from my mouth as I lost control over all of my senses. Everything, from my vision to my thought process, became blurry. The only thing on my mind being the blood.

Blood. Sweet smelling blood.

I want it. I want it. It is mine. MINE!

I didn't know what happened next, but I suddenly felt a gentle pair of cold hands holding me down. I writhed around trying to free myself at first, but the grip they held on me was firm, holding me in place as my mind slowly started to clear. Everything started to readjust itself in my eyes as my brain began to function again.

I blinked several times and remembered where I was and recognized that it was Carlisle who was holding me down against the floor. His face was placid, gold eyes alight with concern. Once he saw that I was coming to, though, he slowly lessened his grip on my wrists and let me up to my feet, helping me back to the chair, which I slumped into. Carlisle stood at the front of his desk, one hand rubbing his chin thoughtfully as he studied me.

After a moment of silence, Carlisle spoke. "How do you feel, Bella?" he asked in a gentle tone.

I didn't respond at first, waiting for my head to stop spinning. Only then was I able to see and think clearly enough to give Carlisle an actual answer. The scent of blood lingered in the air, but it was far less potent. And rather than draw me, it repulsed me like it always had, making me feel a little lightheaded.

"Alright…" I grunted, trying not to breathe in with my nose.

Carlisle noticed this and cocked his head to the side."Are you certain? Is there anything I can do for you?"

"Do you…think you could take that away?" I asked, pointing to the bloody piece of paper. I covered my nose. "It's making me sick."

"Certainly," he replied.

Carlisle blurred over to his desk and in seconds was holding onto a box of matches. He grabbed the sheet of bloodstained paper and set it on fire. Once it had been burned away he blew the fire out and tossed the remains into the trash. I breathed a sigh of relief when the scent of blood was gone and I was feeling normal once again. Or rather, as close to normal as _I_ could be, anyways.

"Very interesting," Carlisle murmured. He turned to appraise me. "Tell me, Bella, what was going through your mind when you saw the blood?"

"Nothing at first," I admitted. "I know that it drew me in, even if I couldn't smell it at first. But then I was suddenly able to smell it and my mind just went blank. The only thing I could think of was the blood and how badly I wanted it. Everything just seemed to blur together when I went for it, I lost complete control."

He nodded in understanding, pursing his lips as he mulled over what I'd said.

"Bella, did you feel a burning sensation in your throat?" he asked.

I shook my head. "No. But…" I paused for a moment.

Carlisle nodded curiously. "Yes?"

"But I did feel a weird burning feeling in my arm," I said, clutching my upper right arm. "It was like my scars were burning when I smelled the blood, but they stopped once I couldn't smell it anymore, just like the odd thirst stopped."

"I see."

"Carlisle?" He looked at me intently. "Is this what it feels like for a normal vampire when they smell blood?"

He nodded. "It is, but the substantial thirst that we have is far stronger. You see, Bella, when we need to feed, we feel a burning sensation in our throats. It starts off small at first and is barely noticeable, but as our time without feeding increases, so too does the strength of the burn. In a manner of speaking, the burn that we feel makes our ravenous thirst even more uncontrollable."

"What this tells me is that you are indeed experiencing a side effect to your change. And while this side effect is potentially harmful to both you and others around you, I do not believe that it is a cause for concern. It only seems to affect you when you smell blood, and since most humans don't naturally bleed constantly, I dare say you are in no harm. I would like to repeat this test several times today, though, in order to test whether or not you can learn to control the urge."

"Okay," I replied, feeling a little uneasy about having to deal with it again.

He noticed my expression and chuckled softly. "Don't worry, Bella. I won't have you do it now; I'd like to speak to you about a few other things beforehand. I'll give you a warning for when I intend to do it, so that you'll have a chance to prepare yourself. Does that work out for you?"

"It does. Thank you."

Carlisle smiled. "Good. Now then, before we continue, do you have any questions?"

I thought about it for a minute, taking into consideration everything that had happened to me in the past week and a half and all the knowledge that I had gained about vampires and the little bit that I had gained on werewolves. There were a few things that I was curious about, including some of the stuff that had happened to me.

"There are a few things I wanted to ask you about, yes," I stated. "One of them is the reason that I wanted to speak with you in private, but I think I'll wait to ask that one. I think I want to do theses other tests first and then ask. Would that be okay?"

Carlisle smiled at me and nodded. "However you wish, Bella. I am fine with whatever it is you choose."

I smiled appreciatively at him before deciding on which question to ask first.

"Is it natural for mates to miss one another when they're apart?" I asked.

He cocked his head to the side. "What do you mean?"

"Well, when I was at La Push I missed Alice. And I don't just mean the normal kind of longing; it was almost causing me physical pain because I wasn't with her. I kept thinking about her constantly and it was like I hadn't seen her in centuries when I came back home," I explained.

Carlisle's eyes lit up. "Ah, yes, I see what you mean. That, my dear is indeed something that occurs between mates in the earlier years that they are with one another. You see, the bond that we share with our mates is far stronger then the bond that two humans share. Not that humans mates do not love one another dearly, but the love that a vampire and his or her mate has is far deeper because we're connected to the very depths of our souls."

"So it would make sense that you and Alice would pine for one another when you were absent from the house. It will likely be this way for a few more months as you continue to bond with one another. It becomes better after a while, though, I can assure you of that."

"That's good to know," I sighed. Then again, I doubted I'd be doing anything that would keep me away from Alice for too long. I hope.

"Did you have another question?" he inquired.

"How long do you think Alice's super-protectiveness will last?" I asked. "I mean, I love her to pieces and I love how protective she is of me. I hate to sound weak, but I love the idea of her protecting me, too, but I'm concerned because of how, you know, violent she can be when she's like that. I don't want her to do or say something that either of us will regret because she was trying to protect me and I certainly don't want her protecting me from something trivial."

Carlisle gave a quiet laugh. "I understand your concern completely. Don't forget, I've helped raise a houseful of vampires, Bella, four of whom I created." He paused to clear his throat, though I wasn't sure why he would need to. "To answer your question, mates are often exceedingly protective of one another in the early time they spend with one another. I'd have to say that, given Alice's inexperience and the fact that you are still a human, her protective side will most likely continue to show through until your change is complete."

"I want you to understand several things about this. First of all, Alice can't help if sometimes she acts out on her protective nature. The will to keep our mates safe is incredibly strong and ignoring the need would be painful for both individuals. Secondly, she can't always be blamed for the outcome. She has been struggling with keeping her protectiveness in check, but because this is new for her, it's not something that comes easy. That said, she may very well say or do something that she will regret, but there will never be any repercussions for it. We've all gone through the phase ourselves, so we understand and sympathize with her."

"Save for Edward," I pointed out.

"Ah, that is true," he chuckled. "Your brother has yet to find the right woman for him, but I'm certain that when he does, the experience will be the same for the both of them. It may be a bit easier or harder for him considering his gift, though. He has been doing a lot of mental training for when he meets his mate, taking advice from Esme and I and his siblings on how to control the urges that come with having a mate."

"Was it like this for you and Esme?" I inquired.

Carlisle tapped his chin and looked up at the ceiling, smiling. "Yes and no. It was much easier for me to combat the maternal urges that I felt because of the fact that I had been around for well over two hundred years before Esme came into my life. For Esme, it was hard at first, but I believe that her maturity prior to changing and her own intellect helped her control herself better than if had she been younger when she was changed."

"Oh. Alright, I was only curious. Is there anything I can do to help her?"

"You can help her by supporting her and doing your best to reassure her when she needs it. That is the best that you can do." An amused grin formed on his face. "I'd also suggest trying to not put yourself into harm's way as often as you seem to as well."

I rolled my eyes. "I got it, thanks."

"By the way, you have experienced similar feelings of protectiveness, yes?"

"I've experienced it in the past, yes, but only when people start talking bad about her, like what happened at school or at La Push. I can't stand it when people talk bad about my Alice, she's too good a person for that kind of crap and I sure as hell won't tolerate it," I growled, remembering the things they had said about her.

"I see," he replied, nodding once again. He definitely seemed to do that a lot, but it made sense considering how smart he was and how he thought. "I'll offer you the same advice that I gave Alice when she asked about it. Keep your head as clear as you can and don't act irrationally when you feel the need to protect your mate. That is all."

"I'll do my best."

He smiled. "Very good. Anything else you'd like to ask?"

I bit my lip. "None for now, no."

"If that is what you'd like, Bella. But as I said before, please don't feel the need to hold back on any of your questions. I am more than willing to answer anything you have to ask," he stated, his eyes smoldering with sincerity.

"Thank you, Carlisle," I replied. "So what's the next test?"

He considered that for a few seconds. "I have a few more test ideas in mind for you. For these tests, I would like to do a few experiments surrounding your physical and mental capabilities, if you please."

I blinked. "Huh?"

He chuckled. "My apologies, I mean that I would like to run some tests on your reflexes, your senses, your reaction time and, if possible, your physical strength and endurance. It is possible that the venom has had additional side-effects, some of which may not be negative. Does that make sense?" he asked.

"Yeah, that makes a bit more sense, I guess."

"Good. Now, what I would like to do first is take a look at your senses. You've mentioned in the past that you were able to both smell and hear things that were farther away from you. I would first like to test your hearing. I'm going to speak a few words at the speed and volume that only a vampire can naturally hear. At first, I want you to simply stay still and see if you can hear me."

I adjusted myself so that I was sitting properly. "I understand."

"Good. Now tell me if you can hear this." I watched as his mouth moved, but I couldn't hear any words flowing out of it. He gave me a curious look. "Did you hear what I said?"

I shook my head. "No, I didn't."

Carlisle seemed to think of something before nodding his head. "I see. I would like to repeat the test once more, only this time I would like for you to focus. Focus on nothing but your hearing, eliminate your other senses. Close your eyes, clear your mind and only listen."

I took his advice and closed my eyes, breathing in slowly. I stopped thinking about everything around me, where I was and who was there with me. I did only as Carlisle asked, focusing solely on just listening. I could hear my heart beating at an even pace in my chest, the sound of my lungs moving as I took each breath. I could faintly hear sounds from outside of Carlisle's window, the quiet breeze and the rustling of leaves.

"If you can hear me now, Bella, then the test is a success," Carlisle whispered. It was both low and fast, but I was able to hear it.

I opened my eyes, blinking rapidly. "I heard you," I breathed.

Carlisle's eyes widened for a moment before a smile graced his face. "Excellent. That would prove my theory that your natural senses have indeed been partially enhanced by your changing. I think that they are heightened under normal circumstances, but when you focus purely on just one sense then you are able to use it the way that a vampire can."

He blurred behind his desk and picked up a pen, scribbling something down on a piece of paper.

"I'd like to test your other senses as well, just to make sure that my theory is indeed correct. I would like to see how strong your sense of sight is, so I am going to stand over here with a piece of paper with something written down in small print. We vampires can read nearly every print; our eyes can focus in and make out even the smallest of letters fairly well. I would like you to try and focus in on what I've written down here."

I nodded and watched as he blurred over to his window, holding the sheet of paper up. One glance and I wasn't able to see any letters at all. I could make out a few specks and marveled at how skillful vampires could be at writing such tiny print. Biting my lip, I narrowed my eyes and did as I had done before with my hearing, focusing solely on my eyes and on seeing the words written down on the sheet of paper.

At first, it didn't work. I still couldn't read the words, let alone see them. But after a moment of doing nothing but focusing, to the point where it was nearly straining, I could make out a single sentence written out. It was tiny as hell, but I could read it as plain as day.

_Tell me if you can read this._

That's all that was written. I could only manage for a few seconds because my eyes started to tear up and I was forced to close them, rubbing them in order to ease the light irritation from keeping them open for so long.

"Ow," I grumbled to myself. "That hurt."

"I'm sorry," Carlisle stated apologetically, setting the piece of paper down. "We can stop for now if you'd like, Bella."

"No, no, it's fine. I just shouldn't have strained myself so much. The good news is that I was able to read what it was that you wrote, at least. I guess my sight isn't as strong as my hearing just yet. I wonder why?"

"Well, you are still a human, Bella. For that reason it is likely that your body has yet to fully adjust to the venom. I believe that your senses are still developing and will likely continue to develop as time goes on. You may experience times when your senses act out without you wanting them too, so be warned should that happen that you should not worry on it. Just be careful that you don't act out on your senses should they do that."

"Okay, I will," I promised. "So are you going to test my other senses?"

Carlisle smiled and shook his head. "No, I don't think that will be necessary. You've proven my theory that on your senses and I don't think it necessary to test the others out. Besides, I honestly would have no idea how to test your sense of taste and touch, but we needn't worry on it."

I shrugged. It didn't bother me too much. I was actually pretty excited by what I'd learned today.

"I would like to test your reflexive capabilities next, if you don't mind. It's nothing too gratuitous, I promise, I merely wish for you to try and follow my movements. I would like to see whether or not you can register them. Please do not strain yourself, you're starting to look a little fatigued, Bella and I do not want you hurting yourself. If you feel sick, tired or dizzy, please feel free to let me know and we can stop for the day," Carlisle stated.

I furrowed my brow. I did? I didn't feel fatigued. But then again, with me the fatigue hit me like a train when I least expected it, so maybe I just hadn't felt it quite yet.

"I got it."

He smiled at me, vanishing from my line of view seconds later. I whirled around to see that he was standing near the door, leaning against it as if he had been there all long, his lips curled into a casual yet gentle smile.

"Too fast?" he inquired.

"A little," I grumbled.

"Sorry. I'll slow it down a bit for you. Ready?" I nodded. "Good. Let us see if you can follow my movements this time."

I kept my eyes glued to him as best as I could. In an instant he moved, his body becoming a fray of blurry lines, and he darted across the room. This time, my head moved first and I was already looking in the exact spot that he ended up standing in seconds later. I had to gasp at that, taken aback by what had just happened.

"What the hell…"

"Judging by your reaction, it would seem that you were indeed able to predict where I was going to move. Well done, Bella, your reflexes are quite good. They aren't as keen as your senses are and I certainly don't want you getting any ideas in your head, but I would like to continue practicing with your reflexes every so often, alright?"

I gave him an innocent look. "Why on Earth would that give me ideas, Carlisle? You think I'm going to go and try dodging traffic?"

Carlisle frowned for a moment before shrugging nonchalantly. "I would prefer you avoid that, yes, and I'm certain Alice would as well. In fact, I'd ask that you not bring up the idea around her because she would likely not take kindly to it at all."

I chuckled as I imagined Alice going on an angry tirade at Carlisle for ever putting the ideas into my head. Then again, she wouldn't be pleased with me either and she might do something drastic as a means of getting back at me. My chuckle died halfway through as my eyes widened in horror at the things she could and would do.

What if she took away cuddling for a week? God, no! I couldn't survive!

"Yeah, you're right, I won't think or bring it up ever again," I stated, cringing to myself.

Carlisle snickered. "Yes, I doubt you'd enjoy her reaction. In any case, I'd like to run one last test before we return to you trying to control yourself around blood. This is another simple test and I guarantee it will be quick and relatively painless."

I raised an eyebrow at him. "Relatively?"

He shrugged innocently. "It isn't going to cause massive injuries, I promise." He reached into his pocket and pulled out a small rock, then placed the rock in the palm of my right hand. "I would like for you to try and break that pebble. This is just to test whether or not your physical strength has been affected at all by your changing as of yet."

He wanted me to break a rock? Huh. That was an odd idea for a test. Then again, I guess it was better than me trying to punch a rock. Or him or some shit like that. Of course, punching a vampire would be like punching a rock, only ten times worse. I found that out the hard way when I punched Victoria on one occasion. Bad mistake, very bad mistake.

I stared down at the pebble in my hand and decided I might as well give it a shot. I put the pebble between my index finger and thumb and squeezed down on it. Nothing. I scowled and did so again, using as much strength as I could into my finger tips. I heard the pebble crack a little, but it didn't break. All it did was make my fingers sore.

I gave up and growled, tossing the rock to the ground petulantly.

Carlisle chuckled and picked it up. "It would seem that you have yet to receive the physical strength that a vampire has. Do not be discouraged, though. This wasn't an ordinary rock, but a piece of concrete that I found."

I gaped. "That was _concrete_?"

"Yes it was," he chuckled. "In truth, I had considered other alternatives to testing whether or not your strength had increased, but I know for a fact that those alternatives would have been met with the ire of your mate. Not only that, but I was certain that you would injure yourself and I would feel horrid were that to happen, so I went with the simplest method I could think of. But as I said, don't be discouraged with yourself. You're still a human, after all."

I frowned at that, but made no comment. Carlisle didn't mean it as an insult; I knew that he would never say anything to insult me. Hell, I doubted he'd ever insult anyone at all for that matter; he was far too kind a person. And I was a little glad with the test that he chose, thinking to myself what other options he may have considered at one point. Hopefully none of them involved me trying to lift something excessively heavy or punch a rock.

"Do you really think that it will take a full year for the venom to change me?" I asked.

Carlisle closed his eyes to think about it. "I honestly don't know. And in truth, your change is something that I have been thinking about since we discovered it. I'm honestly rather worried about the speed of which you are transforming at."

"What do you mean?"

He sighed and reopened his eyes, those gentle golden orbs full of uncertainty and worry.

'The fact of the matter is, Bella, that there is a slight chance that the process that you are undergoing could very well be _too_ slow. What worries me is how it will affect you as the venom continues to spread, because, as you know, we no longer have working organs in our body. For that reason, if the process is too slow, it could kill you before you have a chance to fully change. The transformation into a vampire tends to last three days, depending on where you were bitten. If you were bitten closer to your heart, the time frame is much smaller, but it is still lengthy."

He paused to take in an unnecessary breath. "With that said, because of the location in which you were bitten, the time it takes for the venom to reach your heart will be much slower. I am concerned about your other vital organs "dying" before the venom has a chance to get to your heart, which would not only cause you excruciating pain, but it would end your life prematurely."

I blanched, gulping loudly when I realized what he was saying. Holy shit, he was right. I hadn't even thought about that. I was so busy wondering what it would be like to be a vampire that I didn't even realize what could happen in the meantime. Shit, shit, shit…

"So you see," Carlisle sighed, sitting down at the chair at his desk. "I don't know what to do with this dilemma. I don't know if adding more venom would cause any problems or not and I am fearful of testing it out. Furthermore I know that Alice would be thoroughly displeased in finding this out, one of the reasons that I am glad that she is away with the others. I've considered telling her about it, but as of now, I have yet to get that chance."

"I see," I murmured, staring down at the floor nervously.

Carlisle leaned back in his chair, clasping his hands together as he gazed at the wall.

"I am sorry for scaring you, Bella, but I believe that you had the right to know my thoughts. However, the good news is that I do not think it necessary to worry on this anytime soon. Your changing is very slow and as such it will be months before something should happen. I will delve into the subject as best I can and speak with Esme on it. We will come to you when we can figure out what to do. In the end, I'd ask that you not mention this to Alice, but should you do so, it is your right and I will not say anything against it."

He turned his eternal eyes to me. "Just know that if you experience any sort of pain anywhere at all that makes you feel as though your body is on fire, please come to me quickly. I will do everything in my power to make sure that this works out and that you do not suffer, Bella. You have my word on that much, at the very least."

I ran a hand through my hair and sighed. "Thanks, Carlisle. I appreciate it."

Carlisle frowned. "I am sorry, Bella. Perhaps I should not have brought it up."

"No, I'm glad you did," I stated, meeting his eyes. "I think it's better to be aware of these sorts of things then to not know about them until it's too late, you know? I mean, I'm a little scared, I'll admit, but I've been a little scared about the whole thing. At least now I know what to prepare myself should the worst happen…"

"We won't let it happen," Carlisle assured me. "You can be certain of that."

"I am," I replied, smiling a little. It didn't reach my eyes, I knew that. "So I guess we're going to do that blood test thing again?"

"Yes, I would like to, but in a moment. Before I do, do you have any other questions you would like to ask me about?"

I bit my lip and racked my brain for questions that I had. There were a few, one in particular that I was saving for the right time. Aside from that one, there were other questions, but right now I couldn't really think of them. My brain was so caught off guard by what Carlisle had told me that it was hard to think of much else.

"No, not right now. Maybe later, though."

"As you wish, Bella. I would like to run the first test now, if that is alright with you?"

"Sure thing, I suppose."

"This time, what I'd like for you to try and do is resist the urge you get to go after the blood. It might be uncomfortable for you, but I would like to see how long the urges remain intact. In the past, you have mentioned that shortly afterwards the scent made you feel nauseous, correct?"

I nodded. "Yeah, usually the smell of blood makes me feel sick. Or, it used to, I guess. But every time I've smelled blood and felt those urges, shortly after I would feel sick from smelling it because it was so intense."

"I understand what you mean," he stated, giving me a thoughtful look. "That is one reason why I would like to run this test again. I would also like to run this again in order to test how well you can control yourself before the urges either dissipate or take over."

"Is doing this going to help me when I change?" I inquired.

"That is a good question, one that I unfortunately cannot answer. It may help, or it may not. We will just have to wait and see, no?" He smiled encouragingly at me. "Are you ready, Bella?"

I clenched my jaw tightly and gave him a rough nod. "Yes."

Carlisle stood up and retrieved the vial of blood from inside of his desk, as well as another sheet of paper. He glanced at me once before opening the vial and allowing it to drip down. Three droplets of blood splashed onto the sheet, my eyes watching each and every one. As with earlier, I couldn't smell it at first, but my eyes were drawn to it. I moved my hands to the sides of the chair, gripping them tightly as I pursed my lips.

Then the scent hit me.

My nostrils flared when the rich scent of blood became the only thing I could smell. I winced as the scent drew me in, a slight burn forming in my throat. The burn was nothing compared to the thirst that I was feeling. It was almost mind-numbing, the thirst, the _drive_ I felt to go after that blood. I struggled to keep myself in place, digging my nails into the wood of the chair.

Resisting only seemed to make the urges worse and the smell more tantalizing, to the point where I was nearly in tears trying to keep myself in place. After what felt like an hour I couldn't take it anymore. I released myself from the chair and lunged at the location of the blood, my vision blurring slightly as the blood became the only thing on my mind. In a flash Carlisle appeared in front of me, gracefully and gently grabbing me mid-air and softly pinning me to the floor once again. Everything was spinning at first, but as the feeling of Carlisle's cold hands on my wrists became more noticeable, my head cleared up.

I blinked several times and let out a loud breath of air. I could feel my heart pounding in my chest as my father released my wrists and offered me his hand, which I gratefully took. Carlisle lifted me up with ease and helped me back to my seat, rubbing my back until my senses returned to me fully. I rested my face in my palms, sighing once again.

I was vaguely aware of Carlisle disposing of the piece of paper as he had before, the smell of fire hitting my nostrils for a few seconds before I could smell nothing save for the honey-flavored scent that always hovered in Carlisle's office. I looked up, feeling better now, and saw Carlisle scribbling down some words down on his notepad. Once he had finished, he glanced up at me.

"Feeling better?" he asked, genuine concern etched into his voice.

"A little bit. I'm feeling a bit fatigued," I admitted. "But I'm okay."

"That is good to know," he replied. He then cocked his head to the side. "Your eyes are black again, you know."

I blinked several times. "They are?"

He chuckled. "Actually, they're beginning to lighten now, but they were black moments ago. It would seem that your eyes darken when you deal with the thirst for blood and in cases of extreme anger, though I would hazard a guess that any form of emotion could trigger it. I have a feeling that this is temporary and it will likely stop until you change altogether, but I can't be sure. Either way, I find it interesting that your eyes change color."

"Ahem, sorry, I was getting off topic. I watched as you resisted your urges this time around. You were able to hold off for exactly one minute and thirty two seconds, which is sixty seven seconds more then you were able to do the first time around. This proves that while you can resist, it is likely incredibly difficult for you to do so. But this also shows that if you put your mind to it, just like an ordinary vampire, you can control yourself, even if it was just a little bit this time."

"Wait, so I was only able to hold off for a few more seconds?" I asked.

"You were able to control yourself for a full minute, Bella. That is exceptionally good considering that you are a human and that you are still in the basic stages of your transformation. This doesn't help me discern whether or not training yourself this way will make it easier for you when you transform fully, especially because your senses aren't as heightened as they will be when you become a vampire. I won't rule out the fact that they may be meaningless altogether, but I cannot say for certain quite yet," he explained.

I sighed, rubbing my temples. There was way too much fucking information for my brain. This is why science-y sounding stuff is my least favorite because it always gives me a damn headache, especially if it's something I want to hear about.

Info after info after info is very bad for Bella's brain. I'm amazed my head hasn't exploded yet from all the stuff I've learned and dealt with today. I do feel a little tired, I know that much, but that seems to be a bit normal for me. There's just so much to think about and worry about and take into consideration when dealing with the whole vampire thing and then I learned about werewolves existing today and yadda, yadda, yadda…

"Hey Carlisle, could I, uh, get a drink of water?" I asked.

"Of course, Bella. I'll be right back," he replied.

I was about to tell him that I would get it myself, but he vanished out of the room before I had a chance to get a word out. Seconds later he reappeared and handed me a glass of water, which I thanked him for and guzzled down happily. No sooner was I finished and the glass gone from my hand as Carlisle blurred down the stairs and back up, all of this in under a minute.

I wonder if I will be able to move that fast when I'm a vampire. That I definitely looked forward to, among the other myriad of cool things, especially the fact that I wouldn't age anymore and that I wouldn't to worry about bleeding.

"Would you like to stop for now, Bella?" Carlisle asked.

I grinned lazily. "That'd be nice, actually. My brain could use some time to recharge after everything that I've learned today."

"Understandable," he chuckled. "Is there anything in particular that you'd like to do? Rest? Eat?"

I pondered that for a moment. "Do you think we could just talk?"

"Of course!" he replied happily. He grabbed his chair from behind his desk and pulled it so that it was in front of the desk facing me before seating himself. "What would you like to talk about Bella? I'm open to any conversational topic, so long as it's what you want."

I bit my lip. There were a few things I was interested in. "How about we talk about you?"

"I'd love to," he replied with a smile.

**A/N: A filler/informational chapter, I guess you could call it. The next chapter is more of a Carlisle based one, filled with father/daughter bonding. After that? We'll just have to see what happens, won't we? Well, you will, because I already know. Hee hee hee.**

**Also, I thought that I should announce that I am beginning a new story. No, it won't deter the updates to this one, I promise. Yes, it is Bellice. As far as what it's about, you will have to wait and see, won't you? Don't expect it to be posted any time soon, since I'm aiming to get the first six to seven chapters finished before I decide to publish it. I figured I'd get some people in on it to pique their interest. Otherwise, cheers!**


	43. Carlisle

**Disclaimer: I take no claim for Twilight or it's characters. They are all (sadly) Meyer's. I do take credit for all OCs, any of my ideas and, well, writing this.**

**Carlisle**

Carlisle leaned back into his chair, palms pressed together as he stared fondly at the walls surrounding him. He seemed to be deep in thought, so I didn't say anything right off the bat, more than comfortable with the silence between us. It was pretty damn hard to feel awkward around Carlisle, that much was obvious. There was this compelling air about him that made it virtually impossible to feel awkward, truth be told.

"Where to begin?" he wondered. "Ah!" He turned his golden eyes to me. "I have yet to tell you about how it was that I was transformed, have I?"

I shook my head. "You told me a little bit about it, yes, but I don't think I got the full details."

"Then I shall start there." He paused to clear his throat, which I still found humorous since it wasn't something he needed to do. I guessed he was doing it for dramatic effect or because it made him appear more human.

"Well, I've told you before that I was born in England and that my father Mathias was an Anglican pastor. He had been raised strictly by his parents and their teachings carried on with him when he married his wife Eleanor, my mother, who also shared similar beliefs. Because of that, I was raised to think that anyone could very well be a witch in disguise, at least until I was old enough to formulate my own opinion."

"My father was not the kindest man, I'll admit. He often took his duties as a pastor far too seriously; the point where he would obsess with hunting witches, vampires and the like. He considered himself to be a messenger of God, but many people, my mother and I included, knew much better than that. No one ever said anything, though, because he was the leader of the other pastors and doing so would make him turn against you in an instant. My mother died when I was seven years old from being sick. My father had refused to get her treatment because he deemed that doing so would make him a hypocrite because he considered doctors witches."

Carlisle sighed. "My mother's death was sudden and it tore him apart on the inside, making him even more fanatical. He thought that the devil had killed his wife and increased the searches, even going so far as to killing innocent people just because they dressed or looked differently. I was ashamed of him, but there was little I could do save for follow in his footsteps. I vowed to be just and intelligent about it when the time came, though."

"I've explained to you how I initially felt about being a vampire, attempting to end my life any way I could think of, but failing each time. When I discovered that not only could I feed from animals but that I could use my transformation to help others, I was slowly starting to like what I had become and the new life that I ended up creating for myself."

"I have seen and experienced a lot. Prior to Esme, I once had a relationship with a human woman, for example. She had darker skin and very fine hair and beautiful eyes. We met one night while I was out buying myself some new clothes and we struck a good conversation that turned into a friendship. However, despite the fact that I had wanted to be more than just friends, I was too fearful that I would hurt her by accident, so I was forced to disappear. I left her a letter apologizing with a rose inside, begging for her forgiveness and telling her that I wished things could have been more between us."

"That's sad," I murmured, giving him a sympathetic look. "What happened to her?"

"She ended up marrying someone three years later. I returned around that time, merely curious as to what had become of her. She was happily married and even had several kids, which made me feel good, because while I had left her, she had something that she would have never had if she had stayed with me. It was a depressing thought, but I pushed it aside and continued to travel around, learning new things about the world around me and myself, too."

"You asked me once before if I had ever experienced any sort of interesting cases while I served as a doctor. I have had various times when my patient had an extra limb or a medical anomaly or diseases that no one had ever seen before. I'll admit, I never developed any cures for any diseases, but I did work alongside several people who did. I came close to developing a cure at one point in time, yet I decided to give it to someone else. I didn't want to take credit for anything because I knew what would happen in the end if I did."

"I have had several tragic scenarios occur, unfortunately. One in particular is when I was treating a young girl one hundred years ago. She was a tiny thing, but incredibly brave and sweet. I was treating her for what I thought was a disease, only to discover that the doctor that had admitted her had written the wrong disease down. Ultimately, the poor girl died because I had given her the wrong medicine and it haunted me for years afterwards. I vowed that I would never have another patient die under my watch again, and since then, none have died."

I smiled at him. "That's because you're an excellent doctor."

He smiled back. "Thank you, dear. I do try my best."

"Have you ever met any famous people?" I inquired.

"Why yes, I have actually. I received quite a handful of autographs from many famous individuals over the years, all of which I still keep. I keep them in our attic along with all the other prized possessions that I and the others have. I'd doubt you know of many, but you are free to look at them whenever you choose. I will gladly show you where I keep my things later today, in fact, if that is what you want," he offered.

"I'd like that, thank you," I replied. "Do you have any regrets?"

He paused and took in an unneeded breath. "Yes and no. I do regret making some decisions that I made in the past, whether they were big or small. I regret all of the lives lost because of me in some way, shape or form and I regret any pain that I may have caused in the past. If, however, you are referring to whether I regret becoming what I am, I must say that I do not."

"I am happy with how my life turned out, despite the various ups and downs. I have found my soulmate in Esme, which I would have never been able to do had I not changed and I have seven wonderful children that, while you might not be my own, I love each of you the same as if you had been. So no, I do not regret becoming a vampire and I don't regret changing Edward, Esme, Rosalie and Emmett when I did. I only changed them because I saw no other way of saving their lives and because I had a feeling that things would work out for them, which they did."

"Was it hard at first when you changed them?" I inquired.

He pursed his lips, likely recalling the experiences from the past.

"Yes. When I changed Edward, tearing away from his neck was one of the most difficult things I had ever done. It caused me a great deal of pain just getting myself away, even more so from going back to finish the job. It was less difficult when I changed Esme and it was barely any trouble when I changed Rosalie, however. The more I practiced it, the stronger my will became and the less pain it caused me. Most vampires wouldn't naturally be able to do such a thing, in my opinion. It takes centuries for them to learn how to control their thirsts and centuries more for them to be able to stop from feeding."

"Do you think that anyone else in the family would be able to do what you did? To stop from feeding off of a human once they started?" I asked.

He considered this for a few seconds before nodding. "Yes, I do. I have faith that Esme has the capability of stopping from feeding, for one thing. It would likely be as painful for her as it was for me when I first did it, but I know that she could do it. As for the others, I feel that the one after Esme with the most potential would have to be Emmett. It would be a struggle for him, more so than for Esme, yet I know that Emmett would stop himself one way or the other. He always took the incidents he had the hardest out of any of our children, so he would be the least likeliest to give into his cravings."

"What about Alice?" I asked.

"Alice, in my eyes, is like Edward and Rosalie. They all have the capability to do it, but none of them believe in themselves enough, Edward especially. They all have poor opinions of their ability to maintain control, even if Esme and I think differently. And as for Jasper and Amara, they are still learning to deal with their control. In a few more years, I believe all of them will achieve the level that they are desperately seeking to get at."

"I see," I said, frowning. Did Alice really think so poorly of herself? She'd been doing an amazing job around me for the past week or so, ever since that one accident. I'd have to bring that up with her sometime when we were alone with one another.

Carlisle crossed one leg over the other as he thought to himself. "Is there anything else that you would like to ask me?"

I mulled over other questions that I had concerning vampires and found one that I had been itching to ask about for a while. But before I got to that, there was one other thing that I needed to know about.

"Do you think the werewolves will be a problem?" I asked.

He pursed his lips, switching the leg that had been crossed over for the other one.

"I am unsure, to tell you the truth. They hold a strong resentment towards us due to things in the past and because of their own unfortunate bias against our kind. It depends a great deal on how the Council sees it, as well as the two Alphas of the pack. Should things become too strenuous, we will be forced to leave Forks behind and find a new home, something that I know that the others will not take kindly too."

I sighed. "It's my fault that they know."

Carlisle touched my shoulder and gave it a gentle squeeze. The soreness that I had been experiencing before because of Jacob was still there, but it wasn't as noticeable now. I looked up to see his eyes full of kindness and warmth.

"Bella, you are not the one to blame for your actions. We should have informed you of what they were before you went, or perhaps we should not have let you go at all. But I did not feel that the latter would be right, because you had the right to do as you please. What happened is not your fault, though, so please do not blame yourself for it."

I bit my lip and nodded sheepishly. "Okay."

He removed his hand from my shoulder and placed both palms together. "Anything else?"

Now was the time for the big question that I'd wanted to know about.

"How is it that vampires acquire their gifts?"

Carlisle smiled. "That is an excellent question, Bella, one that I have wondered about for many, many years. In truth, no one knows how it is that some vampires come to bear powers that others do not. I have asked many vampires, including some that have lived for centuries, and even they have never been able to give me a full answer. For that reason, I find it best to create your own belief, because I do not think that we will ever know for certain."

I frowned, not liking that, but shrugged it off. "What do you think?"

Carlisle gave me a thoughtful glance. "In my opinion, I believe that we take with us the most prominent traits, skills and characteristics from our lives as humans. Those traits and abilities are heightened even more when we change, in my opinion, and that is how certain vampires come to acquire their gifts. For the vampires that don't have gifts, they still gain something when they change, it just might not be as noteworthy."

"What do you mean?"

Carlisle started to walk around, eyes scanning his walls as he did. He did this for about a minute before stopping and returning his placid eyes to me.

"Let's take Emmett, for instance," Carlisle said. "He does not possess a gift like several of his siblings do. He can't predict the future or read minds, but in truth, he doesn't need to. You see, Emmett brought with him his strength, his durability and his will to protect everyone in this family from harm. I think that his will to protect others and keep them safe is one of his greatest gifts, along with his natural drive to make others happy."

I smiled when I pictured Emmett, the usual goofy grin on his face, offsetting his naturally threatening appearance. Emmett looked like a bear, truth be told, but with dimples that big and a smile that cheeky, there was no mistaking that he was definitely more of a gentle giant then anything, not that he wasn't fearsome or terrifying when he needed to be.

Carlisle, as if reading my mind, chuckled. "He grew up with many siblings in his human life and because he lost them when he changed, you and the others are their replacements in his eyes. He may be a clown on the outside, but he loves you all deeply and would do anything to protect each and every one of you. That is his greatest strength. We each have our own unique strengths, Bella; even the four with gifts have a much more important strength."

I smiled and put my left leg over my right, resting my chin on the palm of my left hand.

"What do you think the others took with them?" I asked inquisitively.

He pursed his lips and looked up to the ceiling, mulling over the details before responding.

"Very well then, I will give my honest opinion. I'll start with Edward. In my opinion, Edward brought with him his thoughtfulness. He's always willing to look at things in more than one perspective, something that he had when he was still human. Not only that, but I also think that he brought his intellect with him because he is a very sensible individual and he knows how to think on his feet. I believe that it is his intellect and his intuition that helped form the gift of reading the minds of others when he was changed."

Carlisle walked back to the front of his desk, casually leaning against it.

"My sweet Esme brought her ability to love unconditionally with her when she changed. She was always a giving woman, but fate was cruel to her in her human life. Now, though, she has everything that she's always wanted and she loves every bit of it. It isn't just Esme's ability to love, but her ability to be loved by others and the warmth that she generates within you whenever she speaks or looks at you. She can make anyone happy just by smiling and in my mind; Esme could charm two warring nations into coexisting. She is just that naturally loving and kind that it would be a sin to ever neglect that love."

I thought it was sweet of Carlisle to say such a thing and I agreed with him. You would have to be the cruelest or stupidest piece of shit alive to ever say something cruel or unkind to someone as sweet and loving as Esme. She was too good a person for that and anyone who disagreed deserved to have their skull kicked in.

"I think that Rosalie brought her tenacity with her and her stubbornness, which can be a good thing, surprisingly enough. She's a tad thickheaded at times, but she does mean well. She also brought her beauty with her, because as you can see, she is one of the most beautiful young women in this world. She was considerably beautiful as a human, too, for that matter, though if you want to know more about that, you will need to ask her about it. Then there's her, um…"

"Vanity?" I offered, giggling as I did.

Carlisle snickered. "Yes, that would be the right word. I'll admit, her vainness can be a little overwhelming at times, but she has a level of inner beauty that I think she doesn't see. She thinks of herself as a beautiful husk, Bella, and cannot see what it is that the rest of us do inside of her. That is just the kind of person she is, she holds herself in a negative light, much like Edward does because of his past mistakes and his natural depression. I believe that Rosalie's greatest gift is her passion and her ability to understand and sympathize with people. She might not show it much, but she has a very tender heart, it's just that she has hardened her heart."

"For Amara, her perseverance and her will to never give up are two of her strongest qualities. She is the kind of person who doesn't give in easily and whenever she does something, she always makes sure to do it thoroughly and as good as she can. Perhaps you could say that Amara is a bit of a perfectionist, but I do know that her heart is always in what she does and that she means well, no matter what someone else thinks. She is strong in both mind and body and brought her ability to defend herself and others from harm with her, too."

"Jasper took his gentleness, his politeness, his intellect and his own natural ability to soothe others with him. Even if he didn't have his gift, I believe that it would be hard to ever stay mad at Jasper. He is a very calm, calculative individual and he always knows how to soothe people with words alone, something that I think he took with him from his human life. His intelligence is also quite high, both in forming strategies and in thinking with both his head and his heart. He is also a very kind hearted individual, the type of person who can't stand to see injustice or suffering of any kind, also traits that he took into his new life."

"You know, I always thought of Jasper as being the result of what would have happened if you and Esme had been humans and gotten married. He's got a little of both of you in him with the way he acts, talks and thinks," I stated.

Carlisle smiled. "Thank you, Bella. That's very kind of you to say."

"You're welcome," I replied. "So what about Alice?"

He chuckled. "Ah, yes, Alice. It's safe to say that she brought her grace with her, because I have never met a more graceful individual in all my years. I've noticed how you watch her when she moves and I understand completely why you do. It's rather captivating, isn't it?"

I nodded. "It's like she's gliding across the ground. It's so beautiful and, I guess poetic just watching her move back and forth."

"Indeed it is. If there's one trait about Alice other than her grace and speed that makes her stand out, it's her joy. Alice is without a doubt the one individual who can bring a smile to anyone's face in an instant and she's constantly radiating with happiness. In fact, it's nearly impossible not to be happy whenever she's happy. Her joy is contagious and that is a good thing. Alice is also a very affectionate individual and her will to keep those she loves safe is another of her strongest qualities, one that she shows in particular for you, Bella."

"That's what she tells me, yeah," I murmured.

"Yes, I find that it's one of her defining qualities, of which there are many in each of us."

"What about you, Carlisle? What do you feel that you brought with you?" I asked.

He seemed surprised by the question and thought about it, furrowing his brow as he did.

"In truth, I've never really considered what it is that I brought with me. I suppose my love of learning is something that I brought, because I was always fond of reading and learning as much as I could when I was still human. I'd like to think that I also brought my compassion with me, because I have always felt that people should be treated equally and that cruelty and violence do not solve every problem, despite what most others think," he replied.

"And your defining detail?" I asked.

Carlisle chuckled and shrugged nonchalantly. "I see my defining detail as being that I am a man of peace and the kind of person who can quell an argument with words alone. It's true that sometimes action speaks louder than words, but I've never been one to eliminate using words alone to solve a crisis. That's just how I see it, though. I might be wrong."

"I don't think so," I disagreed. "I think that's all true."

He smiled appreciatively at me. "Thank you, Bella. That's kind of you to say. However, you seem to have forgotten to ask about someone."

I cocked my head to the side, puzzled. "Who?"

Carlisle shook his head and laughed. "You, of course." I blushed and ducked my head, tapping my fingers together. Me? I wasn't even a vampire yet, so how could he talk about what I brought with me. Carlisle seemed to know where my mind had wandered to, because I felt his hand on my shoulder.

"I realize that you have yet to change, yes, but Alice, Esme and I have been speculating on how you will be when you change. Esme believes that you will be strong, agile and that your ability to bond with others will be one of your greatest strengths. Alice believes that your beauty will be brought with you, as will your passion, your kindness and your uniqueness."

I blushed an even deeper shade of red. "She…she said all that?"

Carlisle chuckled again. "She said many things, actually. I merely told you a small number. If you'd like to know the full list, you'll have to ask her."

"Oh," I ran my hands through my hair to the back and my neck and rubbed it. "What do you think I will bring with me?"

He leaned into his chair once more and tapped his chin with his index fingers.

"In my opinion, you will discover a great deal about yourself that you may not already know about, including things that you may be aware of, you just don't believe that they are true. I cannot say for certain as to how you will fare when you become a vampire, because everyone experiences the change differently. There's also the thought that you may have a gift when you change, which I think would be plausible. I would have to agree with what my wife and Alice have said about what they feel you will take with you."

Something in the back of my mind was screaming at me, causing me to frown. That's when I realized that I had yet to bring up what I had wanted to talk with Carlisle about, one of the reasons why I wanted Alice to leave so that I could have a private moment with him. It wasn't just that I wanted to spend some quality time with my father and do the tests, I wanted to ask him about the weird things that had happened on several occasions.

I think…I think I might have a gift or something.

"Carlisle?"

Carlisle, who had been muttering to himself as he scribbled down some notes, turned and looked at me intently.

"Yes, Bella?"

"Is it possible for a human to develop a gift?" I asked.

Carlisle cocked his head to the side, appraising me with intrigue. "I have heard of some cases in the past, yes. It is a rarity for that to occur, though. Why do you ask?"

I bit my lip tentatively. "Um, well…" How do I say this? "I, think I may have a gift."

Carlisle blinked in surprise. "You do?"

I nodded. "Well, maybe. I don't know for certain. It's just that, for the past week there have been several occasions where the same thing has happened and I can't think of any other explanation as to how it keeps happening."

His eyes narrowed, an inquisitive look forming. "May I ask what it is that keeps happening?"

"Well, there have been several occasions where there was someone near me, harassing me I guess you could say, and then seconds later they're flying backwards. It's like something is pushing them back, like an invisible force or something. I dunno, I can't think of any other way to describe it and I don't think I could replicate it anytime soon."

"I see," he replied, clearly more curious then anything. "Describe to me when this happened."

I thought back. "The first time was when James and Victoria reappeared, when Alice and I were in the forest together. James got close to me and then he went backwards, but it wasn't all that far that time. The second time was when I was at school in the locker room being attacked by Lauren and all her friends. They flew backwards when they ganged up on me. The third time was earlier today when I was at La Push. Jacob grabbed onto me and I got upset, then the next thing I know he's thrown off of me."

He clasped his hands together and rested his chin on them, appraising me thoughtfully.

"How very interesting," he mused quietly. "Hm. I'm not one hundred percent certain, but I do believe you may be right. There isn't much I can say since you don't know yourself what "How very interesting," he mused quietly.

"Who?" I asked.

"His name is Eleazar Denali, one of members of the Denali Coven living in Alaska. His gift allows for him to identify the gifts of other vampires, as well as identifying the weakness to those gifts and how he can best defend against them. But he can also identify potential gifts in humans, though the process is harder for him. But if ever there was anyone who could tell you, it would be him," Carlisle explained.

"I remember someone mentioning, Edward I think, that they might come visit soon?"

"Ah, yes. I haven't spoken to their leader Tanya for a few years now, so it would be a perfect opportunity not only for us to catch up, but for you to meet her and her family. They're a very good bunch, I'd say, all unique in their own way and they abide by our lifestyle, which would make things much easier for you."

"Alright, that sounds cool," I said, smiling a little.

"I appreciate you telling me this, Bella. It gives me much to think about indeed. Is that what you wanted to discuss with me in private?"

I nodded. "Yeah, it is. I wasn't sure about it myself, so I wanted to bring it up with you before I said anything about it to anyone else, you know? There's no sense in getting excited if it's just a fluke or something like that."

"I understand completely. And again, thank you for telling me, though I'm certain Alice would be excited to know about this."

I shrugged. "I might tell her, I'm just not sure if it would be relevant to talk about."

"My dear, anything you have to say would be relevant to Alice," Carlisle chuckled. "Oh my, I just recalled something. I have been meaning to give this to you for a while, but because of recent events I had to put it on hold. Now, however, would seem like a good time."

I gave him an incredulous look as he stood up and blurred over to his desk. He pulled a small box out of the bottom drawer and walked over to me before handing me the box. I took it and looked at it for a moment, curious as to what was inside. With a shrug, I opened the box and removed the tissue paper inside until I found the contents of it. I gasped.

"What…" I pulled out a bracelet with an odd crest on it. "What is this?"

"That, Bella, is a gift from me to you, a representation that you are a member of this family. The crest you see on the bracelet is our family crest, something that I designed many, many years ago while I was traveling the world. It is a symbol of pride, strength, love and passion and is my personal gift to you, my daughter."

I blinked back several tears and slipped the bracelet onto my left wrist. It fit perfectly.

"Thank you, Carlisle. I don't know what to say…"

Carlisle gave me a warm smile. "You don't have to say anything, Bella. Your thanks is generous, but in reality, having you as a part of this family is more than enough for me. Would you like to know something interesting? Esme once told me that she had always wanted to have children when she was a human. One of her ideal children was a girl with a heart-shaped face, dark brown hair and beautiful brown eyes, just like you, Bella."

I felt several tears starting to form in the back of my eyes as I reached over and hugged him, which he happily returned. I silently cursed myself for being so overly emotional, but I could feel the love radiating off of Carlisle, so it was hard not to be.

Once I pulled away, I glanced down at the bracelet now adorning my rest, gently touching the crest with my finger. It was smooth and the crest looked brand new, which made me think that Carlisle had just gotten it made. Part of me wondered if it had been expensive, but I pushed those thoughts aside because they were ruining the moment.

"Do you like it?" Carlisle asked. "I can happily have it changed if you'd like. Alice was the one who suggested that I get it made into a bracelet, but if you would like a necklace, I'd be more than happy to exchange them."

I shook my head. "No, I love it. Besides," I paused and gently lifted up the necklace that Alice had given to me, which I had yet to remove. "I already have a necklace, so a bracelet works. And thank you, this is…just, wow. It's great."

"I'm glad you like it, Bella."

Staring down at the bracelet made me realize how much being a Cullen truly meant to me, how much I meant to Carlisle, to Esme, to Alice and how much each of them and the others all meant to me. They were my family, my friends and so much more.

"Carlisle, I think I want to give that blood test one more try," I said.

He nodded. "If you wish to, then certainly."

I wasn't sure if I was being stupid or smart by repeating the test. If anything, I'd end up losing control over myself even faster than I had the last time. I really hoped that that wouldn't be the case, because I wanted to make Carlisle proud. Well, prouder, I should say, since it was obvious that he was proud of me, for reasons I didn't understand.

Carlisle had already gotten a new sheet of paper and that same vial of blood, preparing to open it.

"Ready?" he asked. I nodded tersely. He smiled once before opening the vial and smearing more of the blood onto the piece of paper.

I closed my eyes and took in a deep breath, doing the best I could to keep myself calm. The scent of the blood hit me as strongly as it always did, causing my eyes to water as I struggled to stay in one place. I hadn't even realized that I was standing and shaking, but I refused to move.

_Stay in control, stay in control…stay…God, the blood smells so damn good…ugh…fuck._

I snapped, unable to take it anymore and once more I lunged. This time, however, my body anticipated that Carlisle would move to stop me, suddenly swerving to the left without me even realizing it. This, however, proved to be a very bad idea because I slipped on the floor, causing me to topple forward and slam my head against Carlisle's desk, Carlisle getting there seconds too late as I fell to the floor, everything fading to black.

When my consciousness started slowly returning to me, I heard voices speaking and felt a pair of cool arms wrapped around me. My body instantly moved further into those familiar arms as the sweet scent of Alice filled my nostrils. I fluttered my eyes open and saw Alice staring back at me, those honey orbs showering me with love and concern. Once my eyes were open, her face visibly relaxed with relief.

"Oh, Bella," she breathed, pulling me into her and nuzzling my forehead. "Are you okay?"

I felt a pang of pain in my forehead, but nodded. "Yeah, I'm fine. Just a bit sore is all." I blinked and found that I was still lying on the floor of Carlisle's office. Carlisle and Esme were in the room, looking down at me with concern. "What happened?"

Carlisle sighed. "You tripped and hit your head on my desk," he replied.

I tried to sit up, but Alice wouldn't let me. Instead she scooped me into her arms and placed me on her lap. I didn't mind in the least, wrapping my arms around her and nuzzling into the crook of her neck like I always did. I felt her left hand begin to gently stroke the back of my head while her right was placed on my back.

"Are you sure you're okay?" Alice asked, kissing my neck. She trailed her lips up and down my neck, going up to my cheek and kissing it several times in a row. I smiled against her and kissed her icy neck in return.

"I'm fine, Alice. Thank you."

Alice pouted before her face contorted into an angry grimace that she shot at her father.

"Damn it, Carlisle! She could have hurt herself _worse_ thanks to your stupid tests! And just look at how tired she is! What the _hell_ were you doing to her?" Alice snarled, baring her teeth at him.

I was shocked that she would ever take that tone of voice with Carlisle. Esme looked mildly surprised herself, but Carlisle remained placid.

"I'm sorry, Alice," he said sincerely. "It was not my intention for her to come to any harm; I can assure you of that. It was merely an accident and I promise it won't happen again."

"You're damn right it won't," she hissed. "No more tests without me being here, period."

"Understood, Alice," Carlisle replied.

Esme sighed. "Honey, please try to calm yourself. I don't quite appreciate you taking that tone of voice with your father."

Alice grumbled something under her breath and stood up with me still in her arms.

"I can walk, Alice," I murmured into her shoulder.

"Tough. You're not going to," she replied, pulling me closer into her. She turned idly towards Carlisle and bowed her head. "I'm sorry, Carlisle. I shouldn't have snapped at you."

"It's alright, Alice. I understand. I am sorry that Bella was hurt."

She sighed and kissed my cheek. "Come on, love. Let's get you some food. After all, once you're fully awake we need to start discussing what we're going to do about tomorrow."

I frowned as she slowly carried me out of Carlisle's office. "Tomorrow?"

"Well, yeah. Tomorrow's Monday, remember? School?"

I grimaced. Fucking school.

**A/N: School indeed. Such a pain. I'll be going back soon myself. Yeah, it's not cool and it might cut down the amount of time I get to write each day (maybe). But unless Hell freezes over, I'll still be able to post chapters at the same rate that I have been for a while. So there's no need to worry.**

**Anyways, review if you wish. I said I'd put some father/daughter bonding and I meant what I said. Good stuff.**


	44. Mistake

**Disclaimer: I take no...you know what, you know what I'm going to say. Stupid disclaimers.**

**Mistake**

Alice gently placed me onto her bed, sitting next to me as I slumped downwards and rested my head on my pillow. Alice giggled and plopped down next to me, laying on her side as she snaked her arms around me. I smiled and cuddled into her, resting my head beneath her chin. She kissed the top of my head, letting her lips linger for a minute before pulling them away.

"Love you," she murmured.

"Love you too," I replied, snuggling as close to her as I could.

We laid in silence for a few minutes just enjoying each other's company. After a few minutes, though, Alice sighed and kissed my forehead again before situating herself so that she was facing me, gold eyes boring into mine.

"Bella, we need to talk about this upcoming week."

I grimaced. "Do we have to?"

She gave me a small smile. "Yes, we have to. The fact of the matter is, it's going to be sunny and we won't be able to go to school. I've been talking with Carlisle and Esme on what we were planning to do concerning you and going to school, however, I've decided that I don't want you to go, Bella. With this vampire nearing the area, it would be far too dangerous for you to leave this area, let alone this house."

"So then I'll stay home with you?" I asked.

Alice bit her lip and sighed. "Unfortunately, I…" She hesitated and looked at me sadly. "I won't be able to spend too much time with you. I need to keep my visions centered on the other vampires' movements in order to know where they are and when they'll be here. Carlisle thinks it would be best that we all keep constant watch on the area around our house. You won't be alone, though, Bella. I refuse to leave you by yourself."

"I see," I murmured.

Alice cupped my cheeks. "Oh, Bella, you have no idea how badly I want to do nothing but cuddle with you, but I can't. I can't afford to be distracted, especially where your safety is concerned. The sun will be lasting for most of the week, but once it becomes cloudy again I promise I'll make it up to you somehow, you have my vow of that."

I nodded in understanding. "Alright, that makes sense. What excuse are you gonna use for me not being at school, though?"

"The same excuse we always use. We're going hiking and you're going with us, of course. You are a part of this family, so it would be a little odd if you went to school and we weren't there, not to mention how horrid I would feel without you around me. Plus people might start talking, and we can't have that either."

"That makes sense. So, how will this work, exactly?" I inquired.

"Basically, we would all take shifts running the perimeter around our house and the surrounding areas. We would go out a little further then necessary because Carlisle and Esme don't want any innocent humans to die, at least not if we can help it. But as I said, our main concern is our own territory, especially since that's where you're at."

"So you'll all be guarding everywhere at once?"

Alice smiled. "Not exactly. Esme thought it best that we divide ourselves up. Other than whoever it is that will be guarding you, Jasper and Amara; we'll work in pairs, each pair patrolling their assigned location. We'll need breaks for hunting and I will of course be coming back to check on you, because there's no way in hell I can stay away from you for too long."

I furrowed my brow. "Why would Amara and Jasper be working alone?"

"Jasper and Amara are our best fighters, remember? Jasper has handled newborns in the past, so he would be the best person to face the newborn should she prove to be hostile. Plus, he can always use his gift to calm her down in order to question her. Amara is even more skilled then he is, but she isn't as accustomed to fighting newborns. But with her ability and, if necessary, her gift, she could easily defeat a single newborn without any trouble. They work well together, it's true, but Jasper decided that it would be best that they split up to cover more ground."

"Have you decided whose going to be watching over me?"

"You mean have I thought on who your baby sitter will be?"

"Ha ha, very funny," I deadpanned.

She giggled and kissed me. "Well, it will most likely be Rosalie, Esme or Edward. For now, we need Jasper and Amara out in the field, as much as they wanted to spend some time with you. Emmett wants to be in the action, so he's out, and I need to be able to keep a watchful eye on my visions, since I wouldn't be able to if I were with you."

"And what's that supposed to mean?" I asked, taking a mock offended tone.

"You're too distracting," she replied, rubbing our noses together. "I can't work and be with you at the same time, you should know this by now. I may be great, but I'm not _that _amazing. Well, okay, I am, but it's harder for me.

I stuck my tongue out at her. "It's not my fault you can't multitask, my arrogant little pixie."

Alice smiled and shrugged. "Hey, I can't help myself. And just who do you think you're calling "arrogant", klutzy girl?"

I narrowed my eyes. "Klutzy girl? Really? That's the best you can come up with?"

Alice pulled her arms away from me and crossed them petulantly. "Shut up!"

I rolled my eyes at her childishness, but calmed myself quickly. "Alice?"

"Yes?" She didn't fully look at me, still playing off of her dramatic outburst. The childishness lessened when she saw the serious look on my face, her arms uncrossing as she faced me once more, eyes locking with mine.

"Promise me that you'll be careful, okay?"

Alice blinked in surprise momentarily before she extended her arms and placed her hands on my cheeks. Her face became gentle as she began to tenderly rub my cheeks with her thumbs.

"I will, Bella. I promise. You don't have to worry about me, though. I'll be fine."

"I know that. I just…I worry. The nightmares I have sometimes, about you and the others…being hurt, they're-"

Alice cut me off by gently pressing her lips to mine. I was startled for a moment, but I quickly deepened the kiss, holding it for as long as I could before I need to pull away for air. She was smiling contently as she re-wrapped her arms around me, pulling me close. I sighed and snuggled into her, letting her sweet scent wash away all of my worries.

"Don't worry about me, Bella. I promise you that I will be fine, that the others will be fine and that you will be fine. We'll be careful. We've dealt with this sort of thing before, Bella, don't forget that. I've been in many fights in the past. I've won most and lost a few, so I know what to expect if things become heated. But please, you really shouldn't be too concerned," she said, her golden eyes swirling with meaning and love.

"I…okay, I'll try not to," I murmured.

"Good. Otherwise I'd have to tickle you mercilessly," she warned, a hint of mirth in her eyes.

I blanched at that and silently nodded. Alice laughed at my expression and suddenly I was on my back, Alice hovering over me with a malicious smirk on her face. I bit my lip and squirmed around, trying to free myself from her grip. No such luck. I closed my eyes, fearing that Alice would start tickling me, but was relieved when she merely giggled and leaned in to capture my lips before rolling off of me.

"Gotcha," she giggled. "But the next time you start getting all worried, I _will_ tickle you."

"You don't even know where I'm ticklish at!" I puffed, regretting my words seconds later when I saw that malicious smirk reappear.

"Is that so?" she asked, lifting an eyebrow.

I didn't get a chance to respond because her icy fingertips started tenderly stroking the sole of my right foot. I bit my lip, squirming like mad as I struggled to keep the laughter from coming out, but that only made Alice smile wider as she started tickling my left foot as well. It was too much and I was instantly howling with laughter, thrashing wildly as I struggled feebly to free myself. Alice sneered with pleasure as the tears started to form in my eyes, my throat starting to get sore from laughing so loudly.

Eventually she stopped and I was given the chance to catch my breath. I noticed that Alice's eyes were darker as she leaned away from me, but I paid no mind to it as I stuffed my legs under the covers and calmed myself down.

"I hate you…" I grumbled.

She grinned and stuck her tongue out at me, re-situating herself so that we were in the same position as before without a word.

"No you don't. You love me. You just hate being tickled," she replied.

I snorted. "It'd be easier if I could get you back."

Alice fluttered her eyelashes innocently. "Now why would you want to do that to little old me? I would never-"

Alice stopped instantly, her eyes glazing over as a vision hit her. I turned so I was on my side as I watched her, silently waiting for her to come out of her vision. When she did, her eyes were wide, fright etched into them. That worried me.

"What'd you see?" I asked, concerned by the look on her face.

Alice grimaced. "I…I lost sight of her," she breathed.

I blinked. "What?"

Alice looked up, her horror-filled eyes staring back into mine.

"I lost sight of the newborn. She was moving and she just disappeared. My vision started becoming blurry and then "poof", she was gone. I don't know what happened, but I can't see her anymore, not at all. I don't understand…"

Alice jumped off the bed and started to pace around our room. I sat up, not knowing what to do or say to comfort her. Was there a point to comforting her, though? She couldn't see the newborn and that wasn't a good thing for any of us. Alice ran her fingers through her hair, lightly pulling on the strands of ink-black spikes as she stopped in the middle of the room, head bowed.

"Damn it," she cursed.

In seconds the others filed into the room, Esme was the first, Emmett the last. I felt a little awkward being in bed while they were all standing, but I didn't say anything on it. Esme, as if sensing this, came and sat next to me, pulling me into her lap. I made no move to resist and wrapped my arms around her, enjoying the feeling of my mother's arms around me.

"Alice, what happened?" Carlisle asked, concernedly.

"I lost sight of her," she repeated. Had they not heard?

"We just got back from hunting," Edward said softly to answer my question. "And she's right, her vision just started fading in and out before she lost complete sight."

"What does this mean?" Esme asked, clearly concerned.

"Didn't you say that the wolf territory distorted her visions?" Jasper inquired, looking to Carlisle.

Carlisle nodded. "Yes, that's true."

I gulped. "That must mean…"

"She's already here in Forks," Rosalie finished. "Shit."

"So? That just makes it easier for us to go and kick her ass," Emmett boomed, pounding his fists together.

"It's not that simple, Emmett," Carlisle stated. "For all we know, the wolves have already taken care of her. And even if they haven't, we don't know her exact location."

Alice looked like she was about to say something when her eyes fogged up again as she hung her head, pressing her hands against her head in silence.

"Alice…?" I asked, worried. She didn't answer me, so I looked to Edward instead.

Edward frowned. "It's the vampire," he replied. "She can see her, but it keeps fading in and out."

"Maybe she isn't on wolf territory?" Amara suggested. The others, myself included, turned to look at her. Amara shrugged. "Well, Alice can't see snap decisions, right? And newborns have a tendency of making snap decisions, right? So maybe she keeps changing her mind so much that it's causing Alice to lose sight of her, then. Wouldn't that make more sense? If she were on the dogs' land, they would know it and she wouldn't have seen the vampire to begin with."

"Amara makes a good point," Esme murmured, hugging me closer to her. "However, that doesn't mean that she's any less close to Forks. Alice, do you have any idea where she is right now? Is she here or closer to being here?"

Alice snapped out of her vision state and shook her head. "I don't know for certain, Esme. I think that she's relatively close, but like Amara said, she keeps changing her mind to the point where I can't pinpoint her location. I can see that she's surrounded by trees and nearing houses, but aside from that, I don't know."

"This means we'll have to be on our guard tomorrow," Carlisle stated firmly. "Even more so then intended. We cannot let her pass us by. The risk is too great, not only for our family but for everyone else in Forks."

"One newborn is enough to take out an entire town," Jasper said. "It might be best that we expand our patrols outwards more then we planned. I also think that we need some more help. A newborn wouldn't naturally be foolhardy enough to attack an entire coven, but with us separated and the likelihood of those other two appearing, they may try and outmaneuver us before they strike, which wouldn't bode well for any of us."

Edward scowled. "I'm not sure that would be a good idea, Jasper." He was likely referring to something Jasper was thinking.

Jasper sighed and ran a hand through his hair. "I know of the risks involved, Edward, but what good would it bring us if they managed to get past our defenses somehow?"

"That may be true, but there are other options," Edward disagreed. He turned to Amara. "Do you think you could contact Arthur and Sophie? Are they near enough to come and lend us a hand in case we need them?"

"Probably. I can go give them a call in a few to see where they are," she replied.

"So what, we're not gonna hunt this bitch down?" Emmett asked, clearly annoyed.

"Emmett, you know we can't do that. What if that's what she wants? What if this is all part of a plan that those other two came up with?" Esme asked. "They could be the ones behind this, using their knowledge of us to get us away from Bella."

Emmett started to reply, but stopped himself, slowly nodding when he realized what she meant.

"Absolutely not!" Alice roared, spinning around to glare at her blonde brother.

Jasper looked taken aback for a moment before nodding. "I know, Alice, but what if it's the only way to ensure her safety?"

"No," she growled. "I am not leaving her here defenseless, Jasper. That is_ not_ an option, do you hear me?"

"Alice," Carlisle interjected calmly.

Jasper sighed again. "Think about it, Alice. Would you try and attack someone when you knew that there was a family of vampires surrounding the area? I wouldn't, I know that. Plus, we need to take into consideration that this girl may have been around for a few months. Were she a true newborn, her actions would be wilder, not more controlled. So she does likely have enough sense in her to know to stay clear from our land."

"We'll know if she gets too close, Alice," Rosalie added.

Alice's resolve was dropping. "But…but…"

Edward spoke up. "If Bella wishes to leave the house, one of us would go with her and keep an eye on her. In fact, it might be good for Bella to be out of the house because if anything the vampire wouldn't go after her if she were in an area with multiple humans. If asked, she would just be out getting supplies for our "trip"."

"That sounds plausible enough," Carlisle mused. "Would you be the one going with her?"

"I think that would be a good idea, at least for tomorrow," Edward replied.

"I still don't like it," Alice grunted. "What if something happens to you? What if the newborn has some kind of gift that we don't know about? Then what, Edward?"

Edward rubbed his neck. "Alice, do you trust me so little?"

Alice bit her lip. "I don't know, Edward. I just…" She stopped and looked at me, her eyes swirling with concern. "I just don't want anything to happen to Bella."

"It won't if we do this right," Edward affirmed.

Alice shook her head. "Why can't I be the one to be with her?"

I didn't listen to the rest of their conversation, a wave of fatigue hitting me hard. I let out a brisk yawn, feeling Esme shift slightly. I turned to see that she was looking at me, a hint of concern on her beautiful face. She gently stroked the back of my head with her left hand as I rested my head on her shoulder. I always felt good when I was with Esme, always felt the love and warmth radiating off of her, especially whenever she hugged me.

"Are you tired, honey?" she asked quietly.

I nodded sleepily. "A little bit, yes."

"Would you like for us to leave the room so you can sleep?"

My eyes were starting to feel heavy as I shook my head. "No, that's okay. I don't want to be a burden," I whispered. "Besides, I don't mind it much."

I laid my head on Esme's left shoulder and snuggled into her. She smiled warmly at me and seemed more than happy to hold me in her arms. I yawned once more before closing my eyes, breathing Esme's vanilla-freesia scent. The voices around me had quieted down a bit so only they could hear what was being said, which I thought was nice of them. As slumber slowly started sinking in, I was vaguely aware of Esme's body moving and another pair of cool arms wrapping around me. I didn't think too much on it because I fell into a peaceful sleep, my brain trying not to think about what was to come the next day.

When I woke up, I was lying in bed, but there was no Alice. In her place was a pillow that smelled just like her. I sighed morosely and hugged the pillow, breathing in and out several times until all I could smell was her heavenly scent. After a moment I sat up, still hugging the pillow to my chest. A part of me wondered where Alice was, but I knew already that she was out with the others, likely keeping an eye on their territory.

A knock on the door jostled my thoughts. "Come in."

Edward stepped into the room, a small smile on his face. "Good morning, Bella," he greeted.

"Morning, Edward. Is everyone out guarding the area?"

Edward nodded, smirking as he did. "Yes, the others are all out. Trust me when I tell you this, though, Alice did _not _want to leave you. It took us over an hour to pry her off of you _without _waking you up, which was a feat, let me just say."

I had to laugh at that, the image of Alice growling and refusing to budge from hugging me popping into my head. Edward laughed too before clearing his throat.

"Anyways, I've made you some breakfast."

I gave him a quizzical look. "You can cook?"

Edward frowned at that, a look of mock hurt forming on his face. "Hey now, I happen to be a _very_ good cook. It's true I only learned how this morning by reading Esme's mind, but I think I've gotten it down."

I rolled my eyes and smelled the pillow one last time before setting it down and throwing my legs over the side.

"Alright, I'll eat your food, but I swear to God if I get sick from your cooking…" I let my playful threat trail off as Edward rolled his eyes.

"You won't get sick, I promise. Alice would have my head on a platter if I did, so I made sure that my cooking job was thorough. Now come on before your biscuits get cold."

"Biscuits?" I inquired, following after him as he walked down the stairs with me at a human pace.

Edward merely smiled as we walked off the stairs into the kitchen, the table full of assorted foods, biscuits included. I stared at the feast and sat down, giving him a mental thanks as I piled food onto my plate before digging in. Everything was nice, warm and surprisingly tasty. It was no Esme meal, but it wasn't half bad.

"See? I told you I wasn't a bad cook," Edward snorted.

I clutched my throat dramatically and pretended to make gasping noises, much to Edward's dismay. He looked like he was about to jump up and ask me if I was alright, but my thoughts gave me away and he scowled at me.

"That is not funny," he grumbled.

I scoffed. "Yes it was and you know it. But thank you for breakfast."

"You're welcome, I suppose," he replied humorously. He walked over and took my dishes and washed them in a matter of seconds while I plopped down on the couch, leaning my head backwards and staring at the ceiling.

"So am I going to be staying here all day?" I asked.

Edward chuckled. "No, we know you would probably be bored if you did that. I figured we could talk a little bit, if you'd like, but I'm fine with you leaving. Just know that I'll need to be with you when you leave. I'll probably follow after you, since I can't go into the sunlight, of course, but I'll never be far."

"I guess so. But where can I go? I'm supposed to be out hiking, remember?"

He shrugged. "Actually, Carlisle called the school and told them that we would be having a "family day" together, not specifically that we would be hiking. That way, you would be able to go out without fear of anyone seeing you, though I doubt it would matter in the end."

Edward sat down several inches away from me, crossing one leg over the other as he stared at nothing in particular. I considered things I could do around the house, such as playing a game or being lazy and sleeping some more. Both sounded like wonderful ideas, but I wanted to bond a bit more with Edward, since he was the one I'd spent the least amount of time with.

"What was it like in your time?" I blurted.

Edward seemed mildly surprised by the question, but shrugged it off quickly.

"It was a lot different back then, much different than how things are in today's age. In my time, a relationship such as yours and Alice's was frowned upon and ridiculed in a much different way, though truth be told, that hasn't changed much. If anything, it's gotten worse. Society as a whole has become more violent and cruel in word and action, which is a sad thing to see. It's even sadder that I've been around and watched it, and there was nothing I could do about it other than watch it pass by," he replied.

"When were you born?" I inquired. "You were Carlisle's first, correct?"

"Yes, I was. I was born in 1901, the only son of Edward Masen Sr. and his wife, Elizabeth Masen, in a time where men needed the permission of the father to kiss their girlfriends. It was a time of quietness and etiquette, not like how it is in today's world."

"Do you miss it?"

Edward leaned back, looking up to the ceiling as he answered. "I do sometimes, yes. I miss the familiarity that I had with that time period. Everything made sense to me then and I had people that I was close to. Of course, my life wasn't the easiest. Suffering from chronic depression was never something that I enjoyed and if anything it just made my life more miserable."

"I remember you mentioning that before, I think. How you suffered from depression, that is."

He nodded. "Yes, I believe so. I was depressed ever since I was young, you see. I think it started when I lost my closest friend. It hit me hard because she had been the only person I'd ever had to talk to aside from my parents. And then she was gone, just like that. I felt alone and isolated myself from the outside world, trying to alleviate my sorrow through music. Music was my release back then, just as it is now. I felt at peace when I listened to it and especially when I played it, though I wasn't very good when I was younger."

He paused for a moment and ran a hand through his hair before turning his gaze to me.

"I wasn't the kind of person who made friends easily. It was always awkward for me to meet new people and hard for me to stay in a friendship. I don't know why, I merely found myself drifting away from people. I guess the truth is that I preferred to be alone, where it was quiet and where I didn't have to deal with drama or loss. But being alone caused me pain at the same time, so I felt like I could never really find a good balance."

"And then there was the Spanish Influenza. My father, who had been a good man, if a bit pompous at times, was the first in my family to die. Then my mother died while she was in the hospital at the same time I was. Carlisle had been the doctor for the both of us and couldn't stand to see her die, but there was little he could have done. He tells me that she knew there was more to him than most people could see and begged him to save me, which he ended up doing."

"I initially did not feel that I had been saved, though, but rather that I had been damned for all eternity to walk the Earth as a bloodthirsty monster, praying off of the weak and innocent in order to survive and forced to hear their every thoughts while doing so. It wasn't easy at first, trying to adjust to this life while trying to control my gift. It made me more depressed then I already was, but there was nothing I could do anymore to stifle it. I even left Carlisle for some time to try and clear my head, though without his guidance things only got worse."

"Something must have changed your mind and made you come back," I murmured.

Edward nodded. "I was lost and alone. Carlisle was the only person I knew, the only vampire that I knew, and he was nothing but sincere and kind. I realized pretty quickly that I'd been foolish for leaving him and his odd lifestyle, so I returned to him. He accepted me with open arms and no words, which surprised me initially. I think that my choice to go back to Carlisle was probably the smartest thing I've ever done."

"I'm sorry. If you don't like talking about it…"

He smiled and waved my apology off. "It's in the past, Bella. All things are. This is a new life, a new generation. I choose to take each day for what it's worth, using it to learn something new about myself or the environment or those around me. I try to learn from my past mistakes, even if some of the things I've done cannot be undone or easily learned from. I still try, though."

"That's a very positive attitude, Edward," I mused.

"Yes, it is, isn't it? Strange for depressed little mind-reader Edward to have some positive thoughts, I'm certain. They're there, though, I swear it. It's just hard for me to bring them out into the open sometimes," he admitted.

"Well, I for one think you should be more positive. How else are you going to get a girlfriend?"

He sputtered for a moment and gave looked at me queerly. "Say what now?"

"You heard me. You need to find yourself a mate, and being all depressed and moping about sure as hell won't get you one. Besides, you'd be happier and it'd make Carlisle and Esme happy too since you're the only one who has yet to find somebody," I stated, crossing my arms.

Edward continued to stare at me with an unfathomable look for a good minute or two before shrugging his shoulders and looking away, apparently taking my words into consideration. He seemed lost in deep thought, so I decided not to bother him and stood up, walking back up the stairs to my room. I started to look for my cell-phone, since I could at least text Alice to tell her I loved her and to tell her to be safe, but I quickly realized that my phone wasn't in my room.

What the hell? Did I drop it somewhere?

"It's down here!" Edward called from downstairs.

I sighed in relief and trotted back downstairs where Edward was. He was leaning against the wall near the staircase, my cell phone in the palm of his hand. I took it from him gratefully and flicked it open to see that I had two messages that I'd missed. I frowned.

"How long have you had this?" I asked.

"Not too long, I promise. You dropped it when you came into the house the other day. I believe that you already had one message on it, but it slipped my mind to inform you. Sorry about that, I would have done it sooner, but a lot happened yesterday, so I never got the chance."

I mumbled a "thanks" and opened the newest message. I smiled when I saw Alice's name.

_To my beloved Bella, who I hate leaving. I'm sorry I had to disappear on you this morning and I promise you I will give you super cuddle time to make up for it, but I have a duty to do and that's keeping you safe. I'm sorry, though. I love you and be good with Edward. Actually, tell him to be good and if he does anything, I'll rip his head off. Love you, bye!_

Edward groaned. "She is so psychotic it isn't even funny."

I laughed. "I disagree; I think it's _very_ funny!"

He rolled his eyes and grumbled something under his breath as he walked back to the couch, turning the TV on and making certain the volume was nice and loud. I snickered at his display of childishness and walked back up the stairs, making sure to save the message from Alice. I'd respond to it later, though I'm sure she'd see my decision and respond faster than I could.

When that was done, I decided to check the second message, the one that I'd apparently had since yesterday but had no idea about. To my surprise, it was from Angela.

_Hey, Bella. Sorry you had to leave so soon yesterday, I hope everything's okay. We left about ten minutes after you did. The Quileutes were acting a little weird, so we figured we'd get out of their hair, you know? By the way, what you did to Lauren was amazing. Way to stand up for yourself, girl, great job on that. Hope to see you in school Monday!_

I felt a pang of guilt for leaving them the way I did. Maybe I should text Angela back…

_Angela, hi. Sorry for not getting back to you sooner, I was beat after all the stuff that happened at the beach. And I'm sorry I had to leave like that, I didn't want to, but I needed to. Family business, you know? Thanks for being so understanding, though. You're a good friend._

I decided to keep my phone on just in case I decided to text Alice later or in case she decided to be the one to text me. Knowing her, she probably would at least once. I went back downstairs, vowing to myself that I would stop going back and forth for the rest of the day and noticed that Edward wasn't on the couch anymore and the television was off. On the wall next to the stairway was a note written in cursive.

_Bella. I hate doing this, but I needed to go hunting. I'll be back in about five minutes, so try not to get yourself into too much trouble while I'm gone, okay? _

I scowled. "_Now_ what am I supposed to do with myself?"

With a huff, I prepared to go and turn the television back on when I felt my phone vibrate. I reached into my pocket and pulled my phone out to see that I'd received a new text message from Angela, which surprised me. Wasn't she in school by now?

_Bella, I'm so glad you texted me back. Listen, I'm not sure if you're busy or not, but my car broke down and I could really use a ride. Do you think you could give me one?_

I furrowed my brow for a moment. Couldn't she have texted Ben? Then I realized that Ben was likely in school. Angela must have realized that since it was sunny out that I would be with my family today and not at school. Had the poor thing been waiting for me to text her? No, it was probably luck that I texted her at the right time. Should I go, though? Would Edward mind?

_I dunno, Angela. I'll see what I can do. Where are you at?_

It didn't take long for her to respond.

_I'm at the side of the road leading away from the school. Please, Bella, you're the only person I can get in touch with and I'm near the woods. I promise I'll pay you back for it._

I bit my lip, feeling remorseful for her. She'd be so good to me and now she needed me to help her out. It was the least I could do, right? I thought about it for a minute, trying to figure out if this was a good idea. I mean, was I worrying too much? Alice said that the newborn wasn't near here yet. Plus, I would be near where there were more people. And it was sunny out, so any vampire with a decent sized brain wouldn't go out outside where they could be seen.

I still wasn't sure what I was doing when I grabbed the pen on the table and scribbled down on the back of the paper Edward had used as a note:

_Edward. Angela texted me and said that her car had broken down near the school. She needs a ride and I'm the only person she can reach. I'll be right back, I promise._

I went towards the door and grabbed my keys, moving quickly to the garage where my car was at. I had to admit, I was a little excited. This was the first time I'd be driving her alone and my second overall drive. I was feeling giddy as I opened the door and slipped inside. When I remembered the garage door, I was relieved to see that there was one of those click things already in my car. I smiled to myself as I pressed it and turned my car on.

Once the garage was open, I revved my car, grinning at the noise it made, and pulled out of the garage, clicking the button once more to close the garage door. I tore out of our driveway, letting out a gleeful shriek at the feeling of driving fast down the dirt road leading away from the house. I was amazed with myself at how comfortable I was driving fast, but I guessed that being driven around so much at a fast speed had made me used to it. Plus, there was the power and the thrill behind driving fast that I really enjoyed.

I mean, who doesn't love to drive fast?

I don't know how long it took before I passed the school, mentally flipping off everyone there that I didn't like. Hell, I flipped the whole damn school off, especially that bitch principal. I growled to myself when I remembered that meeting with her.

As I kept driving, I spotted a car on the side of the road and recognized it as Angela's. I smiled, glad that I had found her, and pulled over to the other side of the road, parking under a tree. I figured that I should at least go and meet her.

I shut my car off and left the keys in the ignition before getting out of the car and walking over to Angela's parked car. The area we were in was a turnoff point from the road, so there wouldn't likely be many people driving by. Come to think of it…

"Hey, Angela!" I called out. Once I neared the car, I noticed that she wasn't there. "Angela? Are you there? Hello?"

There was no response whatsoever. I was starting to get worried. What if Angela was hurt?

I heard a noise coming from the woods, the sound of bushes moving, followed by a loud thud.

"Angela?" I called, walking past her car, over to the source of the noise. "Angela, you there?"

I moved to where I had heard the noise, but found no one. I was confused, worried and a little on edge with this whole thing. She wasn't here. Something didn't seem to add up, but I couldn't put my finger on it. I heard another noise, but ignored it as I bit my lip, trying to figure out what it was I was missing here. Where had Angela gone?

My thoughts were broken when my body was overcome with the urge to move. Acting on instinct, I ducked down and heard a loud crashing noise behind me. My eyes widened when I spun around to see Angela's car in ruins several feet away from me.

I gaped. I could feel my heart pounding wildly in my chest. The air seemed to get colder around me all of a sudden. Slowly I turned around and came face to face with a pair of blood red eyes and a look of unquestionable rage.

"Hello, _Bella_."

The newborn. Fuck.

**A/N: Oh shit!**

**That's all I have to say, honestly.**


	45. Newborn

**Disclaimer: Yadda yadda, I don't own Twilight or any of it's characters. I take credit for any and all OCs and ideas that belong to me.**

**Newborn**

My breath hitched as I stared with terrified eyes back into the face of the newborn that I had been praying I'd never meet. And yet here she was. The worst part? I'd walked into a perfectly planned trap that she'd created just for me.

Fuck.

As I looked into her soulless red eyes, something struck me. This girl looked vaguely familiar.

She had long blonde hair, around Rosalie's length, but with less shine and a bit darker. Her face was that of a model, the kind of face that men would go nuts for, with thin eyebrows, round eyes and a thin nose. And her body was perfectly curved and well rounded, too. There was something about her that seemed like I knew her from somewhere. Did I?

My head was screaming at me to run away, but I couldn't bring myself to move. I was frozen in place with fear, fear that came from the murderous look blazing in the vampire's eyes as she stalked towards me, lips curled into a wicked smirk.

"It's been a long time," she said, her voice low and sultry sounding. She stopped inches away from me, closing her eyes and breathing in deep. "My, my, I had no idea how utterly divine you smelled. I knew you smelled good before, but never did I think you'd smell better in person. Of course, I didn't think you would fall for this little ruse that easily, either, but here you are, alone and looking as dense and scared as ever."

It took a while, but my brain seemed to kick back into gear at that point. I moved back a step, watching her warily.

"Where's Angela? What'd you do to her?" I asked feebly.

The vampire shook her head and smiled. "Don't worry; I didn't touch your human friend. I merely borrowed a few things to lure you out here. I must admit, getting you alone was far easier then I had imagined it to be."

"You…you planned this."

She smiled, her teeth gleaming dangerously. "Oh, yes, you bet I did. It took me forever to come up with a good plan of getting you alone. Then I had to plan how I would kill you, too. I just couldn't decide on anything until I smelled your delicious scent. So I followed after it, still trying to plan out how I would ultimately end your worthless life. That's when I discovered your scent lingered on your friend's car, here. So I decided to borrow it. And low and behold, she forgot her cell phone in the car. It was just too perfect."

The vampire vanished and in an instant I found myself being pinned forcibly against a tree, her left hand around my throat, squeezing it enough for it to hurt, but not enough to kill me. She was glaring back at me with hateful eyes and a malicious smile as she licked her lips.

"You know, I really did mean it when I said I'd pay you back, Bella. I can get the revenge I've been seeking for the last few months against everything you did to me."

I stared at her, confused and frightened in the same. "What d-d-do you mean? I don't e-e-even know y-you!"

She stared at me for a moment before tilting her head backwards and letting out a fit of loud, twisted laughter. The sound chilled my blood, reminding me so much of James and Victoria's cruel laughter. It was almost the same, yet still sultry sounding in tone.

When she stopped, she shook her head at me again. Before I knew it, I was being flung through the air, slamming roughly into another tree. I yelped when I collapsed onto the ground, my back throbbing from the newly caused pain. The newborn was hovering above me shortly after, grabbing me by the neck once more.

"You piece of shit. You really don't recognize me, do you? How pathetic," she growled. "Then again, how could I expect the woman responsible for the deaths of my family to recognize someone she thought she killed, hm?"

I gaped at her. "W-what the hell are you talking about?"

Her face was inches away from mine, scarlet orbs boring into me. "Look at me, _Bella_. How can you not recognize me? Have you forgotten so easily the daughter of the people who took you in when you were alone and without shelter? Have you forgotten the care that they gave you, the food and the clothes? Did you really forget the screams when you _shot _them?"

My jaw fell open. The memories came flooding back, painful images of screaming and blood flashing before my eyes. I stared at the girl before me and at last I remembered her, the face of someone that I thought was dead.

No…

No. It couldn't be. It just couldn't be. She was dead! I watched her die!

"No," I breathed. "You can't be…"

She smiled maliciously and slammed me into the ground. "Yes, I _am_. I am Sarah Caldwell, the girl whose family _died_ in one night because of _you_. You _killed _them all, you horrid bitch, my mother, my father, my sisters and brothers! They're all dead now thanks to _you_!"

Her eyes flashed with rage and agony, focusing the former purely on me.

"And you nearly killed _me_ too. But I survived. My beloved James, he took pity on me and saved me. He and Victoria took care of me; they helped me when I awakened as this…this _demon_. Its no thanks to you that I am forever this creature now, _Isabella Swan_. So now I've come to get my vengeance for everything that I lost thanks to you."

"S-Sarah…" I whimpered, trying to tell her that I didn't kill her family and that it was James and Victoria who did. She ignored me, though.

"I'm a little disappointed. They told me that your protectors would be entertaining, yet all they did was mark their stinking territory. And what's worse is how easy it was to get you out here, with little more than a simple _text_ no less! Ah well, killing you is all the same to me."

"Sarah, please-"

"It's funny, though. James and Victoria asked me not to kill you. They said that they needed you alive so that they could exact punishment for what you'd done to them. I don't want you to stay alive, though. I want you dead. I couldn't care less about those other vampires. How foolish they must be to keep you with them, not knowing what you _did_," she spat.

"W-wait, Sarah!" I begged, unable to fight the tears forming in my eyes. "P-p-please, I didn't…I never meant for them t-to be hurt. Y-you gotta believe me, I d-didn't kill them, Sarah, I s-swear! I c-couldn't pull the t-trigger, honest! It was V-Victoria and James!"

"Lies!" she snarled, throwing me in the opposite direction. I landed roughly on the ground, whimpering at the painful impact and struggling feebly to move, but to no avail. Sarah slowly sauntered over to me, her hands balled into tight fists. "They said you would deny it and that you would blame them. They told me it all! I _know _you killed my family!"

I stared up at her through watery eyes as she cocked her head to the side, sneering at me.

"And now I can have the pleasure of ripping off your foul head. But don't worry. Once I finish draining every sweet pint of blood in your body, I'll give the husk back to your _protectors_," she said, licking her lips again as she started leaning towards me.

Shit. I was going to die. I knew it. Alice wouldn't be able to get here in time.

I'd wanted to be stronger. I'd wanted to not be a burden on anybody. Yet here I was, cowering like a rabbit before the open jaws of a lion. I couldn't move. I could hardly breathe.

What could I do? Nothing! I was helpless. Utterly helpless.

I hated it. I hated feeling this way, not being able to defend myself. Hated it, hated it, hated it all!

My body felt numb as Sarah opened her mouth, likely planning to savor her kill. No. I would not be her kill. I would not die from her, not like this. I needed to fight. I didn't care how futile it was, I would not go down without fighting first. I am sick of being weak and defenseless all the damn time, sick of always having to be saved.

My mind swirled as I growled menacingly at Sarah, causing her to stop for a moment and glare down at me. Her eyes were pitch black now and filled with nothing but rage, rage that only grew at the sound of my growl. She quickly grasped me, and pinned me down, seconds away from ending my life.

Something inside of me, I don't know what, seemed to click at that moment. I concentrated on that feeling and shot my arms out to shield myself from the vampire closing in on me. Upon doing so, however, I felt as though my hands had released a wave of air. That wave careened into Sarah and sent her reeling backwards, colliding with and subsequently destroying a nearby tree. I watched after her in amazement, staring down at my hands.

What the hell had I just done?

Sarah snarled and got to her feet abruptly, even more livid then before.

"Stupid bitch!" she growled, blurring over to me. "I don't know what you did, but I'll be damned if I'll let you do it again!"

I tried to move, but was quickly thwarted by a powerful kick to my midsection, knocking the wind out of me and sending me back a few feet. I groaned in pain as I clutched my throbbing abdomen, gasping for air as Sarah laughed and stalked towards me.

"S-Sarah, you gotta believe me…" I grunted out. "I didn't kill-"

I was silenced by a foot forcibly pressing against my forehead. "Silence. I will not hear your lies anymore, Swan. I will kill you and there is nothing you can do to save yourself. However…" She paused, and removed her foot, picking me up by the shirt once again. "I think that torturing you a little would be more entertaining first, don't you agree? After all, I know all about how you tortured my family members before killing them, so it's only fair."

Tears started to trickle down my cheeks. "Please…" I begged, unable to form any other words.

Sarah snorted. "You're so pathetic. One little strike and you're already begging for mercy." She sighed and fluffed her hair with her free hand. "On second thought, I'm just gonna rip off your fucking head. Torturing you would take too much time and I _really_ want your blood."

She gripped my throat tightly and slowly picked me up, her black eyes staring down at my neck hungrily as her lips curled into a smirk.

"Do you have any last words?" she asked with mock sympathy.

I closed my eyes, cursing myself and my shitty luck, but accepting my fate nonetheless.

Despite the circumstances I was in, I found myself smiling. It wasn't just that I had resolved myself to dying, but I was also aware that Alice and the others would kill her for it. The thought of Alice tearing her into pieces made me smile wider. In truth, a part of me did feel bad for Sarah. She had lost her entire family, and it was because of me.

But I never killed them. I couldn't bring myself to pull the trigger and shoot her or her siblings. Victoria and James, they were the ones responsible. And now they'd manipulated her to think otherwise. It was clear that Sarah wouldn't see the truth of the matter, however. She was blinded by their manipulations and the fact that she was a newborn made it even harder. She wasn't the same Sarah anymore, so I knew that there was no point in trying to reach her.

I decided on my last words, knowing that they would be heard, one way or the other.

"I love you, Alice," I breathed quietly.

Sarah scoffed. "Aw, isn't that sweet? Pity she can't hear you. It's time to die, now."

I heard her body move and expected the end to come fast. But it didn't come, because seconds later an angry, guttural roar tore through the woods, causing the very trees to shake. I opened my eyes to see Sarah frozen in place, her eyes wide with fear and surprise. Out of my peripherals I saw it coming, but I still didn't expect it.

A sound like thunder erupted from where Sarah was as a blur violently crashed into her, causing me to drop to the ground. I gasped for air now that my throat was free and turned my head to see two blurs moving about the trees, snarling and hissing coupled with them. I knew already that it was Alice fighting Sarah and I felt a small pang of joy flood through me, happy that my protector had come to me.

At the same time, though, I felt a shred of guilt. I had gotten myself into trouble and once again, I needed to be saved. I couldn't do anything to help myself. It was a painful, embarrassing feeling that hovered in the back of my head, making me feel as though my conscious was mocking me for being so helpless. Maybe Sarah was right. Maybe I really _was _pathetic.

Another vicious snarl ripped through the air, followed by another thunder-like boom. I saw Sarah fly backwards, ramming into a string of trees, causing each to topple downwards. Alice came into view, standing still, her whole body quivering with unimaginable fury. Alice stood in the same spot breathing raggedly for what seemed like minutes before she spun around to face me.

Her eyes were black, the pupils slits, as she stared back at me. Slowly she moved towards me, holding my eyes as she did. I gulped, fearing that she would be upset with me and prayed that if she were, it would be brief. I knew, though, that this was my fault and that, if anything, being scolded by my girlfriend was what I deserved. She stopped a few feet away from me and for a moment she didn't speak, instead merely staring at me.

She leaned in so that her face was inches away from mine before speaking.

"What the _hell _were you THINKING?" she snarled, the anger clear in her tone. "I _told_ you to stay HOME, not go out by yourself! You _idiot_! What is _wrong_ with you?"

I winced. "I'm s-s-sorry, Alice! I'm sorry, I'm really, really sorry!" I pleaded, unable to keep a few tears from falling. "S-s-she tricked m-me and I f-fell for i-it and I…I…" I had to swallow to fight back more tears. "Please, f-forgive me. I didn't mean…"

Alice's face had started to soften the moment she'd finished speaking, though her eyes remained hard. I felt one of her hands gently stroke my cheek and looked up to see that she was looking at me remorsefully as she brushed her lips against my forehead.

"I'm sorry," she whispered. She turned her head slightly and let out a low hiss. "Stay here."

Alice stroked my cheek for a second longer before removing her hand and standing, moving so that she was standing in front of me protectively. Sarah sauntered out from where she'd been thrown, her eyes livid slits like Alice's. She curled her lip back and let out a threatening snarl as though she were trying to scare Alice. Alice didn't budge an inch, clenching and unclenching her hands as she glared Sarah down.

Sarah noticed that Alice wasn't leaving and looked at her with irritation.

"Get out of the way!" she barked. "This bitch killed my family and now I'm going to kill her!"

Alice twitched, her chest vibrating with a rumbling growl. "You. Will. _Not_. Touch. Her."

Sarah sneered at her. "Try and stop me."

Without another word, Sarah lunged forward, baring her teeth. Alice vanished into the air and I suddenly found myself being scooped up into her arms. She moved to the left as Sarah careened into the tree that had been behind me, destroying it instantaneously. Alice shielded me from the pieces of bark that flew through the air, pinning me close to her body until there was no more.

Sarah hissed and spun around to face her as she set me down. "You're pretty fast," she mused.

Alice didn't respond and instead appeared directly in front of Sarah, catching the newborn by surprise. Alice slammed her right fist into Sarah's stomach, causing her to lurch forward in pain for a moment, giving Alice an opening. She thrust her right knee upwards, aiming to nail Sarah in the face, but Sarah recovered quickly and dodged it with ease, spinning around to land a mean backhand to Alice's face.

As Alice teetered backwards, Sarah smirked and lunged forward, tackling my pixie to the ground and pinning her down. She cocked her head backwards, then slammed her head downwards, connecting perfectly with Alice's forehead. The resulting sound was the same loud, thunder-like crack, the resulting collision creating a miniature shockwave that pushed me back down to the ground.

"Alice!" I shouted when my pixie's body went limp for a moment. My eyes widened in terror when I saw the resulting cracks that had formed on her forehead after Sarah's vicious headbutt.

Sarah laughed as she stood up. "See? You're no match for me, little girl. Now stay still while I go tear your human apart."

Alice's eyes shot open. "You will _not_," she seethed.

Her left hand grabbed onto Sarah's right leg and with surprising strength, flung the blonde vampire like she was a bag of feathers. Sarah landed on her back, but quickly jumped up to her feet, hissing. Alice got to her feet in a single graceful movement, moving her neck side to side to crack it for whatever reason she chose to.

The cracks on her forehead slowly started to dissipate as Alice crouched down, ready to continue her attack. Sarah seemed amused by this and shook her head before mimicking Alice's pose, almost in a mocking manner.

Was she really that _stupid_? Did she not know who it was she was dealing with?

I smiled smugly as Alice and Sarah both surged towards each other. Sarah opened her mouth and went for Alice's neck. Alice, whether by her gift or by her own natural talent, avoided the sharp pair of teeth as Sarah snapped them shut, anger flashing in her eyes that she had bitten air. Alice thrust her right hand at Sarah's face, nailing her cheek cleanly. The impact forced Sarah to step back, leaving her open for another strike, which Alice gladly gave via the left hand.

Sarah grunted and collapsed to the ground, small cracks appearing on both cheeks. Alice pounced into the air, but Sarah reacted faster and rolled out of the way. Sarah snarled and lifted her right leg up, bringing it downwards as fast as she could manage. Alice was able to dodge it, but she was immediately met with a left hand to the face, the impact creating another shockwave as Alice careened into the wreckage that had once been Angela's car.

Alice quickly emerged, her pants tattered and a part of her jacket torn. She glanced down at her attire, scowling angrily at it before returning her gaze to Sarah. Sarah extended one hand and motioned for Alice to come at her, taunting my poor pixie with a sneer on her face. Alice twitched, but rather than give in to her anger, she remained calm and in control as she sped over to where Sarah was.

What surprised me is that, by concentrating on watching Alice's movements, I was able to see her movements much easier. It was the same for Sarah, though her movements were still a tad faster than Alice's, which worried me.

Alice flung her right arm Sarah's way, the blonde vampire blocking it with her left forearm with ease and quickly retaliating with a right of her own. Alice ducked under her arm and swept Sarah off of her feet, spinning fully once and grabbing onto Sarah's ankles. Sarah snarled and tried to move away, but Alice had her in a firm grip as she lifted the newborn into the air and slammed her down into the ground, creating a human sized crater.

The very ground shook at the impact, making me fall when I tried to stand up. I had no idea what I would be able to do, but I figured I could at least move away some more to make it easier for Alice so that she wouldn't have to keep a constant watch on me, since I noticed her eyes would occasionally flicker in my direction whenever Sarah wasn't looking.

Sarah looked like she was about to get to her feet. This time, however, Alice managed to move faster and pounced on top of the newborn, bringing her left hand crashing down into the blonde vampire's face. Then she used her right, then her left, again and again, just like she had done to Rosalie in the mall. The only difference was, though, that there was true murderous intent behind each blow as she pummeled away at Sarah's face.

Alice snarled violently as she started pummeling every inch of Sarah's body that she could, her arms, her chest, her stomach, her throat, everywhere. She didn't hold back on her strength either, each resulting collision causing a small tremor to form. The ground around the crater started to crack at the amount of strength Alice was pouring into each strike. Sarah stopped moving altogether as my pixie pummeled her for a good three minutes.

Only when Alice finally stopped was I able to get a peek at Sarah.

Or rather, what _used_ to be Sarah.

I _had_ thought that Rosalie had looked bad after Alice had attacked her in the mall. Fuck. No.

Sarah did not look like a vampire or a human or any discernable being for that matter. Her body looked like someone had taken a jackhammer to a very sturdy statue. She looked like the simplest touch would cause every piece of her to turn into dust, for God's sakes! I mean, shit. I could barely make out the girl's nose, let alone any of the rest of her.

Alice stood over the nearly demolished blonde and let out the loudest, war-cry like bellow that I'd ever heard before—which reminds me, I don't think I've ever heard one before, especially not one like this-and glared downwards. She was breathing heavily, her entire body tense and shaking as it had been earlier.

"Don't you _EVER _lay a finger on _my_ Bella _AGAIN_!" she roared.

I watched on silently, not knowing what to do or say. I almost forgot to breathe for that matter because the air surrounding me was so tense. I wasn't sure how Alice would react if I said anything, too, for that matter. I gulped again when Alice's head slowly lifted and looked at me.

"A-Alice…?" I stammered out.

Alice made no audible response, blurring over to where I was instead. She knelt down and, slowly yet cautiously, Alice placed both of her cool hands on my cheeks, cupping them. She gently pressed her forehead to mine, but kept her eyes closed. We stayed that way for a moment as Alice's ragged breathing started to slow down.

"Are you hurt?" she asked in a whisper, as though she were afraid of her own voice.

"A little bit," I admitted, hesitating slightly. "B-but I'm fine, I swear. I'm just a bit sore."

She shook her head. "I'm sorry, Bella. I'm so sorry. I shouldn't have snapped at you. I should have seen this coming, too. I…I thought I wouldn't get here in time. I saw her about to kill you and I…God, Bella. I love you so much."

"Alice, I-"

I stopped talking when Alice froze for a moment before removing her hands from my cheeks. I blinked; puzzled as to what the problem, but then I turned to see Sarah standing up from the crater she had been laying in. My eyes widened in shock, as did Alice's. Sarah's body was already starting to heal, the cracks patching together at a speed I didn't think possible. In a matter of seconds, Sarah's body was back to what it had been, her ruby eyes glaring at Alice and I as an evil smile tugged on her lips.

"Well then." She moved her neck side to side and cracked her knuckles. "You're stronger than I thought you'd be. But…" She paused and vanished into thin air, appearing an instant later behind Alice. "You aren't strong enough to beat me."

Alice could hardly react when Sarah slammed her fist into her back, sending her flying forward more forcefully then she had before. Alice twirled in mid-air and landed on her feet, moving to the left to avoid another potentially dangerous punch. Sarah snorted and swung her left leg for Alice's head, but my pixie jumped over this, grabbing her leg as she did. Still spinning, Alice growled and lifted Sarah off the ground, slamming her into a tree.

A part of me wondered how much of the forest would be leveled by the time these two stopped fighting, but I pushed that thought aside as Sarah quickly got back up, sneering at Alice.

"I'll give you credit, you're good. Would you like to know something?" she asked, cocking her head to the side. Sarah's smirk slowly lowered itself as she narrowed her eyes dangerously at my graceful pixie. "I haven't been using my full power."

And just like that, Sarah lunged forwards and slammed her left fist into Alice's face. Alice looked like she was about to react to something different entirely and it cost her. Alice smashed into the ground, kicking up dirt and rocks everywhere. When she stood, I gasped when I saw the wide cracks displayed on her right cheek. She touched said cheek and hissed as she turned to glare at the newborn, who was bouncing on her feet, a cocky smile in place.

"You see?" Sarah mocked. "I was holding back because I didn't think you were worth using my full strength on. I guess I was wrong, so now you get to see how strong I really am. It looks like you don't know much about newborns, do you? My sweet James was kind enough to tell me that I was stronger, faster and far more durable then you are. So…" She licked her lips. "Come and get some, little bitch."

Alice snarled and sped towards the blonde, jumping into the air. Sarah tried to grab her, but Alice spun around, easily avoiding the newborn's arms. With one quick movement, Alice brought the heel of her left foot down sharply, grinding against Sarah's cheek. She followed through with her right foot, kicking the back of Sarah's head. The resulting crack was like lightning striking as the blonde vampire fell face first into the dirt, Alice landing lithely on her feet.

Sarah angrily pounded the ground with her fists as she stood, the humor gone from her face.

"You little…"

Alice cut her off by connecting the knuckles of her left hand into Sarah's face, creating yet another satisfying, lightning-like crack as the blonde flew backwards once more. Sarah was quick to recover again, the look in her eyes one of frustration and annoyance. It seemed as though Sarah didn't like to be both interrupted and shown up by someone who she thought was weaker than she was.

Bitch, _no one_ can beat _my_ Alice. You should just give up and go running back to those two cowardly ingrates you call friends.

I'm not sure what it was about vampires, but it seemed as though Sarah somehow knew what I was thinking, because she turned around and blurred over to me, grabbing onto my throat, her mouth dripping with venom. Alice was there in the blink of an eye—maybe half a blink, I couldn't tell because I was too busy watching Sarah—snarling and throwing her off of me.

"I _TOLD_ you to _NEVER_ touch my _MATE_!" she roared, sounding like an angry demon. Of course, she's a very sexy angry demon, but-gah, stop thinking like that!

Sarah didn't give an audible response, baring her venom soaked teeth instead. Alice curled back her upper lip and let out a rage infested howl before charging. Sarah met her head on and the two collided violently, the resulting shockwave pushing me backwards. It was strange how familiar it was to feel that shockwave. Was that what I had produced earlier on? A shockwave?

Pushing those thoughts aside, I squinted and tried to watch as the two blurred out of existence, moving at a speed that I could not watch, even if I concentrated. I grimaced, hoping that Alice would be alright as I listened to the sounds of them fighting as best I could. The two hissed and growled like rabid lionesses as they battled it out, ravaging the surrounding woods. Trees toppled down like dominoes, hills were flattened into nothing more than small holes and the ground shook with each blow that connected, making it near impossible for me to stand up.

I wondered where the others were. Shouldn't they be here by now? I mean, wouldn't they have noticed Alice was gone? Unless…

I thought more on it and realized that the others likely had no clue what was going on. They had great hearing, yes, but this was located too far away for any of them to hear. Not only that, but since Alice was likely alone when she had her vision, she wouldn't have told anyone about it. I prayed that Alice would be able to defeat Sarah, or that Edward would notice that I was gone for too long and alert the others. I hoped it would be soon, because I was becoming anxious.

Alice was good; there was no question of that. Could she defeat someone like Sarah though? A vampire that healed quickly, moved faster and was overall twice as powerful, not to mention that her thought process made it difficult for Alice to predict her movements?

A thunderous boom tore me from my thoughts as Sarah's body flew past me. It took me a moment for my mind to register what had just happened as Alice blurred from out of the forest and back into the small clearing that I was in. Her eyes flickered to mine, then back to where Sarah was, the blonde vampire clearly pissed off as she stood up.

Now it was Alice who had a smug grin on her face as Sarah charged, her fist missing Alice's face completely as my pixie gracefully ducked under it. Alice's smile only grew as Sarah continued trying to strike her, hitting nothing but the air each and every time. Her anger was building with each strike, yet nothing she did seemed to work. She even attempted to use her teeth to attack Alice, but Alice saw it coming and moved back, taunting Sarah by sticking her tongue out at the newborn.

Um, Alice, no offense, but stop mocking her! I wanted to scream the words out so that Alice would quit playing and get serious. This must be what the others meant when Alice had a tendency to get cocky during fights. It was plain as day by the smirk on her face and the fact that her pupils, though still black, had returned to being circles rather than slits. Her eyes were full of mirth as Sarah grunted angrily; clearly acknowledging the fact that even with her superior strength, Alice was better than she was. And that did not sit well with her.

Sarah stopped moving, clenching her fists so tight I thought for certain that they would break. I could see every vein popping out from her skin as she ground her teeth together. Alice bounced on the balls of her feet, clearly entertained by the sight.

"What's wrong? Is the big, bad newborn finally realizing she can't beat me?" Alice mocked.

I bit my lip, hesitating on whether or not I should yell at her to cut it out and get her head back into the game. Sarah, however, beat me to the punch. At least in the yelling part, anyways.

"Shut up!" she roared, jumping at Alice. "Stop moving so damn much you bitch!"

Alice laughed. "Why? Can't you hit me anymore?"

Sarah roared once more and punched through a tree as Alice lithely ducked under her arm, sweeping Sarah off her feet once again. She didn't even bother trying to pounce on her newborn foe and instead jumped back, bouncing her feet some more. Sarah's eyes narrowed until they were slits like her pupils, her body quivering with unkempt fury. She really wanted to get her hands on Alice; I could see that without a doubt.

Alice didn't look worried in the least bit. I wondered how it was that she could transform from being an enraged Goddess to being so…arrogant. I loved that she was arrogant, it wasn't that, but in a situation like this? I didn't think that being arrogant was such a good idea, especially when she was egging on a foe that was stronger than she was.

"Fuck. You," Sarah seethed.

Alice let out another wind-chime laugh. "Oh, I'm sorry, but I'm afraid I'm already smitten. How about I just kill you instead, hm? Would that work?"

I couldn't take it anymore. Sarah was going to rip her into shreds if she wasn't careful, and that very thought scared me half to death. So I did the only thing I could do.

"Damn it, Alice!" I shouted. "Stop fucking around and finish her! Didn't you hear what the others said to you the other day? Stop being so damn arrogant and get your head back in gear, otherwise she'll kill you!"

That caught Alice's attention. She turned and looked at me, surprise on her face. I stared back at her, my eyes watery from the tears that had formed when I thought of her dying. I gave her a pleading look, begging her to snap out of the overconfident state that she was in so that she would be able to think clearly and end this.

Alice seemed to understand my concerns and to my surprise swatted herself on the back of the head. Her face became serious, all traces of humor gone as she crouched down, ready to continue fighting for real. I breathed a sigh of relief, thankful that I had managed to reach her.

It was a shame, though, that it was too little too late.

Sarah glanced at me for a fraction of a second, a twisted grin snaking onto her face. Alice's eyes widened and she hissed threateningly, blurring over to where Sarah was standing. She swung her left leg at Sarah, missing by an inch as the newborn ducked down. Sarah, turned to face me fully with bared teeth and lunged towards me. My heart skipped a beat when I realized that she was going after me instead. Shit!

"NO!" Alice screamed.

Sarah opened her mouth and snarled as she lunged for my throat. Alice moved abruptly to where I was, pulling me into her arms and narrowly dodging Sarah's opened mouth. The blonde vampire's teeth sank into the tree that had been behind me, her venom melting through part of the bark as she snapped the trunk in half like a twig. She sneered and lunged once more, this time aiming for Alice's throat.

Alice grimaced and had no choice but to throw me to the side and try and block Sarah's oncoming attack. As I landed on the ground, I watched as Alice swung her right leg, likely aiming to kick Sarah before she got the chance to bite her.

But Sarah was faster than Alice had thought, a sneer forming for a moment as she suddenly moved to the side, catching Alice's leg in her mouth.

"Shit," Alice cursed.

By then, it was too late and I watched in horror as Sarah tore Alice's leg off.

**A/N: ...**

**Well then. There's a chapter ending you don't read very often. **

**Now, I know there will be a lot of people less than pleased with that, but realize that this isn't anywhere near the end and that vampires can reattach their limbs. So there's no need to start flaming me (though I will put on a protective suit, regardless) about my being cruel to Alice. It's not like I enjoy doing that to my favorite character, but it certainly adds to the scenario, don't you agree? No? Well, tough. :P**

**Oh, yes. For those of you who have no clue who Sarah is, go back to chapter three and read that bit. She's the daughter of the family that James and Victoria killed, though she was left alive and turned. Now they've manipulated her into thinking Bella is the one responsible, hence her drive for killing Bella. Just thought I'd clear that up so that you were all aware of it, since most thought it would be Vanessa (gotcha!).**


	46. Rage

**Disclaimer: I take no credit for any of Stephanie Meyer's characters or ideas, only for the characters and ideas that are mine.**

**Rage**

Alice's severed leg flopped to the ground as an ear-piercing agonized scream like shattering glass filled my ears. Tears were already streaming down my face like small waterfalls as Alice writhed about wildly on the ground, clutching the stub where her right leg had once been, shrieking in pain as she did.

"ALICE!" I screamed, running over to her as fast as I could. I forgot completely about the smugly grinning blonde vampire looming nearby as I collapsed to my knees next to my love, my tears falling onto her like raindrops.

"Alice…Alice, oh God, oh God…" I cried, not knowing what to do.

I felt so utterly _useless_.

Alice's screams had quelled slightly, reduced to heavy, pained breathing as she kept one hand on the stub. Her eyes looked glazed over and lifeless as she lay on the ground, staring into space with an emotionless face. Sarah's sickeningly twisted laughter became the next sound that rang in my ears, mocking both Alice and I.

I stared down at Alice helplessly, touching her left hand as the tears continued to fall.

"Oh Alice," I sobbed.

"Ha! Stupid bitch! That's what you get for getting in my way," Sarah laughed.

An inhuman rage began swirling inside of me as I glared up at her through watery eyes. My blood boiled as the rage overtook me, my entire body shaking as I stood up, baring my teeth at the bitch that would _dare _hurt my Alice.

"YOU FUCKING BITCH!" I snarled. I was seeing red as I lunged for her. "I'LL KILL YOU!"

Sarah stopped laughing, her eyes widening in shock. I didn't give her the chance to move as I smashed my right fist as hard as I could into her face, not even thinking about the fact that she was a vampire and I a human. To my surprise, Sarah actually reeled back from my punch. I wasn't done though, my rage far from being sated, so I followed through with my left, hitting her just as hard as I had before. The blonde vampire teetered backwards, her head swaying from side to side as her arms flailed about for a good minute.

I couldn't help but stop and gape at what I'd done.

I just _punched_ a fucking _vampire_. And my hands _weren't_ broken! Holy shit!

My irrelevant thought process was quickly destroyed when Sarah stopped moving and straightened herself out. She turned so that she was facing me and shot me a look of confusion, shock and anger all in the same. I blinked in surprise when I saw two small cracks on each of her cheeks where my fists had connected, though they dissipated in seconds.

"What the fuck? Did you…did you just _punch _me?" Sarah sputtered, clearly as amazed as I was.

I didn't really know how to answer her exactly. I suddenly realized that the rage that had been driving me had dropped and I was now standing feet away from a creature capable of puncturing my skull with a single finger, coupled with the fact that said creature had a vendetta against me for something that I truly did not do. I was defenseless. Helpless. Oh fuck.

The realization made me shudder as I took several steps back, standing in front of where Alice was lying. Alice. I turned and dropped down to my knees again, cupping the back of her head with my right hand and stroking her cheek with my left. Alice blinked several times before looking up at me, her eyes smoldering with pain and hurt.

"Alice," I whimpered.

"Bella…" she breathed. "You need t-to run. Now!"

I gaped. "What?"

She forced herself to sit up. "Run. You need to get _out_ of here!"

"W-wha-no! No, I am not leaving you here!"

Alice grabbed onto my shirt and snarled. "GET OUT OF HERE!"

"NO, DAMN IT!" I roared. "I'm NOT leaving you!"

Alice grimaced, her eyes pleading with me. "P-please, Bella. I c-c-can't lose you."

I ground my teeth together. "And I can't lose you, so shut up! I'm not leaving you!"

I heard an angry growl behind me and turned to see Sarah slowly sauntering towards us, fists clenched tightly to her sides. I jumped back and cradled Alice in my arms, glaring down the blonde bitch as she bared her teeth at me.

"Bella! Bella, please run! Please!" Alice begged, grabbing my shirt with less force this time.

I ignored her and tried as hard as I could to concentrate. If I had a gift, I needed to use it and now would be a damn good time for that. Come on, gift, go! Activate! Do something, damn it! Stop being so fucking useless and DO SOMETHING!

Sarah crouched down, preparing to lunge at me. I concentrated as hard as I could, praying that something would happen. She snarled and jumped with an open mouth, Alice screaming and trying to push me back. I didn't budge, however, and before Sarah could get close to me, that same feeling came over me. I watched as the air around my body moved and in an instant the air shot outwards, careening into the newborn and sending her backwards.

Alice, who had been too busy trying to get me to leave to see what had just happened, stopped moving and stared after her, stunned.

"What the hell?"

The blonde vampire snarled and staggered back to her feet. "Damn it!" she hissed.

She vanished, blurring away from my line of view, only to reappear inches away from me. Alice reacted faster than I did and jumped out of my arms trying to attack Sarah with just one leg, but Sarah easily swatted her aside. I tried to scream, but my attention was averted to Alice as she landed roughly on the ground.

"Ali-"

I was sharply cut off by a very powerful uppercut to the chest. I was faintly aware of the sound of snapping bones as my body lurched forwards and flew backwards at the same time, the throbbing pain leftover making me cry out as I collapsed with a loud thud.

"BELLA! NO!" Alice shouted.

I coughed several times, fearing that I would cough blood up as I struggled to stop myself. My entire chest was searing with pain. A single tear fell from my face as I grunted, clutching the area where Sarah had hit me. Looking at the ground, I noticed a shadow looming over me and looked up to see the violent eyes of the woman out to end my life, her black slits gleaming at me with hate and rage even though her lips were curled into a smile. She took a step forward and crushed my cell phone, which I realized that I could have used to call the others. It was too late now, though. Stupid...

"Time to die," she sneered.

"NOOOOOO!" Alice hollered, squirming towards me as fast as she could.

Before she could close in on me, something large barreled out from the forest and careened into her, creating a powerful shockwave that would had sent me flying were it not for the large rock that was behind me. Everything around me was spinning as I hit the ground, still clutching my stomach as best I could. I heard the sounds of fighting and growling and, after breathing in and out a few times, I looked up to see the large frame of Emmett, growling like an angry bear.

"Emmett…" I breathed, overjoyed that he was here.

Sarah snarled and swung her right arm at my larger brother only to have it caught by his left hand with relative ease. He retaliated with a right of his own, smashing her face and sending her ricocheting into a nearby tree, demolishing it instantly.

Emmett didn't wait for her to get back on her feet and charged at her. Sarah growled and lunged for Emmett. I expected Emmett to maybe step out of the way, but instead he took her head on, grabbing her in mid-air and lifting her up before slamming her down as hard as he could into the ground, creating another large crater.

My eyes bulged when Sarah recovered from the attack and slammed her fist into Emmett's face, causing him to fly into the air before crashing down. She staggered out from the crater, large cracks on her face, neck and arms that quickly started to heal. Emmett jumped back to his feet shortly after, equally large cracks on his face. He pounded his fists together, smiling as his face healed, though at a much slower pace than Sarah's.

Sarah snorted. "You're more entertaining than the other runt."

Emmett's face hardened when he glanced at Alice, taking in that her leg was missing. He then looked to me, seeing the state that I was in, his eyes blackening and his pupils becoming slits. He curled back his lip and let out a feral, bear like growl as he charged at the newborn, much to her amusement. I could see in her eyes that she had gotten what she wanted, but before I had the chance to shout to Emmett, she was already scooping him and tossing him over her head.

The burly vampire landed on his feet, letting out an irritated growl as he spun around, moving his arm so that he would punch her in the face. Sarah was already doing the same thing, however, and their fists collided, resulting in another thunderous noise ripping through the area.

For whatever reason, that sound was enough to snap me out of my daze and I realized something.

Alice.

I turned and saw that she was crawling towards me. My heart wrenched with agony and guilt and I forced myself to move to her, no matter how much pain it caused me. Emmett and Sarah battled it out around us, shaking the ground as they did. It didn't take long for me to reach Alice, thankfully, and I soon had her in my arms, hugging her as tightly to me as I could.

"Alice, I'm so sorry," I whimpered, tears trickling down my cheeks when I looked at her injury.

I felt a cold hand touch my cheek and looked down to see her looking up at me with nothing but love shining her dark gold eyes.

"Bella, sweetheart, its okay. You didn't do anything wrong," she cooed.

"But…but your leg…"

"Bella, that was my own fault. I got too cocky and it cost me. Don't worry, though. It can be fixed, remember?" She paused and glanced at the ongoing battle between Emmett and Sarah, which I did as well.

Emmett landed a barrage of punches on the blonde before clotheslining her with his left arm. He didn't stop and attempted to smash his fist into her face, but Sarah was faster. She hissed and bit down on his wrist, attempting tear it off no doubt. Emmett growled and punched her with his left hand, successfully throwing her off of him. He rubbed the spot where she'd bitten him, the venom she'd left over agitating him no doubt, plus the fact that his hand was likely numb now.

He didn't look like he was about to let that affect him, though. In fact, all that did was piss him off further. Emmett growled and lunged at Sarah with his teeth bare this time, the newborn startled by the change in attack. She managed to use her superior speed to move out of the way, kicking Emmett aside while doing so. Emmett landed surprisingly gracefully and spun around, grabbing the blonde's hair and yanking her backwards, ramming a knee into her back.

Alice touched my shoulder, breaking my attention away from the ongoing fight.

"Bella? I hate to ask you this, but…would you grab my leg and bring it to me?" she asked.

I blinked, gaping at her. Say what?

"Bella, if you can bring me my leg, I can reattach it," she informed me. "Remember?"

My heart slapped my brain across the face—that makes no sense, I know, but it did to me—and pointed out that I should be helping my mate, not thinking about what it was she wanted me to do. Without another word I set her down and moved as fast as I could towards Alice's detached leg, which was several feet away.

I wrapped my arms around the leg, pretending in my head that it wasn't really a leg at all as I turned and started towards Alice. A rumbling snarl caught my attention and I looked up to see Sarah punching Emmett hard in the chest, hard enough to where for a moment I truly believed she had punched a hole in him. Emmett flew backwards as Sarah spun around, hissing at me, black eyes filled with livid fury.

There were numerous cracks all over her upper body from where Emmett's blows had landed, all of which started to piece back together as she stalked towards me. My body reacted faster than my brain did as I tossed Alice's severed leg over to where she was, hoping that she would be able to catch it. I didn't even notice the angry, red eyed blonde appear in front of me, kneeing me hard in the gut.

A sharp burst of air left my lungs, as well as a mixture of saliva and blood as I collapsed onto the ground, whimpering at the reignited pain in my abdomen. My vision was starting to blur as I clutched my stomach, unable to fight back a few stray tears from falling. I could vaguely hear the voice of Alice, screaming obscenities and shouting my name, but at the moment, I couldn't bring myself to focus in on them. There was just too much spinning through my head.

I coughed again, cursing my body for being so weak.

Weak. Was I really that weak? That pathetic? Was acting as a distraction the only use I had?

I couldn't…I couldn't just give up. Not with Alice still needing me.

Alice. Mate. I needed to protect her, protect my mate. She needed my help. I can't be weak. No. Protect. Mate. Protect Alice. Help Alice.

_Get off your ass and help her!_

I forced myself to look up to see that Emmett was back on his feet, roaring as he barreled towards Sarah, who was staring down at the small drops of blood that I'd coughed up. He rammed into her, causing the two of them to fly over me, and tackled her to the ground. I felt a rush of energy and fought back the pain as I staggered to my feet and moved over to Alice as fast as I could manage it.

I collapsed down next to her, grabbing her severed leg, though I didn't know what the hell to do.

"Bella!" Alice shouted, wrapping her arms around me. I let go of her leg as she pulled me close to her, dry sobbing as she squeezed me into her. "Oh, Bella. I'm so sorry. Are you okay? Bella, talk to me, how badly hurt are you?"

I smiled weakly at her. "I'm…ugh, f-fine," I lied. "Your…leg-"

"Forget my leg, that can wait!" she shouted. "Damn it, why aren't the others here?"

As she shouted this, Sarah rammed her skull into Emmett's, knocking the giant bear of a brother down. She jumped over him, lunging towards me only to be slammed into by another blur as Emmett stood up, rubbing the back of his head.

Rosalie.

My blonde sister pummeled the newborn, bellowing like a wild lion as she struck Sarah with repeated blows to the face and the chest. Emmett jumped in and aided her in beating down the newborn, who for the first time was actually being overwhelmed. There was one thing that confused me as I watched them beat her down, though.

Why weren't they trying to rip the bitch's head off? Wouldn't that be so much easier?

I mentally smacked myself for getting distracted and grabbed onto Alice's leg once again.

"Alice, what do I do?" I asked.

Alice grimaced. "You have to put my leg back in the exact right spot, then hold it there for a few minutes for it to reattach itself," she replied.

Okay, that sounds easy. Shouldn't be too difficult to do, right?

I moved so that I was at a better angle as I looked down at the stub, trying not to vomit at the sight before me. I hadn't really looked before at it since I'd tried not to think about it, but now that my mind was clear…

I was holding my girlfriend's severed fucking leg.

I blanched and looked away, dropping the leg and trying hard not to vomit. Ugh. Thinking about it just made it worse and I had to jump away from Alice and turn my head as the bile that had been rising spewed out. I coughed several times, hacking the rest of it up, feeling lightheaded and disgusted at the same time.

"Bella," Alice breathed. "I'm sorry. It's okay if you can't do it."

I winced and looked at her, staring into those pained golden orbs. "No, I h-have to, Alice," I choked out, wiping my mouth and crawling back to her. My hand stretched out to grab onto the leg once again when another hand beat me to it. I was startled at first, only to see that it was Rosalie's hand, my blonde sister crouching down and shaking her head.

"Typical of you to get yourself injured," Rosalie chided.

Alice rolled her eyes. "What…what kept you, bitch?"

Rosalie didn't respond at first, her black eyes appraising me. "Are you hurt?"

As if on cue, my stomach panged with pain. I lurched forwards and clutched it. Rosalie took that as a confirmation, sighing as she moved Alice's leg and started fitting it in place. I tried not to watch that and instead watched Emmett and Sarah fight it out.

"I had a bad feeling about this. Edward came running to us and told us that you'd gone and that Alice was gone too, which meant something had happened. We were all prepared to go and search for the two of you when we got a phone call. It was the police chief alerting us that a girl named Angela had her car and phone stolen. Carlisle recognized the name as your friend and before any of us could talk, Emmett bolted out the door. Esme was instantly worried and we all would have charged after him, but Carlisle, the voice of reason, calmed us down."

She finally seemed to find the correct position for Alice's leg.

"Carlisle, Esme and Edward all went to check on Angela while I followed after Emmett. Jasper and Amara will likely be here soon, too."

I nodded absentmindedly as I continued watching the fight between Emmett and Sarah.

"Why don't you just bite her or rip her into pieces?" I asked as Emmett picked Sarah up and slammed her, skull first, into a rock.

Rosalie spoke quickly as she pressed Alice's leg back into place. "Newborn skin is twice as tough as our skin is, so it takes a lot of effort to be able to sink our teeth into them and even more to rip their limbs off. That's why we use our fists, to weaken their skin first. It might not look like it, but the more we get her skin to crack, the more it starts to weaken. Do so enough times and her skin will be weak enough for us to tear it off."

Alice let out a whimpering hiss, shutting her eyes and biting down on her lip. I wrapped my hand around hers and squeezed it, feeling responsible for all the pain that she was going through.

"Will she be okay, Rosalie?" I asked.

Rosalie sighed. "She will be, yes. I just have to hold her leg here for a few minutes until the arteries reconnect themselves and she'll be fine. She won't be able to use her right leg for a short period of time, though. If you ask me, it's the least she deserves for letting herself get in this situation to begin with, the idiot."

Alice laughed weakly. "Hey, cut me some slack here, Rosalie. I did the best I could."

Rosalie snorted. "Obviously not, since you're lying here with me putting your leg back into place, moron. You see, this is what happens when you get a big head. We warned you not to get cocky, Alice, and you did just that."

Alice tried to smile, but the pain she felt made it impossible. She cringed as Rosalie pressed her leg into place again. My heart sunk and panged with remorse and guilt.

"This is my fault," I murmured. "I'm so sorry, Alice. I'm sorry you got hurt because of me."

Alice opened one eye. "Bella, no, it isn't-" She stopped suddenly, her eyes widening. "Oh no…"

"What's wrong?" Rosalie asked.

Alice didn't respond and instead, sharply turned. "Look out!" she shouted.

Rosalie and I looked at the same time to see the large body of Emmett flying through the air towards us; Rosalie thrust out one hand and pulled me down into Alice's arms. She didn't have the chance to react when Emmett collided with her, sending the two of them into the tree that had been behind us. The tree shattered into pieces and fell over.

I tried to let out a scream, but doing so only caused my chest to throb in pain. I closed my eyes as Alice hugged me tightly to her body only to find that the tree wasn't falling on top of me. I opened one eye and came face to face with Amara's toned midsection as she tossed the large section of the tree into Sarah. It practically disintegrated on the angry newborn's body, but she hardly even noticed, her eyes becoming wary at the sight of not one, but two more vampires.

Jasper was there as well, standing in front of Alice and I protectively.

"Are you two alright?" he asked, looking down at us. He noticed Alice's leg had been torn off and he likely felt the pain that both of us were in. "On second thought, don't answer that. For what it's worth, I'm sorry for the pain that you're in. We would have been here sooner was it not for the distractions."

Amara snorted. "Hey, it was an accident, okay? Don't blame _me_." She walked over to us and glanced down at Alice's leg. "And just what happened to you, midget?"

Alice hissed at her. "Shut up, Ama. I'm in no mood for that shit right now."

"It's my fault," I murmured. "This whole mess is my fa-"

Alice cut me off by leaning up and pressing a finger to my lips.

"You shut up too. I will not have you blaming yourself for something that was ultimately my own fault. I should have been less cocky when I fought her, I should have seen what she was going to do. If I had paid more attention, this whole mess could have been avoided. But it is not and I repeat, _not_, your fault Isabella, do you understand me?"

I nodded dumbly, though I still wasn't fully convinced.

"Rose, Em, you two still alive back there?" Amara asked.

I looked over my shoulder and saw Rosalie pushing her husband off of her and standing, brushing herself off. Emmett was on his feet seconds later, cracking his knuckles, a look of annoyance and anger on his usually humorous face.

"She's pissing me off," Rosalie hissed.

"Damn straight. I say we go in there and kill her," Emmett growled.

"I can handle that," Amara suggested, looking at Jasper. "What do you think?"

Jasper pursed his lips. "She's both injured and threatened the lives of members of this family, therefore I don't feel she should have the choice to live. I do, however, want some answers first, so I'd rather focus on getting those before we finish her off."

"Answers? Answers to _what_, Jasper? She tried to_ kill_ my Bella!" Alice snarled.

"I agree with Alice. Fuck her reasons, just kill the bitch," Rosalie growled.

Emmett and Amara both nodded in agreement, outnumbering Jasper's idea four to one. He ran his hand through his hair and seemed to think about it. Sarah, oddly enough, looked frozen in place as she stared at all of us. Her eyes seemed to flicker between irritation and wariness, likely due to the numbers being in our advantage. She looked like she might try to flee, but apparently had thought against it, instead staying in place.

"What if she has some useful information?" Jasper ask, giving them all a serious look. "What if she knows something that we could use to our advantage against our other enemies? That would make killing her now a waste of time and things potentially more dangerous for us."

The others didn't reply at first, clearly soaking in his meaning. I actually saw that he was right, at least in the sense that Sarah might know something that could help us.

Sarah snarled. "What the hell makes you think I'd tell you anything?" she spat.

"You wouldn't have a choice," Amara retorted, baring her teeth at the newborn.

"I'll tell you what," Sarah growled. She jabbed her finger at me. "You give me her, I'll tell you everything you want."

Alice pushed herself up and hugged me protectively, baring her teeth and growling.

"No. You will _not_ touch her again, bitch. Do you hear me?"

Sarah clenched her fists and glared at her. "Then you won't get a damn thing from me."

Jasper stepped forward. "We'll see about that." He turned and faced the others. "Stay here, I'll handle her. I've been trained to fight newborns so I know what to expect and how to best handle them in combat. If I need aid, I'll let you know."

Amara scowled. "Why do you get to have all the fun?" she whined.

"I know you could handle her yourself, Amara," Jasper sighed. "But I'd like to use this chance to get some information, and I can't very well do that if you're pummeling her into the Earth. Besides, someone needs to stay and tend to Alice's leg. Rosalie?"

"I was nearly finished before, so I can finish it now, no problem," Rosalie replied, moving to where she had been prior to having Emmett thrown at her.

Amara groaned, but reluctantly nodded. She crossed her arms petulantly as Rosalie grabbed onto Alice's leg and started to fit it once again, since Sarah's interruption had broken the connection that had been established. Alice hissed and clenched both of her fists tightly to her side. I stroked the back of her left hand, not knowing what else I could do for her.

Jasper sauntered forward, moving at a casual pace towards the angry newborn. Sarah bared her teeth and lunged for his throat. Jasper calmly ducked under her, striking her on the back of the head as he did. He crouched down in a defensive position as she whirled around and swung her leg his way. Jasper blocked it with his right forearm, slamming it down an instant later. He followed through with a left hook the side, catching Sarah completely off guard.

The newborn lurched to the side, giving Jasper room for another strike, which he took by nailing her in the upper chest with a right knee. Sarah toppled backwards, Jasper upon her seconds later, moving so that he was behind her. He opened his arms, likely about to try and wrap them around her, but Sarah snarled and curled into a ball, rolling to the side. Jasper growled and lunged at her, nearly hitting her with a swift punch. It grazed her, however, and caused her to jump back.

"You're not like the others," she hissed, appraising him with intense eyes.

Jasper crouched back down again. "They have the potential, I'm merely better trained."

She cocked her head to the side. "Is that so?"

He didn't respond, waiting for her to make her next move. She did so and lunged at him, but this time moved at a faster pace. Jasper ducked under a wildly swinging arm and turned only to be nailed in the chest by a vicious kick. Jasper went backwards, but caught and steadied himself in midair, landing gracefully as Sarah thrust her left fist at him. He parried it effortlessly, and pushed her aside, angering her even more.

"He's good," I mused quietly, watching as Sarah continuously attempted to attack him, missing each time and receiving a few counterattacks.

"He should be," Amara stated. "He was taught to both train and fight against newborns. It's his specialty when it comes to combat."

Emmett grunted. "Doesn't make him any better than me."

Rosalie, who had finally re-situated Alice's leg, rolled her eyes. "It does, Em. You rely too much on brute strength. Jasper knows how to counter that with little trouble whatsoever, you've seen that whenever you two wrestle."

I stroked Alice's cheek as she bit down on her bottom lip, trying hard not to show the pain she was in. I felt tears welling in the back of my eyes, but pushed them back. I needed to be strong, even if it was meaningless; I needed to show that I was strong for her. It was the least that I could do considering the pain I'd caused her.

"Why are you doing this?" I heard Jasper asked, glancing up to see him holding Sarah's outstretched fist in the palm of his hand. "Why are you desperately trying to fight us? We have no quarrel with you."

Sarah glared scathingly at me. "She _killed_ my family! They told me so! When I woke up, they were all dead and it's because of _her_!"

I hung my head, resting it on Alice's shoulder. I felt her cold hand touch the top of my head and rub it soothingly. Despite all the pain that she was in, she was still trying to comfort me. I could hardly believe it.

"You're obviously mistaken," Jasper replied. "Bella would never hurt someone. You're just being manipulated by those two and their words. You think they care for you, you think that they are your friends. They aren't. You are nothing but a tool to them, a pawn in their twisted game, just like Bella is."

"Was," Alice corrected. "She is nobody's pawn anymore."

"No, you're lying!" Sarah hissed. "She killed them, I _know_ it! I was there! And _don't_ you tell me that James doesn't love me, I _know _he does. He loves me and I love him and I will not listen to your damned lies any longer! You _will_ all die!"

"She really needs to shut up," Amara grumbled.

I felt Alice tense, her hand dropping from my head. I looked up to see her eyes glazed over as a vision overtook her. Emmett, Amara and Rosalie all looked at her as well, though Rosalie was still holding Alice's leg in place. When she came out of her vision, her eyes were wide with worry as she struggled to sit up.

"What's wrong, Alice?" Emmett asked.

"The other two. They're coming!" Alice shouted.

Both Amara and Emmett smirked, clearly looking forward to the action. Rosalie scowled and shook her head while Alice looked at me worriedly. I gulped and watched as Sarah sneered at Jasper, curling her lip back and laughing.

"Do you see, fool? I told you that they were my friends. And they'll be here soon and you'll all be dead. I can finally gain vengeance for all the lives lost because of you, too," she growled, glaring at me. Alice snarled at her, but that just seemed to amuse her more.

"How long do we have?" Rosalie asked.

Alice grimaced. "Not long."

Jasper charged towards Sarah, abandoning his previous approach. She lunged at him, missing as he dodged her. He went to grab onto her again, but she elbowed him in the chest and threw him backwards, though he landed gracefully on his feet. Sarah merely smiled smugly at him. Jasper sighed and blurred back to the rest of us.

"We need to form a strategy and fast," he stated.

Emmett pounded his fists together. "Who needs a strategy? All we gotta do is beat them senseless, then rip into pieces. That's it."

"Emmett, this is serious," Jasper growled. "With a newborn on their side and the gift that the woman possesses, this could be dangerous for us."

"Where's Edward when you need him? Amara mused.

Alice hissed. "He'll be here in one minute and twelve seconds," she muttered darkly.

For a moment, I pondered why she had said it like that. Did Alice blame Edward for this? I didn't get the chance to wonder for long, though, as Alice let out a very angry hiss. Her hiss was followed by another hiss in the distance, one that sent a chill through my spine.

Oh fuck. Not again.

Victoria and James both sauntered into the clearing, Victoria's fiery curls waving about as she narrowed her eyes and smiled at the sight in front of her. James blurred over to Sarah and locked lips with her, sending a feeling of revulsion through my entire body. I turned away, not wanting to throw up again, especially not with most of my family here.

"Well, well, there certainly are a lot of you," said Victoria, her voice as sickening as ever. I could feel her eyes boring into my skull and stupidly looked up. "Hello there, Isabella. It's so good to see you again. Oh my, what's this? Your precious mate is hurt? How delightfully entertaining. I do hope you've enjoyed your rest, but perhaps you should be a good little toy and come back to us before we have to hurt her some more."

The rage that I'd felt earlier from when Alice had been injured resurfaced at her words, igniting the fire inside of me once more. I bared my teeth and snarled as venomously as I could at her, surprising everyone around me, even breaking apart James and Sarah.

"I am_ not_ your toy, bitch," I spat. "And I'll be damned if I'll let you hurt her or _ANY _of them."

Victoria gaped at me with wide eyes for a moment before her usual smirk returned.

"Ooh, how brave we are now that we're surrounded by other vampires," she mocked.

James cackled and stroked Sarah's hair. "What do you say, my love, shall we play with them some more?"

Sarah sneered. "I think we should just end them here and now, don't you, my sweet?"

I felt the overwhelming need to vomit again and struggled to swallow the substance that threatened to rise up my throat, swallowing it back down and grimacing. Dear God, if ever I've been more disgusted, I don't think I could ever say. I would rather listen to Rosalie and Emmett than be forced to watch that garbage anymore.

"I agree with you on that."

I blinked and turned to see Edward had arrived, looking at Alice and I apologetically.

"I'm sorry, Bella. I shouldn't have left-"

"We will discuss that later," Alice snarled, glaring daggers at her brother.

"Alice, it wasn't-"

"Later," she growled, not taking her eyes off of Edward.

Edward sighed, bowing his head ashamedly. He then turned to face the three red-eyed vampires standing across from us. Sarah scowled, Victoria remained smirking and James looked like he was having a damn party.

He laughed and licked his lips. "This is gonna be _fun_."

**A/N: Ooh. Somebody gon' get their ass kicked. Or somebodies.**

**I'd say, another chapter or two of action. Just a heads up. **

**Now then, a couple of things that I would like to say. First and foremost, to those of you who feel that my story is becoming more predictable, I apologize. I am sorry if you feel that I am slipping or that what happens is easy to guess. That was not my intention, not at all. I will say, however, that I won't change what I've written and I won't change anything else about this story. So, if you feel that way, I'm afraid you'll have to take it or leave it.**

**I also wish for everyone to know that the midway point has been passed and now is the slow descent towards the end of this story. Don't worry, it's quite a ways away, so you don't have to be worried about that. I just wanted everyone to be aware of it, that's all.**


	47. Clash

**Disclaimer: I take no credit for the characters or themes of Stephanie Meyer's Twilight. I do claim my own characters and ideas. Rock on!**

**Clash**

Jasper turned to face us, appraising everyone with his dark amber eyes. There was something behind them that I couldn't make out, but I could see the determination behind them, as well as genuine concern. I felt a wave of calm flow into me, and likely through the others too as Jasper closed his eyes for a moment before reopening them.

"Alright, I've been thinking of a plan for this to better work out," he said, quickly and calmly. "I feel that if we follow this we'll be able to eliminate them without any excessive force and that we may even be able to gain some useful information from it."

"Are you sure that's a good idea?" Edward asked, clearly inquiring about Jasper's thoughts.

Jasper nodded. "I think that it will be better if we stick to it. That way, if one of us is eliminated there will a few more options to take over."

"I'm not so certain, Jasper," Edward grunted, furrowing his brow. "It might be too risky if we don't go at them at full strength. I know that you think that gives them the chance for an opening at Bella and Alice, but I feel that it would lessen their chances. They can't go after them if they have to constantly watch their backs, don't you agree?"

"Maybe so," Jasper replied. "You forget, though, the strength of the newborn and the gift that the woman possesses. It'd be foolish to charge in swinging, that's why I feel that keeping to this plan might benefit us in the long run."

"I suppose…" Edward murmured, still sounding uncertain.

"Care to share with the rest of us?" Emmett grunted exasperatedly.

"Seriously, we can't all read minds," Rosalie growled in agreement. "What's this plan of yours?"

Jasper spoke fast. "I've devised a strategy for us to best fight against them, or rather, for three of us to fight them. Edward will face the woman because his gift is the best choice to counteract hers, I will handle the newborn since I have the most experience with newborns and Amara will fight the blonde. I don't know if he has any abilities, but since Amara's the most skilled fighter, it shouldn't be too much of a problem."

Edward nodded hesitantly while Amara smirked, grinning tauntingly at the blonde vampire several feet away from her. James cocked his head to the side while Victoria looked mildly irritated by the way things were going. Not only that, but I assumed that she was upset that we all knew about her gift, since she'd never meant for us to find out.

Emmett groaned. "What? What about me? What am I supposed to do?"

"Rosalie, you'll stay here and help piece Alice's leg back together since you've already started to do that and you're nearly finished, and Emmett, you'll guard her, Alice and Bella. If one of us falls, it'll be up to you to take over in the fight. I know you don't like the sound of it, Emmett, but I need you to stay back and give us a chance."

"Are you done over there?" James interrupted, cocking his head to the side. "I'd really like to start this game, if you don't mind. I'm getting a little bored here and my poor Sarah is starting to get hungry. And we wouldn't want that for poor little Bella, now would we?" He turned his mocking eyes to me, making me nearly want to vomit again. Ugh.

Alice snarled menacingly at him, but because of the predicament she was in, she could do little else, so she remained silent. Victoria, to my surprise, hissed at him too.

"You know the deal, James," she growled. "Our goal is for her to be alive, not dead. She is _our_ plaything, after all."

"Yes, yes, I know," he replied, holding his hands up.

Sarah was the next to snarl. "What? You want her _alive_? No! She killed my family! She deserves to die for tha-"

Victoria grabbed her throat with her right hand and thrust her left one into her upper chest. She released the newborn, Sarah collapsing to her knees and lurching forward. She glared scathingly at Victoria, hurt and confusion in her dark eyes. Victoria stood with authority as she bared her teeth, silencing any protest that Sarah looked like she was about to speak.

"Silence, fool," Victoria hissed. "Have you forgotten who it was who saved you? It _wasn't _your precious James." She jabbed her finger at him, much to his disdain. "No, it was _me_. _I_ saved your wretched life after what was done to you, therefore you serve me. And I say that you will_ not_ kill the human. You can take your anger out on the others, yes. I don't give a shit about them. But the human girl is _mine _and therefore, she must not die. Do you understand that, fool?"

Sarah bowed her head and muttered something that I didn't catch, but whatever she said seemed to please Victoria. The fiery haired vampire turned her red eyes on to me, boring into mine with silent promises of things to come if she were to get her hands on me. I gulped and lowered myself into Alice's arms, my pixie holding me tightly to her.

"You will not have her," Alice snarled at the three nomads.

James cackled. "Oh? And what are you-"

"Enough!" Jasper snarled, his usually calm voice ripping through the area with unkempt fury. He looked at Alice and I, then to Edward and Amara. "Edward, Amara, let's go."

"Finally, some action," Amara laughed, grinning wildly.

Edward sighed, stepping forward. "Be careful, Amara. Don't get too confident."

Amara snorted. "I won't pull an Alice, I promise. I can't help it, though. I've been waiting for a good fight for a while and I'm finally getting the chance. Of course, for a man, my opponent acts like a little bitch, so I'm not expecting too much."

"Ooh, cocky bitch, aren't you?" James sneered with a smirk.

Amara didn't respond and instead charged, Edward and Jasper doing the same. Victoria snarled and tried to push past them, but Edward was there a moment later, swinging his leg at her. She ducked it with ease and jumped back while Jasper reengaged Sarah and Amara dove at James.

"Man, why do I have to sit out?" Emmett grumbled, pacing back and forth.

"Shut up, Emmett," growled Alice. "Be thankful you can still fight. _I'm_ the one who's forced to be taken care of while my family and the love of my life are in danger. So keep your mouth shut and be grateful that your legs are still working."

Emmett's shoulders slumped. "Sorry, Alice," he mumbled.

I placed my right hand on top of Alice's head, rubbing it. I didn't know what else to do aside from try and comfort her. What else could I do in a situation like this? Alice closed her eyes and leaned into my touch, sighing contently even though she was still in pain. Rosalie kept at what she was doing, holding Alice's leg in place while the others battled it out.

My eyes couldn't stay away from the fight for too long, so I allowed myself the chance to watch, hoping that Edward, Amara and Jasper would be able to kill the bastards once and for all.

Each of the fights started off fast and jumbled, but eventually they broke away from one another, giving me the chance to watch each one intently. Edward and Victoria's fight was fast paced, with each vampire moving like lightning to try and attack one another. Edward lunged, thrusting his arm out to punch her, but she gracefully ducked under it. She attempted to retaliate only to hit air, likely because Edward read what she intended to do.

Sarah and Jasper's fight was much different, since Sarah seemed to be purely on the offense as she lunged repeatedly for Jasper. Jasper smoothly countered each of her attempted attacks, striking her on occasion, but mostly remaining on the defense. My guess was that he was doing so in order to get her angry, since the angrier she got, the wilder she would become and the easier it would be for Jasper to dispatch her.

Then there was the battle between James and Amara, which was, for lack of a better term, intense. Both of them seemed to be enjoying the chance for battle as they exchanged blows, each trying to best the other through physical strength alone.

"This is crazy," I breathed as I watched on.

Emmett snorted. "It's not all _that_ great. Jasper and Amara are just holding back."

I gaped at that and wondered how skilled the two of them really were, Edward too for that matter. Then I started to think: maybe they could do this. Maybe they could defeat James, Victoria and Sarah and end this here and now. I started to become excited by the prospect of them winning this battle, ending my nightmares and my fears about them for good.

I found myself smiling, though that smile was wiped clean by a glare from Victoria.

"Don't get cocky," she hissed. "You'll be next, _Isabella_."

"_I'm_ the one you're fighting," Edward growled, lunging for her. Victoria reacted too slowly as the bronze haired telepath kneed her in the chest. Victoria hissed and jumped back, clutching her stomach for a brief moment. "And _you_ will not get to her, woman."

She snarled and dodged one of Edward's attacks, spinning around and ramming her left heel into his back. Edward fell back, but speedily recovered and lunged again. This time when Victoria moved to dodge, Edward switched his attack and nailed her clean with a straight right to the face, causing the red haired bitch to teeter backwards. He followed through and sunk his teeth into her right shoulder, causing her to yelp in pain.

"Little shit!" she roared, slamming her left fist into the back of his head. Her fingers curled into his bronze hair and yanked him off of her, ramming his face into the ground.

James laughed. "Losing your touch, eh Victoria?"

Amara vanished and appeared behind him, swinging her right arm. James smirked and ducked beneath it, hitting her square in the ribs with an elbow. Amara lurched forward, giving James the opportunity to follow through, which he attempted to take. Amara's lips curled into a sneer as she caught his lunging arm and rammed her forehead into his. The impact caused James to fall onto the ground, Amara jumping on him not even a second later.

Sarah growled and lunged at Amara, clipping her shoulder when Jasper careened into her to prevent her from getting his mate. James used the distraction and pushed Amara off of him, jumping to his feet and dashing at her seconds after. He thrust his right arm forward only to have his fist blocked by Amara's forearm. James lashed out with his other arm, but met the air when Amara ducked under his arm. He hissed and attempted to hit her once again.

His attack was once again blocked, this time by Amara's right knee. Irritated, James tried once more, but was sharply cut off when Amara thrust her left leg upwards right into his nether regions. James' eyes bulged outwards as he collapsed to the ground, clutching his stomach in pain that he could not fight off, no matter how ruthless or strong he was.

"Ooh!" Emmett grimaced, turning his head slightly. "That's low, Amara."

I had to stifle a laugh at the malicious smirk on Amara's face as she stood up. Even Alice looked like she was about to laugh, though she caught herself and quelled it. Victoria snorted in annoyance at her fallen comrade while Sarah roared, trying to push past Jasper to get to her mate.

James squirmed to his feet and wildly swung at Amara, the redhead shaking her head and sighing as she easily blocked his attack. She grabbed onto his arm and threw him over heard head, causing him to slam into a nearby rock. The rock broke into pieces as James, his eyes pitch black, groaned and staggered to his feet.

"Pitiful," Amara chided. "I was hoping for more of a challenge."

A flash of fiery hair blurred into view as Victoria tackled Amara to the ground. I turned slightly to see that Edward was down as well, though he was slowly beginning to rise. Victoria lunged, nearly sinking her teeth into Amara. Amara, however, punched her in the side of the face before she got that chance, quickly following through with a right to the chest, then a spinning kick to knock Victoria backwards.

James and Edward were both on their feet now, each of them lashing out at their respective opponents. James managed to land a successful blow on Amara, knocking her backwards with a powerful kick to the midsection. He sneered and lunged with bared teeth, biting down on Amara's right hand. Amara hissed and swatted him off, pulling her injured hand to her mouth.

"What is she doing?" I asked.

Alice responded. "She's sucking the…agh!" She winced when Rosalie pushed on her leg again, since she'd finally managed to find the proper location.

I squeezed her hand sympathetically. "Does it hurt?"

"Its like re-breaking a bone to put it back on its proper place, only the pain is twice as strong and it lingers," Rosalie replied. "Coupled together with the burning feeling that comes from the venom reconnecting the veins and muscles together, and it's quite excruciating, I'd imagine."

I winced, unable to even fathom the pain Alice was going through. "Alice…"

Alice shook her head and squeezed my hand. "I'm fine. It's nothing I haven't felt before. Anyways, what Amara did was suck the venom out of her wound, which nullifies the numbness that it naturally causes. It's a fast and efficient way to avoid losing access to one of our limbs, unless the area that was bitten can't be reached, like the neck or the thigh or what have you."

"Rosalie, how much longer until her leg is fixed?" I asked anxiously.

Rosalie sighed. "Once I get Alice's leg in place, I have to hold it there until the venom reconnects all of her arteries and the muscle reattaches. That in itself will take a few minutes, and then it will be about an hour before her leg is useable again. Thus is the price paid for being arrogant and letting herself get into this predicament in the first place."

"Fuck you, Rose…" Alice muttered.

Rosalie rolled her eyes, pressing Alice's leg in place. "She'll be fine, though. Don't worry."

I nodded and returned to watching the battles taking place. James was now on the offensive and was surprisingly proving to be more able than I'd originally thought. His attacks were faster and more precise, Amara actually being forced to defend herself more. She smiled, actually enjoying the challenge that he was presenting her. They traded blows from time to time, but for the most part, James was the attacker.

Victoria and Edward's fight was picking up in pace and intensity. Their attacks and movements were the fastest and the hardest to follow, though by the looks of things, they were both evenly matched in their skills. I remembered what Arthur had told me about Victoria's gift making it easy for her to avoid attacks, a super sixth sense of sorts, which must've made it more of a challenge for Edward. He seemed to be straining himself, though that was likely from her mind.

A loud roar echoed throughout the forest. I turned abruptly and saw Sarah's anger filled eyes boring into Jasper's calm dark butterscotch ones. She ripped towards him, wildly swinging and missing each and every time. I wondered why she was so angry, then realized that he was likely using his gift to rile her up. Why, though?

"They're manipulating you," Jasper said in compelling tone. "I can feel the doubt that you have and the lack of concern that they feel towards you. You are nothing to them, nothing more than a pawn in their game. You can see this, feel this, yet you deny it."

"Shut up, shut up, shut up!" Sarah snarled. "I won't listen to you!"

Jasper sighed. "You really are a fool, aren't you? It's a wonder you've even come this far. I felt the emotions coming off of them when they spoke to you. That kiss? There was no love behind it, not even an ounce of passion. It was just lust. So in reality, he doesn't love you, he just wants you because of your looks. What's sadder is that you truly believe he loves you, but the fact is that every kiss, every word…they're all lies."

Jasper's plan worked as Sarah's rage took over her, causing her to snarl wildly and charge at him with her teeth bared. Jasper spun around and ducked, hitting her in the chest with his left elbow, causing her to lurch forward. Jasper followed through with a right knee to her face, then a left straight, the impact making her head spin. That was apparently the opening that Jasper had been looking for, since he surged forward and wrapped one arm around her neck and using the other to pin her arms to the side of her body.

"Let me go!" roared Sarah, struggling vehemently to free herself.

Jasper tensed up and began using his gift, sending out an intense wave of calm into the angered newborn's whole body. Sarah continued to struggle for another minute before ultimately slumping into Jasper's hold, her eyes glazed with weariness and calmness.

James snarled and prepared to attack Jasper, but Amara nailed him in the side of the neck with a powerful left kick. The blonde male slammed into the ground, rolling once before getting to his feet, eyes gleaming with anger. Victoria attempted to bypass Edward, but the speedy thinking bronze haired vampire blocked her, throwing out a flurry of strikes to push her back.

"Stop right there," Jasper growled. "If you attempt to move, I'll kill your ally. If you comply with us, however, I'll consider letting her live."

Victoria snorted. "We don't have to do what you tell us."

"He has Sarah!" James hissed, glaring at his partner.

Victoria growled and grabbed James by the throat. "She is of no importance to me! Look! If she can't even defeat a single one of them, then what good is she to us? Forget about her, James, she's useless to us! You can create a new mate for yourself later on, now let's _go_."

"No!" James rumbled. "You promised that we would keep her alive, Victoria! What the hell gives?"

The fiery haired vampire tsk-ed and threw her comrade to the ground, stomping on his chest.

"Don't be a fool, James," she warned. "If she's too weak to have gotten herself into this situation, she means nothing to us. Were she smarter, she would have known that the blonde was trying to get her angry, but instead she walked into his trap. Do not try to argue with me, James Witherdale; otherwise I'll end your petty life here and now."

James bared his teeth at her, but otherwise made no verbal argument. Victoria snorted and removed her foot from his chest, glaring at the rest of us. James got to his feet and glared hatefully at Jasper for capturing his mate, even though his eyes never once met with Sarah's. The newborn remained docile in Jasper's hold, though I could see from her eyes that she was trying to fight it in order to free herself from his grip.

"Will you surrender or will you keep fighting?" Jasper asked, tightening his hold.

Victoria didn't give him a response and looked like she was about to leave, but both Edward and Amara blocked her path. She hissed, her entire body vibrating as the noise escaped her mouth, her eyes darting about for a useable escape route.

"That won't work," Edward warned. "You can't escape. Try to, and we finish both her and the two of you."

Amara laughed. "On that note, please _do_ try and escape. It makes things more fun for me, especially since I happen to you owe you two jackasses a bit of payback for what you did to my new little sister. So go on, try it. Try to flee or to attack. I'm _begging_ you."

Both vampires looked conflicted, though the reasoning for their conflict was different. Victoria wanted nothing more than to abandon Sarah to her own demise and flee. She hated the idea of fleeing, but she could see that she was outnumbered and wanted to live to fight another day. On the other hand, James was visibly irritated by his partner and looked like he wanted to help Sarah. Was Jasper right, though? Did he not truly love her? I couldn't tell because I honestly couldn't see someone as heartless and cruel as James ever finding "love" with someone.

Rosalie's voice interrupted my attention from what was going on.

"There," she grunted. "Now all we have to do is wait."

I glanced down and saw that she had Alice's leg in the perfect position. She was holding it there now, and would have to do so for a few minutes until everything had healed.

"It'd better heal fast, damn it," Alice groaned.

I squeezed Alice's hand reassuringly, stroking the back of it with my thumb. She looked up at me and gave me a weak smile. I could see the worry in her eyes, though, and that she was clearly uncertain about the outcome of this battle. I kissed her cheek and huddled as close to her as I could manage before turning my attention back to the fights.

"Damn it," Victoria cursed. "Stupid fool, getting yourself caught like that!"

James remained in place, neither speaking nor moving. I couldn't make out what his emotional state was other than the rage in his coal black eyes. His hands were balled into tight fists, the air around him tense with fury. Jasper could sense this too, no doubt, and was using it against him, as if to goad him into trying to attack. I was surprised that James was able to stay his ground, though it was agonizing for him to do so.

"It looks like your "friends" aren't going to do anything to help you," Jasper sighed.

"Fuck…you…" Sarah grumbled. "I will _not_ be beaten that easily!"

Sarah started to writhe about in Jasper's arms, hitting him with sharp elbows to his sides, one after the other as she struggled. Jasper grimaced, trying to keep her under control while being hammered by her repeated strikes. Eventually Jasper's grip slipped and Sarah freed herself, spinning around and nailing him in the chest with a powerful punch. The impact sent him flying backwards into the forest, landing with a loud crash.

Amara growled and rushed towards her only to be met head on by Victoria. Victoria sneered and dropped downwards, sinking her teeth into Amara's right leg. Amara yelped at the pain, but kneed Victoria in the face with her other leg before she could tear it. Victoria reeled backwards momentarily and tried to attack again, but Amara lunged forward and bit down on Victoria's right shoulder, making her shriek in pain this time.

Enraged, Victoria slammed her left fist into Amara's throat. The feisty redhead grasped her throat as she lurched forward. Victoria laughed and swatted her aside before refocusing her eyes on me, her eyes alit with irritation, yet at the same time, confidence.

Before she could move, however, Jasper blurred out from the forest and collided into her. He snarled venomously at the damage she'd done to his mate and aimed to attack her, but Sarah appeared behind him and bit down in the center of his back. Jasper yelped as he suddenly dropped to his knees. Edward rushed to try and save him, but was backhanded by James.

"Ha! Not so high and mighty now, are ya?" James taunted.

Edward hissed, surging towards the blonde vampire with his teeth bared. Jasper, on the other hand, was downed as Sarah went and bit down on each of his legs. She didn't tear them off, but instead poured her venom into his system, causing him to snarl and squirm in pain. Victoria hovered over him, her leg pressed down onto the back of his neck.

With just one usable leg, Amara was able to get to Victoria and jump on her, using her superior height to wrap her good leg and her arms around the shorter vampire's body. Victoria snarled as Amara constricted around her, viciously biting down on Victoria's other shoulder and tearing a piece of Victoria's flesh off with glee.

Victoria let out a loud, high pitched shriek that sounded like music to my ears. I found myself smiling, even with all the shit going on, at the pain inflicted on the bitch who'd tormented me for so many months. Once she'd halted her screaming, she writhed around as best she could before ramming the back of her head into Amara's jaw. After several successive hits, Amara released her hold on Victoria and fell back, landing with a rough thud as Victoria dropped down.

She bit down on her right shoulder as Amara struggled to stand with one usable leg. Emmett tensed up next to Rosalie and looked like he was about to charge in, but Rosalie grabbed his leg and held him firmly in place. Emmett growled, though he remained in place, waiting for his chance to charge into the fight to aid his siblings.

I watched as Edward frantically tried to bypass James, using his high speed to move around him, even, so that he could get to his siblings. Sarah slammed her heel roughly into Jasper's back before hissing and lunging at Edward, sinking her teeth into his lower chest. James attacked from behind, nailing Edward in the back of the head. Sarah removed her teeth as James tossed Edward aside, the two of them stalking towards the downed Jasper.

With all of her might, Amara thrust herself upon James, tackling him to ground as Sarah made her way to Jasper, picking him up and wrapping both arms around his neck. She smirked mockingly at Amara, causing her to freeze instantly. James hit her square in the jaw and pushed her off of him, throwing her on top of Edward.

Oh, shit.

"Jasper!" I shouted.

Emmett, who had been watching the exchange between Edward and James, quickly realized what was happening to his brother. His whole body tensed for a moment and he abruptly let out a grizzly roar before barreling forward

"Em, no!" Rosalie shouted, realizing too late what was happening.

Emmett didn't hear her as he charged at the three vampires. He lunged for Sarah first, using his big arm like a club and smashing it into her face. The newborn flew backwards, colliding with her mate as Jasper fell down to the ground, grunting in pain. Emmett dropped to one knee and checked on Jasper, who merely nodded to Emmett silently.

James and Sarah both blurred after Emmett, each coming at him from one side. Using his superior strength, Emmett grabbed onto both of them, picked them up and slammed them into the ground. He didn't let go of them, though, and moved his hands to pick them up again, this time by the back of their heads.

"Here, give each other a little kiss!" growled Emmett, pounding their faces together.

"Rosalie, behind you!" Alice shouted, breaking my attention.

Rosalie hissed and spun around as Victoria sped towards us, both of her arms working as good as new since she'd drained the venom from each of her shoulders. I noticed that part of her left shoulder was gone thanks in part to Amara, even though her arm looked to be working just fine.

"Bella, hold Alice's leg in place!" Rosalie shouted before standing and charging at Victoria.

"Shit," I cursed, securing Alice's leg. It looked like it was just now starting to heal. "Why the fuck can't this thing heal faster?"

Alice growled, not at me, but rather in agreement. "I don't know. I hope it does, damn it."

I heard a variety of noises as I focused on keeping Alice's leg in place, from feral growls to noises like thunder and lightning. The ground shook beneath me, too, almost making me think that there was a massive earthquake going on several feet away from me. Try as I might, I couldn't help but look up to see how the fighting was doing, my concern for Emmett and Rosalie's health and my hope that the others would heal.

Emmett threw both of the vampires to the ground, crouching down and waiting for them to get up so that he could continue his beating. I turned my attention to Rosalie and Victoria's fight to see that Rosalie was faring surprisingly well against the evil redhead. Victoria snarled as Rosalie pummeled her in the face, hissing as she did. She surged forwards and attempted to bite Victoria's arm, but Victoria jumped over her to avoid.

Rosalie turned around like lightning and struck Victoria in the face with a powerful right, catching Victoria completely off guard. Victoria landed with a crash, but squirmed to her feet and lunged at Rosalie once more. Rosalie went backwards to avoid the attack and I finally saw why Alice had said that Rosalie's fighting style was like a snake. She was just as limber as a snake, not to mention the biting power and speed of her strikes.

Rosalie lifted herself with her hands and moved her legs so that they were coiled around Victoria's waistline. The redhead snarled as Rosalie pulled the redhead back, ramming her skull into the ground with as much force as possible. My blonde sister jumped up and dusted her sleeves off, looking rather smug at what she'd done. She glanced over her shoulder and watched as Emmett crashed into James, knocking him into the forest.

Sarah snarled and attempted to attack Emmett from behind only to receive a thrust kick to the back of her neck from Rosalie. What Rosalie didn't see, however, was Victoria standing, her eyes seething with anger.

"Rosalie, behind you!" I shouted.

Rosalie moved a fraction of a second too late and Victoria bit into her right forearm. Victoria didn't bother trying to rip her arm off, though and instead landed a powerful hit into Rosalie's throat, followed by another one to the back of her neck. I heard a snap and watched in horror as Victoria stomped onto the back of Rosalie's neck, causing her to go limp on the ground.

"NO!" Emmett roared, charging at her.

James blurred in front of him and bit down on his left leg, Sarah doing the same to his right. Emmett snarled and struggled to keep himself going, even managing to punch Sarah in the face with as much strength as he could, but the combined effects of the venom was too much and the giant finally toppled down, groaning as he crashed into the earth.

"Damn it," Emmett cursed.

I felt my heart pang with pain at the sight and looked around, seeing that all of my siblings had been downed. Jasper was struggling to try and stand, Edward too. I couldn't see where Amara was, but she was likely attempting the same. Rosalie's body twitched and I caught a flash of her black eyes wincing in pain.

No.

They'd all been beaten. They were all hurt now. Shit.

"No…" Alice breathed, her eyes widening in horror at what she was witnessing. I could tell that our minds were on the same wavelength as we realized that, with the others unable to move, that left the two of us wide open. That meant that I was vulnerable. Alice turned her head abruptly and grabbed onto my arm.

"Bella, leave me and run. I'll stall them, just run!" she shouted, her eyes pleading with me.

Victoria laughed. "You honestly think you can stop us, girl? With just one leg? How cute."

I shook my head furiously. "Alice, I won't."

Alice snarled. "Goddamn it Bella, get out of-" She stopped suddenly, her eyes glazing over for a brief moment before she sharply turned. "Amara, no!"

I looked up to see James, Sarah and Victoria charging towards us with bared teeth. Reacting on instinct, I jumped over Alice's body, shielding it with my own. It was a pitiful last ditch effort, I knew, but I would do everything in my power to protect my Alice. As they neared, I caught sight of Amara standing in my peripherals and holding something in her hand. I heard an odd noise that sounded like…a match being lit?

My eyes widened when a jet of fire snaked across the ground several inches away from Alice and I, growing at a fast rate to form a wall of fire. Victoria, James and Sarah all stopped dead in their tracks, each of them taking on the same facial expressions of alarm and shock. I quickly realized what was going on.

Amara was using her gift, the ability to manipulate fire. I'd always been curious about it and how exactly she could use it, but it seemed that I would no longer need to wonder anymore, since now I would have a front row seat watching it in action.

I saw Amara slowly staggering towards them, her eyes gleaming with fury. A used match dropped from her hand as she bared her teeth, clenching both of her hands into fists. The fire spread more, encircling the three vampires and trapping them inside of it. Amara calmly walked over to Emmett and Rosalie, picking each of them up with one arm and gently setting them near Edward and Jasper. I saw Jasper look at her with concern, but she ignored the look and walked into the middle of the flaming circle, glaring down the three frightened vampires.

"Amara!" Jasper shouted. "Don't do this! Not here!"

Amara once again ignored her mate, the look in her eyes like nothing I'd ever seen before. I quivered in fright and clung to Alice as though she were the only thing keeping me safe from being swallowed up by the glare reflected in our sister's eyes. Alice tensed under me and to my surprise flipped us over so that she was the one shielding me, her body curling around mine protectively, even her unmoving leg.

"Stay down," Alice whispered. "And don't move."

"What the hell?" Victoria hissed.

"What is this? What…are you…?" James trailed off, unable to form a coherent question.

Amara slowly began to lift her arms up, the fire being her rising with them.

"I'm ending this," she growled, her lips curling into a sadistic smile.

The flames behind Amara rose and meshed together, creating a large wave of flame. I watched as the faces of the three vampires contorted in fear as Amara thrust her arms downwards. Their fear became horror when the wave of flame followed her movements and dropped downwards, surging towards them. The worst part for them? They had nowhere to escape. They were trapped.

**A/N: Yo!**

**First off, special thank you to Departed for an amazing review and many, many kind words. That is by far the longest review I've ever received and probably one of the best and it certainly made me feel a lot better about my writing (not that the rest of you don't, mind you). Also thank you to all of you who stick by me no matter what someone else says. That means a lot to me, guys. So thank you.**

**Secondly, I have officially started school and thus, do not expect updates as early as you're used to. That doesn't mean I won't keep with the "update every two days" thing I've got going on, that just means that you'll have to be a bit more patient until I can find the time I need to post a chapter. At the very latest, if something comes up and I can't post on that day, it WILL be up the day after. You'll just have to be patient is all.**

**And thirdly and finally, if you are in your chairs celebrating the demise of those three, don't. Never jump to conclusions with my story, because I _always_ love a good twist. :D**

**Oh, and for those of you who are sick of the action, it will be coming to a close soon.**


	48. Flames

**Disclaimer: I take no claim for any of Stephanie Meyer's characters or themes or anything. On the other hand, I do take credit for my ideas and characters. Here goes nothing...**

**Flames**

As the wave of fire curved downwards, the three trapped vampires seemed to snap from their state of shock and actually attempted to move away. Victoria was the fastest to react and leapt into the air, spinning so as to avoid the flames. James and Sarah moved seconds later, both rolling out of the way to avoid the column of fire. The wave crashed into the ground, missing all of its intended targets. But Amara was far from being finished.

Amara moved her arms upward, palms opened up and facing the sky. The flames that had hit the ground extended outwards, half going right, the other half going left like arms. The arms of fire shot upwards, then forwards, one arm aimed for Victoria, the other for James and Sarah.

"Move!" Victoria shouted.

Victoria jumped over the tendril of fire, gracefully spinning in mid-air again to avoid it. James ducked under the one that was after him while Sarah was able to step aside, her eyes wide as the tendrils of fire collided into one another, forming a large sphere. Amara clenched both of her hands and the large sphere dissipated into nothingness, leaving just the circular wall of fire that surrounded her and the three nomadic vampires.

Amara ground her teeth in frustration and quickly reached into her left pant pocket, pulling out another match. Victoria snarled as she prepared to strike the match, charging full force at her redheaded opponent, both James and Sarah following behind her.

Victoria lunged with bared teeth at Amara, but Amara smirked and ducked under her while she started to spin. Midway through her spin Amara used her left hand to grab onto Victoria's leg, then used the momentum of her spin to fling Victoria into her two comrades. The evil redhead collided with James and Sarah, causing a vampire train wreck.

Quickly Amara grabbed the match she had pulled out and extended her right index finger. At a speed that I could barely see, she struck the match against her finger, lighting it instantly. I watched as Amara brought the match close to her face, cocking her head to the side as she appraised the small flame it produced, an odd smile on her face.

James, Sarah and Victoria all clambered to their feet in irritation only to see Amara holding onto a newly lit match. She traded over hands so that she was holding the match in her right and opened the palm of her left hand up. Suddenly the small flame from the match jumped into Amara's hand, floating inches above her opened palm. In mere seconds the small flame grew into the size of a baseball as a smile curled upon Amara's face.

This was an entirely different side to Amara, one that I hadn't seen before or even knew existed for that matter. Questions started pulsing through my mind as I gaped at the sight in front of me, wondering what had triggered this change in persona.

What was going on here? What was up with her? Why the hell was she acting like this?

Amara thrust her left arm forward, the baseball sized fireball shooting out from her palm, turning into a jet of fire. The action was so fast that not even Victoria had a chance to move away, the flame streak scraping her right shoulder and setting ablaze the fur coat that she had loved so dearly. Victoria hissed and tossed the coat off of her as the fire swallowed it up, turning it into little more than a pile of ashes.

The flame streak that had destroyed Victoria's coat surged towards James and Sarah, but both of them were able to narrowly avoid it, though it did singe a portion of James' sleeve. Amara clenched her hand into a fist and the fire suddenly stopped in midair, reforming itself as a sphere in shape. She then turned her flicked her wrist backwards, causing the fireball to swerve back into the palm of her hand.

"You're next," Amara growled, licking her lips.

"Fat chance of that, bitch," Victoria sneered.

"We'll see," Amara replied, cupping the fireball with both of her hands.

I felt overwhelmingly dazed and confused by what I was seeing; I looked up at Alice, whose body was tense as her black eyes watched her sister's every move.

"Alice, what's going on? What's happening to Amara?" I asked in a whisper.

Alice bit her lip and shook her head.

"She's being reckless is what she's doing," she growled. "The fool knows better than to use her gift in a place like this, but there's no sense in trying to reach her now that she's started to. Once she starts to use her gift, she zones out of reality and into her own world. It's hard to explain, but you can see it yourself by the look in her eyes."

I looked into her eyes and saw concern and worry in them. "Alice, what's wrong? You look really worried."

Alice grimaced. "I'm worried that this will end up like the last time she used her gift when we were fighting, especially considering the type of environment that we're in right now and the fact that you're here. That alone scares me to death, Bella."

"But I thought Amara was really good at using her gift?" I asked, confused.

"It's not that simple, Bella," she replied. "Did anyone ever explain to you how Amara's gift works?"

My eyes flickered to the fight, watching Amara engage Sarah for a moment, watching as the fireball that Amara had been holding dissipated as the newborn struck her in the chest, though Amara quickly recovered from the blow and retaliated.

Amara growled and went for another match, though she wasn't able to light it because of Sarah's continuing attacks. I watched for a few seconds before looking at Alice again and shaking my head. I had to wipe my forehead with my arm because of the sweat that was forming, the heat from the fire several feet away from me surprisingly strong. I was thankful, at the very least, that Alice was lying on top of me. Her naturally cold body temperature was likely the main factor in keeping me from sweating waterfalls because of the intensity of the wall of fire nearby.

"I don't fully understand it for myself, but from what I've been told and from what I've seen, when Amara uses her gift, any body of fire that is near her is within her control. That fire, when Amara starts to use it, becomes a physical extension of her own body. That's why whenever she moves, the fire she happens to be controlling moves. She can manipulate practically everything about fire, the size, the heat, even its shape. But…"

"But what?"

"There's a major problem with her gift, one that she has yet to fully work out. It's the control aspect of it."

I furrowed my brow, trying to ignore the hissing, snarling and the eruptive thunder sounds coming from close by.

"I don't understand," I murmured.

"When Amara uses her gift, she needs to concentrate on it. The more fire around her, the more she has to concentrate on that in order to keep the flames from damaging herself or anyone around her that isn't supposed to get hurt. Right now, she's dividing her concentration between the wall of fire that's keeping her and those other three trapped inside and the flames that she's using to attack them, all the while trying to make sure the fire doesn't get out of control. And then each time she lights a match, she's also trying to concentrate on manipulating the fire that she creates."

"The more she has to concentrate on, the more strain it puts on her body and the weaker her level of control gets. She can't keep this up forever, though, because of the mental exhaustion that it brings. Not even we vampires can keep up with things forever, as strange as that may sound. It's dangerous for Amara and for us, especially considering the predicament that we're in right now and the location that we're in. Amara has to make sure that she can keep her fire in check so that she doesn't set any of the forest on fire."

"Not only that, but have you noticed that there is no smoke? That's also Amara's doing, since she's keeping the flaming circle she's created from creating smoke. Otherwise that would alert any humans nearby and this would turn into a mess. That takes quite a bit of concentration, too."

Alice let out another growl after finishing, baring her teeth slightly. "I swear to God, Amara, if you let this get out of control like last time…"

I heard a brief snarl from the other side from Amara, but no verbal response.

"What happened last time?" I inquired in a whisper.

Alice hesitated slightly, obviously trying to decide whether or not to answer. Then she decided to give me an answer and turned her head so that her black eyes were boring into mine. I could still see the worry and concern in them, but her face was slightly softer when our eyes met.

"There have been several occasions where Amara has lost control over her gift and the ending results were disastrous. On one occasion, Amara accidentally slipped up while trying to keep her gift in check. And, well…it won't be something that she can ever forget. Because of all of the accidents caused, Amara rarely ever uses her gift. When she feels that both her and the rest of us are being threatened, though, she'll use it. That's the thing, though. She doesn't think things through enough; she just goes at it without considering what could happen."

I heard the sound of a match being lit and knew that Amara must have lit the match she'd pulled out not too long ago. The angry hisses and growls from Victoria, James and Sarah confirmed my suspicions, but I didn't look at them. I focused my attention on Alice as she continued to speak.

"That has always been Amara's problem and it's bitten both her and the rest of us in the ass before, whether she meant for it to or not. We've even had to move a few times because the fires destroyed our house or a part of the area that we had been living in, which the humans thankfully blamed on wildfires. She always felt guilt ridden and remorseful for it afterwards, even if we didn't blame her for what happened, which we never did."

Alice took in an unnecessary breath and sighed. "It's not always her fault. She tries to control herself and her gift as hard as she can, but sometimes she overestimates her own ability or something happens that gets in the way of her concentration. She's been at it for years now and she can control it relatively well, but right now, she's panicked. And that is not a good sign."

"How do you know she's panicked? She seems fine to me," I murmured.

Alice shook her head. "She might seem that way, but underneath she's panicking. I know because I know her extremely well. She's scared that she might lose this fight and lose all of us in the process, which leads her to believe that resorting to her last effort is the best idea. Amara might be smiling wickedly on the outside and acting confident and in control, but there is so much more going on under the surface. Edward knows it. Jasper knows it. I know it. We all do."

"She's right." I nearly jolted upwards and would have were Alice's arms not around me.

Edward. I hadn't even seen him crawl over here.

"Sorry," he murmured. He was leaning against the tree, grimacing. "I heard your thoughts and decided to come over here and try and help you understand."

"Are you alright?" I asked, remembering that he'd been bitten.

"The venom is nearly gone now," he replied. "I'll be sore for a little while, but I'll live."

"What about the others? Jasper? Emmett? Rosalie?"

"They're all fine. Jasper is in the same condition that I'm in, though he's healed a bit more. As far as Rosalie goes, don't worry. She's in massive pain, but she's alright. She won't be moving for a little while, though. Emmett, he's the toughest. He's hurting too, of course, but he'll be back on his feet in no time at all. Amara, though, her thoughts are everywhere."

He turned his dark amber eyes to the fight, watching on with concern in his eyes.

"Her mind is torn between trying to keep the flames at bay, trying to protect all of us and trying to finish off all three of her opponents. She's realizing now that it was foolhardy of her to engage them like this, that much she regrets, but she doesn't regret her decision to try and protect her family. I fear that this might not end well, however."

I grimaced and turned my eyes away from him, glancing back to see Victoria, James and Sarah swarming Amara as she held onto the newly formed fire, staring down on it with a gleam in her eyes. Her gaze was broken when she looked up and saw Sarah lunging for her, the newborn smashing her fist into the side of Amara's face. Amara crashed to the ground with newly formed cracks on her cheek, the fireball that she'd been holding onto dissipating into the air once again.

"Kill her, Sarah!" Victoria barked, jabbing her finger at the downed redhead.

"Get up, Amara!" Jasper hollered, struggling to get to his feet.

I tried to scream to her as well, but I couldn't find my voice as Sarah pounced into the air. Amara let out a bloodcurdling snarl and slammed her foot into the newborn's face, sending her flying backwards. Sarah nearly landed in the wall of fire that was encasing them in only to be caught by James seconds before she could touch the flames. Amara got to her feet and flicked her wrist, causing the flames nearest to James and Sarah to shoot upwards, but the blonde and his mate were able to jump away in time.

Victoria shook her head at her comrades and charged at the other redhead. She swung her right arm, clipping the top of Amara's head as she ducked under it. Irritated, Victoria attempted another swing, this time with the left. This time, Amara caught her hand and retaliated with a powerful left straight, cracking Victoria in the middle of her face. Victoria recovered while still in the air, turning so that she landed on her feet. She snarled menacingly, not about to give up the fight just yet, and lunged again.

For a moment, I thought that Victoria was being desperate, but she surprised me by being smart this time. She moved to go and punch Amara only to change her move as Amara went to block, spinning and kicking the other redhead roughly in the stomach. Amara lurched forward and let out a shaky breath as Victoria sneered and followed through with a brisk uppercut, knocking Amara off her feet. Seizing the moment, she went in for the kill by lunging at Amara's throat.

"Amara, move!" Jasper called.

My sister hissed, seeing what was happening seconds too late. Speedily, Amara brought both of her arms up in front of her exposed neck, Victoria's teeth sinking into her right wrist. She winced at the searing pain and gritted her teeth. Victoria growled and attempted to tear Amara's arm off, but Amara was able to throw her off. She quickly brought her wrist, which now sported a fresh pair of white crescent shaped markings, to her mouth and started to suck the venom out.

"Oh no you don't, bitch!" Victoria growled. "Sarah, get her!"

The newborn barreled forward and careened into Amara, knocking her feet back into the wall of fire that she had created. My eyes widened in horror at what I thought would be the end of my favorite sister. I noticed, though, that Alice didn't look worried or scared in the least bit. Amara toppled into the fire a moment after I returned my attention to the fight, but there was no screams of pain or shouting from Jasper or any of the others.

I was amazed when Amara rose from the flames without a scratch or burn mark on her. The only thing I did noticed was the incredibly pissed off look on her face as she removed her wrist from her mouth, clenching and unclenching her right hand several times to make sure that it was still working. Victoria, James and Sarah all stared with equal shock, Victoria the most surprised and even a little bit fearful of Amara.

No. Not just fearful. She was actually _terrified_ of her, as were James and Sarah. Seeing that fear in their eyes brought a smile to my face. It was the first time that I'd ever seen true fear in the eyes of the two vampires who had controlled my life, which made me happy. Sadistic as it was, I was glad that this would likely be the end for the both of them.

Payback's a bitch, after all.

Amara growled and pulled out not one but two matches from her pocket. Alice tensed up even further, curling her lip back and letting out a brisk hiss. The action actually caught Amara's attention as she looked up and over to where her sister was. The two did not speak, instead exchanging looks. Amara scowled and shook her head furiously as she lifted the two matches, one in each hand. Alice growled again, but this time our sister ignored it and lit both matches at the same time, striking them against her alabaster skin.

With both matches lit, Amara discarded the useless matches and brought each ember to each hand, forming two equal sized fireballs. Amara pulled her right arm back like she were about to pitch a baseball, then thrust it forward at a speed that reminded me of a cobra attacking its prey, releasing the first fireball. The fireball surged towards James, the blonde vampire growling and readying himself to dodge out of the way.

Amara sneered and opened her hand up, pointing her fingers out like a claw. The fireball suddenly broke apart into smaller tendrils of flame, much to James' surprise. He braced himself, though, and was able to avoid most of the tendrils as they rained down on him. Most. One of them caught his right leg, causing a screech of pain to emit from him. Sarah snarled and sped towards her mate as James quickly tore away the fabric of his pant leg to the ground. Part of his leg looked slightly burnt, but the damage wasn't too severe.

"Bitch!" James hissed, jumping aside from the embers as they lit up the ground near him.

Sarah tore past him towards Amara with bared teeth, lunging for the redhead without taking into consideration that there was still a ball of fire in her other hand.

"NO!" James bellowed.

"You idiot!" Victoria shouted, dashing towards Amara herself.

Their cries of protest were far too late, however, as Amara flung the second fireball at Sarah head on. The newborn's eyes bulged as the flaming orb crashed into her chest, immediately setting her ablaze. Not a second later, Sarah's ear piercing screams ripped through the entire area, sending chills down my spine at the sound. A deafening silence fell as the flaming body of the newborn collapsed onto the ground, a spiteful hiss echoing from James' curled back lips.

"She did it…she killed her…" I breathed, feeling relief wash over me.

"No," Alice murmured, curling back her lip. "She didn't."

My eyes widened and I prepared to protest. Then I saw the flames rise and in an instant Sarah leapt from them, the only thing missing being her shirt. I could feel my jaw drop at the sight, not of Sarah being nearly topless—wrong time to think of that—but at the fact that she was still actually alive. Her body, especially her arms, chest and a bit of her face, was burned. It was strange because her naturally pale skin looked charcoal gray from the burns.

"How…how the…is she…?" I couldn't form a coherent sentence, the shock being too strong.

"It's because of her newborn endurance," Alice replied, clearly angered and displeased. "They can resist our greatest weakness more so than an average vampire can. Do you remember how I mentioned that Amara's gift weakens when she's forced to concentrate on a lot at a time? This is exactly what I meant. Had she not been forced to keep her control over the fire around her and her eyes on the other two, she could have finished off the newborn by manipulating the fire to engulf her and kill her quickly and easily. But she didn't"

"How the hell can they endure that?" I asked, still not believing what I was seeing.

Sarah stared down at her burning garbs before looking at her own body, taking in the newly formed ashen-gray burn marks. She hissed in irritation and prepared to go after Amara, but James stopped her and whispered into her ear words that I didn't catch.

"Carlisle once told me that when we change, the blood left in our veins is absorbed into our body, thus giving us augmented durability, speed and strength. The blood doesn't remain in our systems forever, but as long as it does, we are nearly unstoppable. That is why I wanted this to go about differently so that we could better plan it, which didn't happen," she sighed, shooting Edward, who had been silently observing up until now, a glare.

"I'm sorry," Edward apologized. "I never meant for this to happen."

Alice growled at him, but chose not to respond, returning her gaze to her sister. Amara dug her hand into her pocket, yet when she pulled it out, there was nothing in it. She looked down at her empty hand with discouragement and hissed.

"She's out of matches," Edward grunted. "That's not good."

"You hear that?" James asked. "No more matches. She's vulnerable now."

"Not quite," Amara growled.

Edward's eyes widened. "Amara, no! Don't!"

Amara ignored him and lifted both of her hands into the air. The flames that encircled the area that Amara, James, Victoria and Sarah were trapped in started to rise upwards, forming a massive circular column of fire. Amara then turned her wrists, causing the flames to form into dagger like shapes, all of them pointing and aiming at the three vampires with nowhere to go.

The heat from the gigantic column was massive and made me feel as though my skin were on fire. I whimpered and felt moisture building throughout my entire body at the spectacle. Alice hissed and struggled to move because of her still-immobile leg. My eyes could no longer see what was happening within the confines of the massive fire wall and I could barely hear over the roar of the flames.

A single ember dropped down and touched the grassy patch several inches away from Alice and I, setting it ablaze instantly. I screamed and Alice snarled, trying with all her might to move the both of us out of harm's way. Edward was there abruptly, wincing as he scooped us both into his arms and moved as fast as he could manage away from the growing blaze over to where Jasper, Emmett and a now moving Rosalie were, all of them tense and anxious as they watched on.

"We need to get out of here before she sets the whole forest on fire," Edward grunted.

"We can't _leave_ her, Edward," I coughed out.

"That's not what I'm suggesting we do," Edward replied.

Jasper gritted his teeth, his eyes blazing with worry. "I say we stay. We have to make sure that she doesn't set the whole forest on fire."

"Too late," Alice grumbled.

"Shit," Jasper cursed. That was the first time I'd ever heard him swear before. He moved several steps towards the fiery wall and cupped his mouth before shouting. "Amara! Amara, you need to stop this! Let it go Amara, otherwise you'll burn the forest down!"

There was no audible response to his words. I noticed that several of the daggers of flame started raining down in the enclosed area, but I couldn't tell what was happening or whether or not any of Amara's attacks were hitting or not.

I was started to get worried. What if she lost control and her fire consumed her? I couldn't think of what that would do to Jasper, to Carlisle, Esme, Alice or any of us for that matter. I could not bear the idea of losing Amara, even if it meant killing James, Victoria and Sarah. It wasn't worth it in my eyes. She was more important than killing those wretched cretins, no matter what.

"Jasper, you need to try and calm her down. Her mind is everywhere at once and if you don't do something quick, she'll lose it," Edward stated hurriedly.

Jasper grimaced and clenched his hands into fists, trying to concentrate on sending out a powerful wave of calm to his mate. The flaming column started to become more and more wild, embers starting to scatter everywhere. Smoke started to billow from them as well, though at the time it was light. Some embers hit rocks and dissipated, others touched the solid ground that the circle was on. A few, however, touched down on the grass.

"We need to put those out!" I shouted, struggling to free myself from Alice's grip.

Alice snarled and refused to let me go, using her iron grip to prevent me from budging an inch.

"Alice, she's right! We need to put them out or else we'll all be caught in the blaze!" Edward shouted, lightly grabbing her shoulder. "Emmett, can you help?"

Emmett glanced at Rosalie, then at Jasper, then back to Edward before nodding. Both of them hastily blurred over to where any fallen embers and started stamping them out as quickly as they could manage. Even Rosalie, who looked like she was in pain whenever she turned her head, was doing what she could to stamp out embers. Alice still wouldn't let me go, though.

"Alice, we need to help them!" I shouted, struggling violently to free myself.

She looked at me pleadingly, almost begging me not to go. "Bella…you could get hurt-"

"I don't care! I need to help so that you don't get hurt! Now let go!" I commanded.

At last Alice released her grip on me. I gave her a brief meaningful look before speeding off to the nearest ember, stamping on it furiously with my left foot. Alice could not move from her spot because of her leg, despite the alarmed look on her face and the obvious longing to help. The rest of us, save for Jasper, were making sure that none of the falling embers set anything else around us on fire. However, what we could not take care of was the small fire that had already started in the area that Alice and I had been in.

"Shit!" I shouted as the flames started growing.

I stumbled back to where Alice was and noticed that Jasper was straining himself to reach his mate. By now there was a massive plume of black smoke floating into the air as the flames seemed to keep going. I feared that things weren't going to get better and that we would have to flee, leaving Amara behind.

To my relief, I noticed that the massive flaming column started to slowly shrink in size. Jasper gritted his teeth, the veins bulging out from his forehead, neck and hands as he concentrated on using his gift. As the flames continued to shrink, I saw three figures blurring out of the flames and dashing into the forest. I grimaced when I saw one stop, that being the form of Victoria who glared scathingly at the fire, then at me. Her eyes bored into mine for a moment with silent promises and hate before she turned and sped off into a different direction then James and Sarah.

They had survived.

My heart sank into my chest and my breath hitched when I came to this realization. They were all still alive. They would still hunt me. I was still in danger, my family was still in danger, hell, this whole town was still in danger.

I didn't blame Amara for what happened. I did, however, blame myself.

The mass of roaring flames continued to slowly subside. I was now able to see Amara's tall form as she stood statuesque in the center, her eyes wide as her hands remained firmly to her side. I noticed now that some of the fire had gotten onto nearby trees and set them on fire, smoke streaking throughout the sky from the burning.

"No…" Amara breathed, putting both hands on her head, a look of despair forming on her naturally happy face. "Not again. I…I did it again. Damn it…"

Jasper was there a moment later, wrapping his arms around his lover and pulling her into a hug.

"Shh, it's okay, dear," he cooed softly. "It's not your fault. You did what you could."

Most of the fire had died away by now. There was still the flaming trees surrounding us, however, that concerned me. I looked up at them, uncertain as to whether or not Amara was in the right state of mind to take care of them. Amara, as if sensing my thoughts, looked around her and freed herself from her mate's arms, stretching her arms out at the trees and concentrating.

The smoke started to clear up as the flames died away, leaving nothing but dead, burnt trees once they had. She quickly turned her attention to the fire that had been growing to the side and it too slowly died away, leaving little more than a patch of black earth from where the fire had once stood. Once she was finished, Amara dropped her arms and looked at the destruction around her. I noticed her eyes flicker to where the three nomads had escaped before flickering to each of us, first to Jasper, than to Alice, Emmett, Edward, Rosalie and finally to me.

She held my gaze for a minute or so before she collapsed onto her knees, staring down at her hands with disgust and rage. Angrily Amara started pounding her fists into the ground, cursing both out loud and to herself. No one moved or said anything at the display, not even Jasper who remained completely still where he stood.

Eventually Amara stopped her cursing and pounding and just sat there in silence with her head hung, staring down at the ground beneath her. It was at that point that Jasper moved to her, kneeling down and pulling her into his arms, whispering in her ear and rubbing her back.

I heard something then, something I never thought I'd ever hear. Amara sobbing. She started quietly sobbing into her mate's shoulder, wrapping her arms around him as she did. The entire area was silent save for that one noise as the others watched on with somber faces. Emmett moved to stand with Rosalie, wrapping his arms around her gently. Edward hung his head downwards and stared sorrowfully at the ground.

I was utterly heartbroken by the sight before me and felt tears start to pool in the back of my eyes. I had never seen such a broken look in Amara's eyes before and that very fact made me sad for reasons even I didn't fully know.

That sorrow, however, was soon replaced by two other feelings. Pain and fatigue.

My body suddenly felt intensely weak as the pain in my chest came back to me. All the strain I'd been putting on my body and the wear and tear I'd been through hit me like a car, causing my knees to buckle. I felt a pair of cold arms catch me and looked up to see Alice staring at me with alarmed eyes. Her mouth was moving, but I couldn't hear any words coming out of it.

Slowly my world became dark as I slipped into unconsciousness, the last thing I remembered being the smell of ash and the sound of Victoria's laughter, telling me that she would be back for me eventually.

**A/N: You know, a while back I had one review that said that I didn't need to explain to people why I wrote what I did. I believe that to be true, but I still want to say a few things regarding this chapter. **

**Because let's face it, I'm more than aware that a good number of you will not be pleased. Whether or not it is because of me allowing the three villains to escape the way they did or because of what happened concerning Amara's gift or maybe something minor that I may have forgotten or whatever. I did all of those things the way I did for my own reasons. I won't go into detail on why I did them, because I shouldn't have to. Hopefully you can understand why I let them live or why I allowed for Amara's gift to get out of hand. At least, I hope that you can understand and can forgive me if you are displeased.**

**Anyways, I'm quite pleased with the amount of loving my story has been getting and I would like to thank all of my supporters, both reader and reviewer alike. I am amazed with how far this story has come, both in length, popularity and review count, but I aim to keep pushing forward. It's not that I do this for the reviews, but I am excited at the number I've gotten (not bad for a first timer). **

**Thank you to all readers, reviewers and my betas. Special thanks to my betas, in fact.**


	49. Recovery

**Disclaimer: I don't own Twilight. I own all OCs and original ideas. And someday, I WILL own the world. Which might take some time. Warning, this chapter may be considered weird!**

**Recovery**

When I started to regain consciousness, I became aware of three things.

One, my chest is fucking _killing_ me. Ow, damn it!

Two, I was in a very comfortable, incredibly sweet smelling bed. I think…yes, this was my bed, I could tell. It smelled like Alice and I recognized the feeling of my pillow.

And three, I felt a pair of all-too familiar cold arms wrapped around me and a forehead pressed against the side of my face. Instinctively I nuzzled into the face and arms, knowing already who it was. Even with the incredible pain in my chest, snuggling into Alice's arms always seemed to help alleviate any pain I felt, just like in this case.

Once I'd regained full consciousness, I opened my eyes and turned my head to see Alice's honey colored orbs gazing back at me. Her eyes lit up when they met mine, a small smile forming on her lips. I smiled back as much as I could, wincing slightly at the throbbing in my chest.

"Hey," I breathed, pressing my forehead to hers.

"Hey yourself," she replied, brushing her lips against mine.

"We really should stop meeting like this," I murmured, trying to sound somewhat humorous.

Alice sighed. "Having you wake up in pain, yes. Having you wake up in my arms, no."

I smiled at that and wrapped my arms around her. That was when my brain started to function again and I realized that we were back home. Multiple questions started to surface and I instantly started deciding which to ask first.

I didn't get the chance to, however, because Alice beat me to it.

"Yes Bella, my leg is fine," Alice chuckled, answering my first question. To prove her point she lifted her right leg up from under the covers and bent it several times before lowering it back down. "See? All better now."

I let out a sigh of relief and pulled her closer to me. "What about the others? Are they okay?"

"They're all fully healed now, Rosalie included. Amara's a little upset over what happened, but aside from that, they're better," she replied. Her face became sad as the fingers of her left hand ghosted against my shirt. "You, on the other hand, will need time to heal."

"How badly was I injured?" I inquired.

Alice bit her lip. "Three broken ribs," she replied, shaking her head forlornly. "Oh Bella, I'm so sorry. It's my fault you're hurt."

I shook my head. "No, Alice. It's my fault. I was the idiot who fell for the trap and got myself stuck in that situation. If anything, this is what I got for not thinking clearly. I just…I thought that my friend was in need, so I went with what my heart told me. And this is what ended up happening because of it. I got myself hurt and you and the others, too. So I should be the one apologizing, not you Alice."

Alice closed her eyes and took in a deep, unnecessary breath.

"Bella, for the last time, what happened was _not_ your fault," she breathed out. "_You_ can't predict the future, Bella. _You_ didn't know that it was a trap. So please, stop blaming yourself. And besides, our injuries were our own doing. I got cocky and I paid the price for it. The others were misfortunate enough to underestimate our enemies and they were hurt for it, too."

"But Alice, if I hadn't-"

Alice silenced me with her lips, letting out a quiet growl when she broke away.

"I will _not _repeat myself again, Isabella. _Non_e of this was your fault and that is final," she stated with firmness that I chose not to question. Her face softened and she captured my lips once again, rubbing her cold nose against mine. She cupped my cheeks and kissed me several more times, easing the tension away.

I sighed contently when she broke away from me. "Alright, I'll drop it. I feel stupid for getting myself into that situation, though."

She giggled and kissed my forehead. "I will admit that it _was_ a little stupid of you to go charging off your own like that. But you did it because you wanted to help someone, so I believe that your heart was in the right place, it's just that your brain wasn't."

I smiled a little and rested my head on her granite shoulder. Hard as it was, it was still insanely comfortable, even more so then my pillow. I heard a few knocks on the door and turned to see Carlisle, Esme and Edward walk in. Alice snarled venomously at Edward when she saw him, causing him to hang his head and lean against the door way.

"Alice," Carlisle sighed.

She didn't respond to him, instead glaring scathingly at her brother.

"I came to apologize again," Edward murmured, looking sheepishly at me. "For leaving like I did to go and hunt. It was foolish of me to do so and I should have stayed with you. This could have been avoided if I'd just been responsible. But I wasn't and for that, I truly am sorry."

"It's okay, Edward," I replied. I never blamed him to begin with. It wasn't his fault that he needed to hunt.

"No, it isn't," Alice growled. "I cannot believe that you went and hunted at that time, Edward! What the hell is wrong with you? My Bella was hurt because of your stupidity! I swear, I'd beat your ass into the ground were I not cuddling with her."

Edward cringed at her words and likely her thoughts, too. He ran his hand through his hair, clearly guilt ridden over what had happened.

I sighed and cupped Alice's cheeks, forcing her to look at me. "Alice, stop. Please. It wasn't his doing, okay? He couldn't help if he needed to go out and hunt. I was the one that decided to leave the house so it…" I stopped when she narrowed her eyes at me and sighed again. "Look, can we please drop trying to see whose fault it was?"

After a moment, Alice let out a brisk sigh and nuzzled into the crook of my neck, curling her arms around my upper chest.

"Fine," she muttered. She turned slightly, giving Edward a sideways glance. "You know I love you, Edward. You just disappointed me with what you did, intentional or not. Just promise me that the next time I trust you to look over the love of my life, you'll do so the right way?"

He nodded briskly. "Of course, Alice. I vow to you that I will. And…thank you for forgiving me, both of you, even if I don't deserve it."

With that said, Edward bowed and excused himself from the room, silently closing the door behind him. Esme ran her fingers through her caramel colored hair and walked over to my bedside, gently seating herself and placing her left hand on the top of my head.

"How are you feeling, honey?" she asked, stroking my forehead tenderly.

I relaxed into my mother's touch and smiled at her. "A bit sore, but otherwise alright."

Carlisle walked over and stood near his wife, smiling down at me. "You gave Alice quite the scare, Bella. She was frantic when she came back home with you in her arms, fearing that you had gone into a coma."

I glanced surprisedly at Alice who bit her lip. "What? I was scared, alright? You just blacked out in my arms, what I was supposed to think?"

I rolled my eyes and kissed her cheek. "Silly vampire."

"Shut up! One more crack out of you and I won't cuddle with you anymore," she snorted, though her eyes betrayed her love and mirth. She started to pull her arms away from me, causing my face to fall. Alice then giggled and wrapped them around me, snuggling as close to me as she could. "I'm only joking Bella."

"That's not funny," I grumbled.

Carlisle cleared his throat and I looked up to see an amused grin on his face. That amusement, however, turned into seriousness as he appraised me, his eyes glancing down at my stomach.

"As you know, Bella, you have three broken ribs from the attack. In truth, your injuries were a bit more severe when Alice first brought you back home, but most of them have healed since you've been here, which I'm assuming is partially thanks to the venom inside of you."

"How long has it been?" I asked.

"You've been out for about a day and a half, honey. If you had slept for a few more hours, it would have been two," Esme replied, stroking my forehead with her thumb.

I gaped in surprise. "I've been asleep for _that_ long?"

Carlisle nodded, taking on a thoughtful look. "I believe that it has a lot to do with your body using that time to heal itself, since there was a great deal of internal damage done. It will likely be another day or so before your ribs are fully healed, I'd say, since your other injuries healed at such a fast rate."

I soaked in his words and furrowed my brows. "So does that mean that I'm able to heal at a much faster rate than a normal human?"

"I would imagine so, yes," Carlisle replied. "However, I would suggest that you not test that theory, since it would likely give Alice a heart-attack, so to speak."

Alice grunted in agreement. "I swear to God, Bella, if you so much as _think_ about trying to do something reckless again..." she warned.

"I won't, Alice," I promised, making sure to hold her eyes while I said it.

She seemed reassured by that and leaned in to brush her lips against mine.

"Good," she replied. "Let's keep it that way."

"Something else that I've thought of concerning this," Carlisle murmured, rubbing his chin. "I believe that this healing is, like your other symptoms, temporarily increased. I don't think that it will last forever, at least not until you have fully transformed."

"Why is that?" Alice inquired.

"I can't say for certain," Carlisle admitted. "It's just a theory that I have. And as you all know, I tend to have a lot of theories that aren't always correct."

"Ain't _that _the truth," Alice laughed.

Esme giggled as Carlisle pinched the bridge of his nose, though I could see a hint of humor in his golden eyes. After a moment, though, his face became serious again. That was one of the many things I liked about Carlisle. He knew how to joke around and when to be funny, yet at the same time he knew when to be serious.

"I mean it when I say that I want you to be careful, Bella. You wouldn't want to have to wear a body brace, would you?"

My eyes widened in horror. "God no!" I shouted.

He chuckled at that. "Then I expect you to take it easy for the next few days. Alice, will you be certain to keep an eye on her?"

Alice rolled her eyes. "Do you even need to ask such a ridiculous question? Of course I'll watch out for her. I won't leave her side, not even for a second." She paused when I lifted an eyebrow at her, at which she grinned sheepishly. "Okay, aside from when you use the bathroom, I won't leave you alone. Is that more acceptable?"

"Yes," I replied, kissing her cheek. Then a thought struck me. "What about hunting? I don't want you to starve yourself."

"Silly human, always worrying about me," Alice sighed, gazing at me lovingly. "I'll be fine with hunting, Bella. Don't worry about it. Worry about yourself for once, please. I'm serious, too. If I have to get Rosalie to teach you about being selfish, I _will_ resort to that."

I laughed at both her statement and the humorous look on her face, but regretted it when my chest throbbed, causing me to stop and wince at the pain. Alice whimpered and stroked my cheek while both Carlisle and Esme looked down at me sympathetically.

"Ow," I grunted. "Okay, definitely shouldn't laugh too hard."

"I can give you some medication if you'd like," Carlisle offered.

I nodded. "Yeah, that'd be nice. Thank you, Carlisle."

He nodded and excused himself to go and grab some medication for me. Esme stayed sitting, still rubbing my head as I cuddled with Alice. That was when a thought hit me, one that I'd been trying not to think about, but couldn't stop. What had happened to James, Victoria and Sarah?

Alice must have seen me ask her because she tensed next to me momentarily. It only lasted for a few seconds, after which she relaxed into me, sighing quietly.

"They got away," she murmured, a hint of malice in her tone. I felt Esme tense and looked up to see an equal amount of malice in her eyes. She knew who Alice meant without asking. "I don't know much else aside from that. Jasper, Emmett and Rosalie offered to go and try to track them down, but neither Carlisle nor Esme wanted that. I haven't looked to see where they are, I've been too concerned with watching over you."

"Do you think they'll come back?" I asked.

"If they do, they won't have the chance they did this time," Alice growled.

"That's for certain," Esme agreed.

Carlisle walked through the door again with a glass of water in one hand and what looked like a pill in the other. He handed both to me and, after thanking him, I downed both the pill and the whole glass of water. Once I'd finished, he smiled and took the glass from my hand.

"That should help ease the pain a little bit," Carlisle informed me. "Should you feel any more pain, though, feel free to tell me. I have other methods of quelling it for you that don't require medications of any kind."

"Alright, I'll let you know," I murmured.

He smiled warmly at me. "Very good. Well, I'll give you two some privacy. Be gentle with her now, Alice."

"Hey! I know how to handle my woman, thank you!" Alice huffed.

Esme and I both giggled while Carlisle chuckled amusedly at her. He kissed both of our foreheads before quietly walking out of the room. Esme leaned down and did the same, still giggling a little bit at her daughter's silliness.

"If you need anything, honey, don't hesitate to ask," Esme told me.

"I won't, Esme. Thanks," I replied.

She gave us both a loving smile, then departed the room, leaving just the two of us together. We laid together in silence for a few minutes, the only thing on my mind being cuddling with Alice, who was more than happy to relay those wishes. We both felt content like this, even if I was a little banged up from what had happened a few days ago.

"So I have three broken ribs, huh?" I asked, breaking the silence at last.

She nodded and pulled my shirt up a little, exposing a good portion of my stomach. I saw that part of my upper abdomen was wrapped in bandages. Alice lightly traced the bandages with her fingertips, staring down at them with a sullen expression on her face.

"Well that stinks," I groaned.

Alice giggled. "I could kiss it to make you feel better so it doesn't stink as much, if you'd like."

I rolled my eyes at her giggling, but actually thought about that. I was pretty sure that her lips had some kind of healing power since every time she kissed me, I always felt better afterwards. Then again, that might've just been because it was Alice.

"How is kissing my bandages going to make me feel better?" I asked teasingly, though I was actually a little curious myself.

"That's a good point," she grumbled, pouting adorably. She tapped her chin thoughtfully while considering something for a moment, her lips curling into a much bigger smile as she did. Then she looked into my eyes, her golden orbs alight with a twinkle in them.

"What?" I asked, genuinely curious. Whenever I saw that twinkle, though, it usually meant something that would be good for the both of us.

"I _could_ kiss your belly button," she suggest with a wink. "That's close by, right?"

My cheeks heated up instantly and I'm pretty sure that my face had turned tomato red.

"Y-you want to _what_?"

Alice giggled again. "You heard me, silly Bella. Do you want me to or not?"

"Um…" I looked away from her as my face continued to redden, various images popping into my mind that I tried to push away. Alice looked at me with her puppy dog eyes, making me melt and blush more in the process. I couldn't resist the adorableness and abruptly gave in.

"O-okay, sure, you can."

She beamed at that before lowering herself so that her face was level to my stomach. My face felt like an inferno as she took in the sight of my pale stomach, which I never really thought much of until she came along. Her tawny eyes flickered up to mine, holding my gaze as she slowly lowered her face to my stomach.

Not a moment later I felt her lips softly touch my stomach, sending tingly sparks throughout my whole body. I shivered at the sensation of having her cold lips kissing my warm skin and closed my eyes to better feel it as Alice slowly and tenderly moved her lips against my skin. And just like I'd expected, the stinging pain that I'd felt in my chest became little more than an afterthought, even thought I knew that I would feel it later.

Alice's body started to vibrate in a happy purr as she continued to kiss my stomach, trailing kisses all over it, creating a nice, lulling peacefulness between the two of us. As I started to relax into the bed, I felt Alice smile against my skin. Suddenly my eyes shot open when I felt her icy tongue slip into my belly button, eliciting a surprised gasp from me.

I flushed at the surprising contact, but I was unable to protest against it since a quiet moan escaped my lips as she wrapped her arms around my waist, moving both her lips and her tongue together in rhythmic motions. My hands subconsciously moved to her hair, my fingers running through and gently tugging at her silky locks as the tingling sensations surged through me.

"Alice…" I moaned.

Eventually Alice removed her tongue and slowly crawled up to me, pressing her sweet lips against mine. I wrapped my arms around her as she did the same, making sure she was avoiding my sore spots as I deepened the kiss. We kissed each other tenderly for minutes, the sensations and her purring making me lose track of time altogether. Either way, I eventually needed oxygen, hence why I broke apart from her so that I could breathe.

Alice, still purring, re-nuzzled into the crook of my neck, smiling rather contently at me.

"You taste good," she purred, licking her lips.

Again my face lit up at her comment and I ran a hand through my hair, her giggling not helping me calm myself down a bit. She placed a brief kiss on my cheek before cupping my cheeks with her hands, cooling them down with her icy touch.

"Oh Bella, you and your blushing," Alice giggled. "I was only giving you a compliment."

I bit my lip. "I can't help it. I still haven't gotten the hang of that sort of thing yet."

She scrunched her up nose and stuck her tongue out at me. "You know you're really cute when you blush, right?"

"Alice!" I whined.

"Alright, alright, I'll stop embarrassing you," she grumbled, though her eyes were alight with love and mirth. "Would you like to stay in bed or would you like to go downstairs?"

"Downstairs is fine," I replied, slowly sitting up. That was when I noticed that I was wearing different clothes. I cocked my head to the side and appraised my new wardrobe curiously. "You changed my clothes?"

Alice sat up and crossed her arms petulantly. "No, Esme did. She didn't let me do it because she thought I'd do "inappropriate" things to you while you slept," she explained, even doing air quotes to further her point.

I lowered my head and gazed at her through my eyelashes. "Would you have?"

Alice's lips twitched, curling into a sultry smirk.

"Probably," she admitted. "It's kind of funny, this is the first time you've let me do anything other than hugging or kissing. I like it because it means you're becoming more trusting and comfortable around me, even if all I did was kiss your belly button, which was _awesome_ by the way. And you don't have to feel embarrassed about it, either. It's not like you're trying to get into my pants or anything, so there's nothing to worry about."

I didn't respond to that as I moved my legs to the other side of the bed. Alice was there seconds later, pulling me into her arms bridal style. I smiled at that and wrapped my arms around her neck, knowing full well that there was no way to argue with her over carrying me. If anything, I was now used to having my own Alice Transit, which was actually a lot easier than walking.

Alice gracefully carried me out of her room and down the stairs before setting me down. I removed my arms from around her and started to stretch out the kinks in my neck, arms and legs.

Alice cleared her throat. "I do believe you owe me a toll."

I smiled and kissed her on the lips, holding it momentarily, then pulling back. It was at that point that I heard some chuckling and turned to see Emmett, Rosalie and Jasper all sitting on the couch, Emmett giving me a wide grin which he turned to his sister.

"So Alice, find any lint?" he asked.

I gaped at him, realizing immediately what he was referring to. That made my face heat up like a volcano as I moved behind Alice, burying my head in her neck. Alice's body vibrated as she laughed melodiously, the fingers of her right hand entwining with mine.

"Nope! I can officially declare that she has no belly button lint!" Alice announced joyously.

I blanched. "Alice!" I whined into her neck.

"What? It's true!" she pointed out between her giggles.

Emmett's booming laughter filled the entire house along with the laughing of Rosalie, Jasper and even Edward, who was apparently up in his room. There was even a little giggle from Esme, who was in the kitchen making food for me. Jasper was the first to stop, sending me a wave of calm as if trying to make up for laughing and Alice eventually quieted down, turning and allowing me to bury my face in the crook of her neck, which I did.

"I'll get you for this," I growled.

Alice rubbed circles into my back. "Oh, stop. I'm only playing with you. Besides, you know that I'd love you even if you did have lint or any other sort of oddity."

I grumbled and pulled her close to me, trying to ignore the others' laughing.

"You humans and your belly button lint," Rosalie snorted. "I swear you have the strangest things happen to you sometimes."

"Be nice, Rose," Jasper chided playfully.

I tuned out to the rest of their comments and laughing and realized something. Amara wasn't here. She wasn't even in the house, since I would have heard her musical laughter at the jokes the others were throwing my way. Why was that?

I peered up at Alice and gave her a concerned look. Alice must have seen what I was going to ask her because she calmed herself fully and inclined her head towards the doorway.

"Carlisle's talking with her right now," she whispered. "If you want, you can speak to her once he finishes up, which will be in about four minutes and twelve seconds. I'd wait a little while after that, though, because she'll be going hunting first."

I nodded in understanding and kissed her cheek. "Thanks," I murmured.

I walked over to the couch and sat down near Jasper, who had been appraising me once Alice had started talking about Amara. Emmett and Rosalie had both quieted down by then, too. Alice came over and plopped on my other side, wrapping her left arm around my back and pulling me into her as I rested my head on her shoulder.

"Hey Em, let's go hunting," Rosalie stated, standing up abruptly.

Emmett grinned and stood after her, winking at me. "Don't worry Bells, you'll get laid eventually, I'm sure of it."

"Emmett!" Alice hissed.

"Emmett, leave our sister's sex life alone," Rosalie chided, smacking his arm.

I blushed only slightly and tried to ignore his comment, hugging Alice tighter to me. I was suddenly reminded of a question that I had been meaning to ask Rosalie.

"Hey Rose, how's your neck?" I inquired.

Rosalie looked back at me and smirked. "It's fine, actually, thanks for asking." She moved her head side to side to prove her point. "It hurt like a bitch at first, but I'm fine now. A little pissed that I got myself injured like that to begin with, truth be told. Oh well. C'mon, monkey man, let's go hunting before Alice decides to try and rip our heads off."

Emmett chuckled and followed her out the door as Esme walked over to me with a plate of crackers and cheese. I smiled and gratefully took the plate, setting it down on my lap as I started to place a piece of cheese between two crackers.

"Thank you, Esme," I murmured.

"You're welcome, honey," she replied, skipping back into the kitchen and humming to herself. "Oh! Before I forget, I've ordered you a new cell phone since Alice told me that your other one was broken. You should have it by tomorrow."

I mentally smacked myself for forgetting my precious cell phone. "Thanks again!"

"Any time, dear. Now eat," she chuckled from the kitchen.

I put my first mini-sandwich into my mouth and started chewing it. It wasn't Esme's normal cooking, but a snack was more than enough for me at the time. There was far too much going through my mind at the moment, anyways. Thoughts on when James, Victoria and Sarah would return, a pang of guilt for Sarah being manipulated the way she was, my feelings on my eventual transformation into a vampire. There was a lot going on and it was nerve-wracking to be stuck with so many thoughts and concerns at once.

One of those thoughts was centered on how Amara was doing after the fight.

I hadn't thought it possible for someone like Amara, the sarcastic, foul-mouthed badass that she was, to actually break down in front of others. Yet she did. She broke down into her mate's shoulder, the look on her face showing how sorrowful and upset she truly was. It was a saddening sight to see and my heart went out to her, even if I didn't understand why she had acted that way to begin with.

I'd intended to ask Alice about it, but I decided against it. Truth be told, the one person who I should be asking is Amara herself. But since she was currently busy, I considered speaking to Jasper on it, since he was likely the person closest to her.

That was when I decided that I would talk with Jasper about it. With that decision made, I turned to Alice and looked into her honey orbs, giving her a meaningful look. It didn't take her long for her to see what I had planned. She furrowed her brow for a moment and frowned at me, but then her face softened and she leaned forward to capture my lips for a brief yet passionate kiss. Once we broke apart, she stood and danced over to Esme and quietly started whispering to her.

Moments later, the two departed, leaving only Jasper and I, since Edward had likely already left when he read either Alice's or my mind. I turned to face Jasper, who had remained silent as he watched the brief exchange between Alice and I.

"Is there something on your mind?" he inquired, though he knew the answer.

"I was just wondering…" I trailed off, feeling a little uncertain.

"About Amara," he finished, adjusting himself so that he was facing me.

I nodded and took a bite of a cracker, turning my body as I did. Jasper nodded and ran a hand through his wavy hair, thinking to himself before choosing to respond.

"Amara is very distraught right now. She blames herself for letting her gift get out of control and nearly hurting all of us, not to mention the fact that she let her enemies escape. In truth, the damage done was enough to cause a small amount of media coverage, but in reality, there really isn't a reason for her to feel the way that she does," Jasper sighed.

"Then why does she feel that way? It wasn't her fault that they got away."

"Because things could have gone worse and almost did. Had I not been able to reach her, she would have likely lost full control over her gift. It's happened in the past and the consequences were severe, so seeing it almost happen made her remember those times," Jasper explained.

I swallowed the cracker I'd been eating, then started another, taking small bites as I listened.

Jasper leaned into the couch and propped one leg up. "Amara is the kind of person who takes failure harder then she should. She's always been that way. I remember when she first joined the family; she didn't even tell us that she had a gift until years later. Even though she acts like she enjoys her gift, I don't believe she truly does. I believe that she hates having so much power in her hands because of how much destruction it has brought her in the past."

"She mentioned something about having to use it while she was in the Volturi," I remarked.

Jasper furrowed his brow and nodded. "Yes, the Volturi. Amara hated her time there, almost as much as she hated the Volturi themselves. To them, she was nothing more than a pawn and they treated her as such. They forced her to do things that she can never take back, many of which she hasn't spoken of in years. Amara might act like she's always fine, but on the inside; I know that she suffers a great deal more than she's letting on."

Jasper stared at the table with a somber look on his face as he spoke.

"You don't like seeing her suffer," I murmured, setting the now empty plate down on the table.

"No," he replied. "I've tried doing what I could. I've helped her get over the depression she had when she first joined our family, but even I cannot make her forget the past. She feels inferior because of how poor her control around humans is and because of how poor her control over her gift is compared to the rest of it. Amara looks at herself as the weak link in this family and she has no idea how wrong she is."

He paused and took in an unnecessary breath. "I just…I love her. We've been mates for decades and we've always been there for one another. I just wish there was some way for me to make her see how wrong she is about herself. In a way, it's actually a lot like how Alice feels about you, Bella. She wants you to see yourself the way she does, even if you yourself don't believe her."

I grimaced and lowered my head. I wasn't sure how to respond and feeling Jasper's tawny eyes on me wasn't helping me much. What was I supposed to say, exactly?

Jasper chuckled quietly. "You don't have to feel so awkward, Bella. I'm merely making a statement is all; I meant no harm or insult."

"I…I know, Jasper," I murmured, still not looking at him.

"I felt your emotions in the forest that day," he said in a gentle voice. "You felt sorrow for Amara when she started to break down."

I nodded. "Yeah, I did. It was surprising, though. I never expected someone like Amara to break down the way she did. I don't think less of her for doing it, though, especially since I cry all the time, even when I don't mean to. Honestly, I think that sometimes, crying helps."

"Perhaps," Jasper mused. "Maybe…" He paused and looked to be in deep thought as I looked back to him.

"Maybe what?" I inquired.

"Maybe you could talk to her?" he asked, appraising me. "Would you? I think that if you were the one to speak to her it would mean a bit more."

I frowned. "Why would it mean more to her if it was me?"

"Well, it's not like she doesn't appreciate what Carlisle or Esme or I say to her, that's not it. I suppose that in her mind, she blames herself for you being hurt the way you were. Because she is your older sister, she believes it is her duty to protect all of her family; you included, and since you were the worst injured, Amara feels responsible for it. That is why I feel that it would mean more to her if you told her that you don't see it as her fault. Does that make sense?"

I thought about it for a moment and stood up, wincing when I did so too fast and falling back down to the couch.

"Ow," I groaned.

"Are you alright?" Jasper asked concernedly.

I was unable to respond because Alice blurred through the front door over to me, wrapping her arms around me and pulling me into her lap. I rested my chin on her shoulder and kissed her cheek, trying to show that I was okay.

"I'm fine, Alice," I murmured. "I just stood up too fast."

Alice pulled me closer to her. "I don't care. You aren't going anywhere without me. I only left the room to give you some privacy, but no more."

I rolled my eyes, but chose not to argue with her. "Is Amara back yet?"

Alice bit her lip and nodded. "Yes, she just returned from hunting."

"Can you take me to go and talk with her?" I asked.

She hesitated for a moment, then nodded. "Yes, of course. Hold on tight."

"I always do," I giggled.

**A/N: Yay, some fluffiness to sort of ease the mood from the previous chapter. What, that fluff too weird for you? Sorry, I'm weird. You gotta deal with it. Hee hee.**

**Maybe I should start putting a weirdness disclaimer in the opening title. Ha!**

**Any who, I figure it was a nice break from the action and a little lightheartedness can go a long way. Plus, there was a bit of raciness too, which I'm sure a couple people will like. Or maybe they won't, I don't know. I'm no mind reader. To get to the point, though, there will be some more plot stuff in the next chapter, but there will also bit a bit of fluff and bonding, as you can already tell. Call it filler if you'd like, I enjoy writing it either way. Peace!**


	50. Talk

**Disclaimer: I take no credit for the characters of Twilight, which belong to Meyer. I do take credit for my own characters and ideas, though. Yeah, you know already, I get it.**

**Talk**

I glanced at Jasper as Alice trotted toward the door with me in her arms. He gave me a warm smile; his eyes showcasing his silent gratitude that I agreed to speak with his mate. I smiled back at him until Alice walked outside, at which point I turned my head away. Looking around, I saw Amara sitting on the same boulder that she had when she first told me about her life before joining the Cullens. She was staring up at the sky with a somber yet thoughtful face as Alice and I neared her, clearly thinking to herself.

"Hey Alice, Bella," Amara greeted, keeping her eyes upward as Alice sat down.

"Hey Ama," Alice replied. I shuffled around to get myself comfortable since Alice wasn't about to let me out of her arms. Not that I was complaining.

"How are you feeling, Amara?" I asked.

Amara lowered her head, her amber eyes meeting mine, her crimson brows furrowing.

"How am _I_ feeling? You were nearly killed not too long ago and you're asking me how I'm feeling. Tell me something Bella, do you think before you speak or do you just speak without considering what you're saying?" she snapped.

I was a little surprised by her tone of voice, since Amara never spoke to anyone that way. Alice noticed it too and hissed at her sister. Amara seemed to catch herself and hung her head, looking at me ashamedly.

"I…I am sorry," she murmured, rubbing her neck. "I'm not quite myself right now, as you can plainly see, but that's no excuse to be snappy, especially since you're concerned for me. I thank you for your concern, though."

"What's the problem?" I inquired. "You're usually full of energy and cracking jokes and cussing like a sailor. I'm not used to seeing you pulling an Edward and moping like this."

If possible, I may have heard Edward grunt in response to the obvious tease, but I wasn't sure if I'd heard it or if my mind had just made it up. Amara frowned at me and for a moment I saw the old Amara in her eyes. It lingered for a few seconds before dissipating as she sighed and ran her fingers through her scarlet locks.

"I guess that's true, but right now I don't quite care. I need some time to think," she sighed.

Alice snorted. "Hypocrite."

"Fuck you, midget," Amara growled.

"Bella would like that," Alice giggled, causing me to blush and scowl at her. Amara merely rolled her eyes, though I could see a tiny bit of mirth in them. I ignored that, though, and continued to scowl at my girlfriend for her embarrassing comment. "What? You would! I _know_ you would and I know Amara would too."

I ignored Alice's comment and shook my head, returning my attention to my troubled sister.

"Do you want to talk about it, Amara?" I inquired, cocking my head to the side.

Amara pursed her lips and considered it for a moment. "I take it you won't leave if I say no, so I guess I don't have much of a choice in the matter, do I?"

I shrugged innocently. "Not really, no."

Amara groaned. "Fine. Alright, look. Right now, I'm bummed out because I nearly lost control and let those bastards all get away in the process. Plus, I could have killed all of you had Jasper not managed to calm me down, which stinks. I hate that I was weak and it irritates me to no end that this could have been avoided if I'd just kept my cool."

She paused for a moment and clasped her hands together, taking in an unneeded breath.

"I…whenever I think about it, it reminds me of all the stuff that's happened in the past. I've fucked up a lot and its cost me each time. Like when I was in the Volturi…" She trailed off; staring down at the rock she was sitting on.

"What happened?" I inquired in a soft voice.

Amara didn't respond at first, trying to decide on whether or not to answer. I was a little annoyed because I missed the Amara that I loved, the fun loving girl who wasn't afraid to open up about herself or her past. I knew it hurt her and I sympathized with that, but keeping it closed in wasn't going to help anything at all. It wouldn't let me help her, either.

I could tell that Alice was feeling the same way that I was. She had her brows furrowed and was biting her lip as she thought about what to do or say to help her sibling out. This bothered her as much as it bothered me, I knew that. I squeezed her hand in reassurance, earning me a small smile from my pixie, but it wasn't the smile that I wanted.

I guess it was up to me at the moment.

"You don't have to tell me if you don't want to, Amara. But I _will_ listen. We're sisters after all, that's what sisters do. And besides, everyone makes mistakes. I do all the time. I fell for that obvious trap, I didn't wait for Edward to return, I didn't call you guys on my cell phone and I tried to take on the newborn by myself. That was all pretty stupid to do, and I did it anyways."

Amara cracked a small smile at that. "It _was_ pretty damn stupid," she agreed.

Alice started to giggle, but I shot her a look. "What?" she asked.

I sneered at her. "Let's not forget little miss arrogant over here who got her leg torn off because she got all overconfident and boastful."

Amara's smile grew slightly as Alice pouted at me. "That wasn't my fault! She was going after you so I did what I had to do because I-"

I cut her off by pressing a finger to her lips. She pouted adorably again and I leaned in to give her a quick kiss, smiling when she sighed contently and kissed me back. When I pulled away I noticed that Amara was watching on with amusement in her eyes, which made me happier. I could tell that she was still bummed out, but at least now she looked to be doing a bit better.

I turned and gave Alice a peck on the cheek. "Truth be told, I think you're sexy when you're cocky like that, Alice," I admitted, blushing slightly as I did. Alice blinked and looked at me surprisedly, as did Amara. Then she beamed at me and nuzzled into my neck, giggling excitedly and kissing my neck.

"I'll remember that, then," she giggled against my skin.

"You two are something else," Amara chuckled, shaking her head. Her face softened then as she appraised me. "You're right Bella, everyone makes mistakes. But the kinds of things that I did are things that I could have avoided. I could have avoided setting fire to an entire village, killing all of the innocent humans that lived there. I could have avoided drinking the blood of a woman with an infant in her arms because she saw me while I was in the sun. But I didn't. I did both of those things and much, much more while I served in the Volturi, and even after I left."

She held my eyes in a hard gaze when she spoke and even after she finished, those dark amber orbs telling me that she did do terrible things that I knew nothing about. There was something else behind them too, something that made me continue trying to get to her.

"Do you regret what you did while you were in Volturi?" I asked, lifting an eyebrow.

Amara narrowed her eyes. "Of course I do. Why wouldn't I regret them?"

I sighed. "I didn't say that, Amara. I _know_ that you regret what you've done."

"Then why ask?" Amara grunted.

"Amara," Alice warned. "Be nice."

Amara pursed her lips, but did not argue with her. I ran a hand through my hair, trying to figure out a better way of talking with Amara in order to help her. Then I recalled what Jasper had told me, that Amara blamed herself for what happened to me and the others. She also blamed herself for letting James, Victoria and Sarah escape. If anything, she was blaming herself for everything that had ended up happening. All the bad stuff, at least.

Had anything _good _actually happened?

I thought on it. Aside from me learning a bit more about the gift I had, I couldn't think of anything aside from the fact that we all survived. We might not have all been in one piece, but we were all alive. In fact, it was because of Amara that we were alive, because had she not used her gift, I dare say that the others would not be walking around like they were now.

"Amara?"

She looked up at me. "Yes?"

"Jasper told me that you feel that everything that happened was your fault. That you think that you weren't strong enough and that that's why we were all injured and why those bastards managed to escape. Is that true?"

The redhead grimaced and glanced down at her crossed legs, not answering immediately. Her silence was more than enough of an answer, though. I shifted again in Alice's arms so that I was sitting in a similar position to Amara.

"I don't understand how you can think that's true," I stated. "You aren't psychic, Amara. You can't predict other people's moves or read other people's minds. You didn't know that the newborn was going to lure me into her trap or that Alice was going to be injured. How could you have, when all you have is your fighting skills? So really, I don't get why you want to feel bad for something that doesn't even concern you."

"It does concern me, Bella. I'm the oldest sibling in this family, which means that it's my job to watch out for all of you. And I failed in doing that. The only thing I succeeded in doing was getting my ass kicked and letting all of you nearly die," Amara stated in a low voice.

I shook my head. "Do you not realize that if you hadn't used your gift, I wouldn't be here?"

Alice tensed up and Amara frowned. "What do you mean?" she asked.

"Victoria would have killed Alice while Sarah and James took out the rest of you. Then she would have knocked me unconscious and dragged me off to resume their twisted game and she would have done Lord knows what to me."

Alice hissed. "I would have fought her to the last breath. Even if she tore my other leg and my arms off, I'd keep fighting with just my teeth."

I smiled at her and kissed her cheek. "I know you would have, Alice. And I appreciate that."

Amara sighed. "Okay, so maybe you're right-"

"Maybe? Fuck that, I am right, Amara. You are not God. You are a vampire with a foul mouth, an attitude and a kickass gift. That doesn't mean you're perfect. I know I'm not. Alice, despite what she may think, isn't. No one is. Yeah, you almost burned down a forest and yeah, you did kind of let those jerks slip away. But considering the fact that we're all alive thanks to your quick thinking, I'm okay with that and you should be too."

"Look, I won't pretend that I know what you've done or what you've been through in your life and I won't say that none of it mattered. But that's the past. This is now, so live for now and fuck what you did way back when. If anything, you should learn from your mistakes. Learn how to control your anger and your emotions and train yourself so that the next time we're cornered and you start shooting fireballs that you won't miss and you'll burn the fuckers into nothingness."

I paused for a moment to let my words sink in, noting the look that Amara was giving me.

"I know that you're afraid of your gift, Amara. I would be too, especially since I'd probably set random shit on fire by mistake. I'd fuck up if I was in your shoes, but I'm not. You are. You are not a fuck up, Amara. You're strong, independent and a total badass. If I could, I'd make a fan club for you and you and I both know that there'd be a shitload of people in it. So stop with this negativity bullshit, it's not your style. You should be inside making fun of me for having belly button lint like the others were, not moping."

Amara stared at me for a moment before that sinister grin of hers appeared.

"Thanks, squirt," she said, tousling my hair. "I guess it really did mean a lot to hear it from you."

"No problem," I replied.

Amara smiled and thought on something. She glanced at Alice, who smiled and nodded, before leaning in and kissing both of my cheeks. We smiled at each other as Amara got off the rock and stretched her legs and arms out, most likely for dramatic effect.

She turned and raised an eyebrow. "So what's this about you having belly button lint?"

I rolled my eyes while Alice giggled. "Shut up. I don't, thank you."

"Uh-huh, I bet Alice licked it all out," Amara snickered.

"Ew," I grimaced. "That's not very hygienic."

Amara shrugged. "Neither is drinking blood, but we make a killing doing that. By the way, promise me you won't ever give me a motivational speech like that again and I won't tease you for a month."

"How about you just stop teasing me altogether and focus on teasing, I dunno, Emmett or Edward or Rosalie?" I suggested.

She tapped her chin and actually seemed to be considering that for a moment, moving her head side to side as she did.

"Eh, why not?" she replied with a grin.

Alice cocked her head to the side and turned her eyes towards the forest. I noticed that her eyes were glazed over and figured that she was having a vision. Amara stuck her nose in the air and breathed in, her grin growing significantly.

"What's…?"

My question trailed off when I caught sight of two figures walking through the forest toward us, both of them familiar in appearance. Arthur and Sophie.

Sophie smiled wide at us as she sauntered past Arthur and over to where we were, immediately wrapping Amara up in a hug. The two held one another for a moment before they pulled away; planting brief kisses on the other's lips. Sophie then came over to Alice and I and wrapped us both into a tight yet warm hug. I hugged her back, breathing in the scent of fresh flowers and honeysuckle that emanated from her body until she pulled away.

"Hello all," she greeted cheerily. "What's cracking?"

"Not a whole lot. Getting my ass kicked into gear thanks to my little sister," Amara replied, giving me a meaningful look.

I shrugged. "I didn't do too much, really."

Arthur finally trudged into the clearing, moving at a much slower, easier pace. He smiled at each of us, though it looked rather somber, much like his eyes did. He stood near Sophie and shook hands with Amara, placing his hands into the pocket of his coat afterwards.

"Hello Alice, hello Bella," he greeted, nodding to each of us.

"Arthur," Alice replied, nodding as well.

"Hi Arthur," I greeted in turn.

"So what did you two find?" Amara asked, apparently getting down to whatever business brought both Sophie and Arthur here.

I was confused, of course, and looked at Alice expectantly, hoping that she would give me some answers. Alice bit her lip for a moment, then kissed my cheek and stared into my eyes.

"When you were sleeping, Amara called Sophie and Arthur and asked them to track down those...assholes. They've been on their trail for the last few days, in fact."

I whipped my head around and looked at the two of them intently, wanting to know what they'd found out. Arthur and Sophie glanced at one another silently before Sophie sighed and shook her head at Amara, scowling as she did.

"Well, I hate having to admit this, but they got away," Sophie grumbled. "We caught up to them once and we almost had the chance to fight them, but they ran off. It totally _stinks_ because I wanted to fight them, especially that damn newborn. But no, they had to go and be cowards and run away from us, the pieces of shit."

Arthur waited until Sophie finished ranting to take his turn to speak.

"We discovered that they have split up from one another," he stated softly. "The two blondes broke away from the other one, which leads me to believe that they have either severed their alliance or they are doing so because they may have realized what Alice can do, or at the very least they have an idea of it. That said, this will likely make things more difficult for you to keep watch over the decisions they make."

"Bastards," Alice hissed.

"What do we do, then?" I asked.

Alice squeezed me tightly against herself for a moment. "We do nothing. You are to rest and take it easy for the rest of this week while you heal. And I am going to do the best that I can to keep an eye on their movements."

I frowned. "Alice, I don't want you straining yourself by constantly keeping your visions active trying to see every little decision that they make."

"And if I don't, this…" She paused and pointed to my ribs. "That could happen again, Bella, and I sure as hell don't want that. I already failed in protecting you once, I'll be damned if I let it happen a second time, mark my words."

"Alice…" I murmured, resting my head on her shoulder.

A throat clearing caught our attention and we both looked to see the others looking at us. Arthur had a thoughtful yet gentle look on his face while Amara and Sophie were trading smirks with one another, which likely didn't mean something good.

"Perhaps we could offer our assistance," Arthur offered.

Amara glanced at him, cocking her head to the side as she placed her hands on her hips.

"What do you mean?" she inquired. Alice and I were both curious too.

Arthur shrugged. "Well, rather than have all of you on constant alert, Sophie and I could patrol the areas around your house. We could call you if something comes up, or at the very least decide to so that Alice would see it in a vision. That way, you won't have to divert your full attention to worrying about your enemies and Sophie wouldn't be complaining about being bored, would you Sophie?"

Sophie snorted. "Hey, give me a break. It's not that I don't enjoy traveling or sight-seeing or any of that, I just hate being on the sidelines when there's action afoot, you know?"

"Yes, yes, I know," Arthur sighed. He then turned towards us once more. "What do you say?"

"That sounds like a reasonable offer, Arthur. Is there something you'd like in return?" Alice asked, giving him a curious look.

Both Arthur and Sophie looked at one another in silence, having a conversation with their eyes. I noticed Alice's eyes were glazed slightly, likely trying to see what they were going to decide. I rolled my eyes and smiled at that, finding it funny that my girl was so impatient.

Sophie was the one to break the silence. "A home." Her reply was short, simple and to the point.

"A home?" Alice inquired. "Well, I'm certain that Carlisle and Esme wouldn't mind…"

"No, no, no. Not your home," Sophie stated. "You all have your own agendas to deal with, and you guys all go to human school. I've done that once before and I can't say that I'm in the mood to do it again. Besides, Washington is boring. We've been everywhere there is to be here. It's a nice place to visit, but I want something that's more…interesting."

Arthur shook his head. "What my mate means is that we were wondering if you know of another coven that you are on good terms with that would be willing to accept us. We've wandered around this globe for many years now and we wouldn't mind settling down a bit. The problem is that we don't have a place of our own and since we have no money, it would be difficult to procure a suitable place to live."

Alice and Amara both gave each other a look before Alice responded.

"The Denali Clan in Alaska would most likely be open to accepting you. You're both vegetarian vampires, which works in favor for them, and you already know Laurent."

"Laurent is there?" Arthur inquired.

Alice smiled and nodded. "Yes, he is the mate of Tanya, the leader of the Denalis. If you'd like, I could ask Carlisle or Esme to call when we go inside."

"Not yet," Sophie interjected. "We want to help you solve your dilemma first. We would just really appreciate if you could ask them at some point in future, so that when we do decide to take some rest time, we won't have to worry about. Does that make sense?"

"Girl, _nothing_ you say ever makes sense," Amara chuckled. "But I get it. I'm sure the Denalis would be more than happy to accept two new members, anyways."

Arthur nodded appreciatively while Sophie grinned and clasped her hands together.

"That's great!" Sophie exclaimed.

"Thank you. We will do our best in keeping an eye out for any trouble on your land. We'll call if we discover anything," Arthur added.

"Wait, hang on a moment," I interjected, feeling confused. "How do you guys have working cell phones if you're nomads? And how exactly do you pay for them, too? Do you steal people's cells and use them or something?"

Sophie chuckled. "Actually, the Cullens gave us cell phones a while back as gifts for helping them out of a jam. They pay our cell phone bills too, which isn't that big of a deal since they're all filthy stinking rich, but we pay them back by giving them help whenever they need it. And as far as how we keep our phones alive, I sneak into people's houses when they're away and charge our phones, simple as that."

I furrowed my brow. "You break into people's houses?"

"Oh Lord, don't give me that. It's not "breaking in" if I don't steal anything, is it? Besides, I know how to get into people's houses without leaving a trace of evidence that I was there to begin with," she grunted. "Though there were a few occasions were the people were home, which I find adds an element of excitement to it."

Arthur groaned. "Leave it to you to find breaking the law exciting."

"_Please_," Sophie scoffed. "Human laws don't affect our kind, you know that. And it's not like _you_ have to worry since you never do it."

The two of them continued to bicker amongst themselves, Amara even joining in. I leaned into Alice and let my mind wander, thinking about everything that had happened. The threat of Sarah, Victoria and James was still out there, I knew that much, but would they return any time soon? I knew they were still after me, but perhaps what happened to them and what almost happened to them made them rethink their decisions to try to come after me for the time being.

I hoped that would be the case. I didn't want to stress out about them and I didn't want the others to worry either. I wanted to have some peace for once. Ever since I'd found my way into the Cullens' lives, it seemed like all I'd brought them was stress. I didn't want that anymore. I wanted there to be some peace and quiet for once, aside from the irritation of school.

I wanted to spend time more time with Alice. To go on a moonlit stroll holding hands and joking about our siblings or go to a meadow and just hold each other, relaxing. I wanted to go see a vampire movie so that she could make fun of it and I could laugh along with her or go to the beach and ogle her sexy body while she ogled mine.

I decided then and there that I would do those things at some point in time. I wanted to spend time with Alice, bonding with her or just cuddling with her.

I felt cool hands rubbing my cheeks and looked up into Alice's eyes, which gazed back into mine with endless love and affection. She leaned down and pressed her lips to mine, holding them there for a good minute before removing them.

"Of course we'll do all those things," she murmured as she continued to stroke my cheeks.

I smiled warmly at her. "Good. You promised me we'd go to the beach anyways."

"That is true," she giggled.

"Hey! Knock off the mushy stuff you too!" Amara shouted.

Alice curled her lip back and hissed at her sister, though she did so in a petulant manner.

"Shut up! I'll be as mushy as I want to be!" she growled, sticking her tongue out after.

"Ah, young love," Sophie chortled. "Ain't it grand?"

Arthur rolled his eyes. "You do remember the difference in our ages, yes?"

She scowled. "Yes, and? What's your point?"

"Never mind," he sighed. "I think it best that we go and hunt. Then we can start our patrolling."

"Whatever," Sophie snorted. "Later girls, we gotta head out now."

"Goodbye ladies," Arthur stated, bowing politely.

The two of them turned and started to walk off. I felt Alice tense up for a moment.

"Wait!" she called. Both of them turned to look at her. "Be careful how far you go out. There is a pack of werewolves that lives on La Push, the beach reservation. We have a treaty with them and that treaty states that we aren't allowed on their land. So be careful if you end up over there so that you don't cross the line, otherwise they'll attack you."

Sophie crossed her arms. "Werewolves? There are werewolves here and you never told us?"

"We're not supposed to," Amara grumbled. "We had to keep poor Bella out of the loop up until a few days ago, in fact. But since you're friends of this family, you two have the right to know about them so that you don't go in there blindly."

"Werewolves," Sophie repeated, shaking her head. She turned to Arthur. "I didn't think there'd be a pack here."

Arthur shrugged. "Indeed, though I suppose it makes sense. Perhaps our old friend would like to know this…"

"Wait, you guys already knew about werewolves?" I asked. "I thought they didn't want other vampires finding out about them."

"They don't," Alice stated.

Amara put her hands back on her hips. "You two never told me you knew about the wolves."

"Apologies," Arthur murmured, looking slightly sheepish. "We didn't mean any insult, we were unaware that there were wolves here. Yes, we know of their kind, because we used to travel with a werewolf for a while once you left to join the Cullens, Amara. She was on her own since her pack was killed sometime before and, after a bit of reluctance, she became our traveling companion and eventually our friend. She's currently with our fellow nomadic friends, I believe, though we can easily reach her at any time."

"She was cool," Sophie said, shrugging. "We used to wrestle all the time. Even though she was pretty stinky, which apparently only bothered me since_ Arthur_ didn't think she smelled bad, she was a cool wolf and I think she'd love to know that there's another pack around."

Arthur nodded. "Thank you for the heads up, though. We shall keep that in mind. Good day."

The two of them vanished into the forest, leaving only Amara, Alice and I. I watched after them for a minute or so, then wrapped my arms around Alice and rested my head on her chin.

"They certainly are an odd duo," I mused.

"Tell me about it," Amara groaned.

Alice giggled in agreement. "I think they'd fit in with us perfectly, actually. I wonder if that's the real reason they don't want to live here with us, though."

"It's probably more so that they don't want to be a bother, or at least Arthur doesn't. He probably doesn't like the idea of forcing a family to accept them, but he doesn't get that it isn't that big a deal. Ah well, that's just the way he is. Besides, it _is_ a little boring here. If I didn't have you guys, my music and the video games, I'd be bored out of my mind most of the time," Amara said, shrugging.

I chuckled and snuggled into Alice. Something came into my mind, then.

"Alice?"

She looked at me lovingly. "Yes, Bella?"

"Do you…" I hesitated momentarily, then shrugged it off. "Do you think that they'll be back anytime soon?"

Alice sighed. "Bella, how many times must I tell you not to worry?"

"I can't help it, Alice. I worry. I don't want anything-"

She silenced me by capturing my lips and holding them there. I moaned softly when her tongue trailed across my bottom lip, beckoning my lips to part, which they did. She swirled her tongue inside of my mouth for a good minute or so while she kissed me before slowly breaking apart, giving me one last peck once she had finished.

"No more worrying. No more thinking. Do you understand?" she asked, lifting an eyebrow.

I nodded, giving in to her. "I understand."

"Whipped," Amara snickered.

I glared at her. "Fuck off, fire-crotch."

Amara laughed even harder. "Aw, aren't you cute? But actually, you're _both _whipped, _especially_ Alice. I have a funny feeling that the more this relationship grows, little pixie is going to be as pussy whipped as Emmett."

I gaped at her as my cheeks heated up in a blush while Alice looked halfway torn between being embarrassed and irritated by her sister's prattling. Amara looked like she was having a field day with the awkward silence that followed, smiling big and wide and giving us a knowing look.

Alice finally let out a long sigh and glared at her sister. "Shut up, Amara."

"What? You _know _it's true," she teased.

"Leave it alone," growled Alice. "Or I'll start bringing up some embarrassing facts about _you_."

Amara stopped laughing and briefly seemed worried at the prospect. Then she frowned and crossed her arms petulantly, shaking her head at her sister's threat. Suddenly Amara's entire body tensed as she stuck her nose into the air, breathing in. Her nostrils flare and her eyes widened seconds later and a low hiss escaped from her lips.

"What's wrong?" Alice asked, becoming instantly alert.

"The air stinks of dog," Amara hissed.

Alice's eyes darkened. "Wolves. Shit."

Alice pulled me into her arms and jumped to her feet, then hurriedly she moved into the house, Amara right behind her. I attempted to ask her what was going on, but she pulled her cell phone to her ear and started dialing. Jasper, who had been sitting on the couch, sensed the tension and sent out waves of calm right away, his eyes narrowing with concern.

"What's wrong? What's going on?" I asked, my words in a rush.

Jasper sent me a wave of calm as Amara paused and pursed her lips. "The damn mongrels are on their way here and there's only a few of us. Alice is calling the others to tell them to get their asses back here pronto."

"They'll be back shortly," Alice announced, speeding over to me and wrapping her arms around me protectively. "Don't be afraid, Bella. I'll protect you, I promise."

"The wolves are coming here?" I asked in a whisper. She nodded. "How do you know?"

"I smelled them," Amara replied, pointing her nose as the door opened and Edward, Rosalie and Emmett all walked in.

Edward looked tense, Rosalie looked concerned and Emmett looked like he was ready to start kicking someone's ass. It didn't take much longer for Carlisle and Esme to both appear through the front door, both of them concerned as well.

"The wolves are on their way here?" Esme asked, sounding surprised. "That seems rather brash of them. Do they not care about their own treaty?"

"I thought you talked to them?" I inquired, looking at Carlisle.

"I tried," he admitted, sighing. "They didn't bother speaking to me, though, so I stopped. I had a feeling that they would do this. Amara, how many of them are coming here?"

Amara grimaced. "All of them."

I gaped in surprise while the others tensed up. Jasper sent out a stronger wave of calm while Carlisle started pacing back and forth, trying to decide how to handle the situation. Emmett, Amara and Rosalie all looked prepared for the worst, as did Alice, who remained by my side, holding me close to her. Edward seemed lost in thought, if anything.

"What should we do about them?" Edward asked.

"Does it matter? There's no point in trying to reason with the stinking mutts," Rosalie growled.

Emmett pounded his fists in agreement. "If they want a fight, they'll get one."

"Only if it comes to that, Emmett," Carlisle reasoned. "Let's try to be civil. I don't want any threats or insults directed at them, do you all understand? That will only get them upset with us and since Bella is among us, I would advise against that."

"They won't touch her," Alice snarled. "I won't let them."

"Maybe we should plan…" Jasper mused, clenching his fists.

Amara snarled. "Too late. They're here."

I gulped and tensed up as a loud pounding noise hit the front door. Shit.

**A/N: Uh-oh.**

**Yes, the wolves have shown up. Fun stuff, right?**

**Also, the next chapter will likely be up in three days instead of one or two. I got school and homework, so no complaining now. :P**


	51. Wolves

**Disclaimer: I don't take credit for anything belonging to Meyer, only to what belongs to me. And I'm pretty sure that includes your soul.**

**Wolves**

No one moved or spoke. All eyes watched the door as it was pounded against, the tension in the air thick enough to cut through with a knife. Jasper sent out a wave of calm, but it did little to settle us as we waited in silence.

I swallowed hard, knowing what lie behind the door. The werewolves. Not just one, not just a few, but all of them. Their entire pack was at our front door and that thought scared and worried me, especially since I was pretty sure they outnumbered my family.

The pounding lasted for a minute or so before letting up. Carlisle glanced at each of us, then cleared his throat and calmly walked to the door. For a moment he seemed to think of something, but it didn't last because he took in a deep breath and opened the door. The moment the door opened, that familiar stench from the beach filtered into the house, causing me to cover my nose.

Ugh, it was _awful_! How could Carlisle resist that stink? I snuck a glance and saw that the noses of everyone else, even Esme, were crinkled slightly, especially Amara's. I felt a bit bad for her since she had the best sense of smell out of anyone else in the family, which must've made them stink even worse to her. Oh God, poor Amara. Wait, poor me! Since my senses were all screwed up, this was definitely affecting me just as much. Blech.

"Hello there, wolf clan," Carlisle greeted in a gentle voice.

"Cullen," came the reply, in an almost forced neutral tone.

I recognized it as the voice of Sam Uley, apparently the leader of the wolves, or at least, the male leader, since there were two "Alphas" in their pack. I still didn't fully understand the whole wolf thing, truth be told. There was a lot about them that I didn't know.

What I did know was that they _stunk_.

"Is there something I can do for you?" Carlisle asked, seemingly ignoring the tone of Sam's voice altogether. I had to give the man credit; he certainly knew how to keep calm, even in the face of his enemies. It was kind of funny since I couldn't actually see any of the wolves, which made me assume that they were farther away, trying to avoid the smell of my family.

"We need to talk," Sam replied curtly. "It's regarding your family."

"Certainly," Carlisle replied, nodding. "Would you like to come inside?"

I felt Alice growl against me and looked up to see her baring her teeth at her father's question. I couldn't help but agree with her, though I knew that Carlisle was merely trying to be polite and friendly, which made sense. All of the others, even Esme, let out quiet hisses in protest to the idea as well. Carlisle peered over his shoulder and shot us a brief reproving look, but quickly returned his attention to our "guests".

"Are you _joking_? _Hell_ no, we won't go in there! We don't want to breathe in your stink," snorted a familiar sounding female voice. It sounded like Raina Black, the female Alpha of the wolves and Jacob's older sister. This reminded me of something. Jacob. He was likely there too, which made me feel uneasy. That also meant that Leah was probably with them, which made me feel even more uneasy. What would they say now that they were here and that I was a Cullen? That worried me a bit.

I heard Rosalie snort. "They think _we_ stink? They should smell themselves..."

Carlisle nodded, again looking placid as he spoke. "Very well, then. Would you prefer it if we were to come outside?" Carlisle inquired, clearly unfazed by Raina's tone and comment.

There was a pause and I could vaguely make out some whispering and grunts amongst the wolves, a few that I could recognize the owner of. Namely it was Sam and Raina talking, though I swore I could hear Jacob and three others adding in to their quiet conversation. That made me wonder: why the hell were they whispering when they knew that my family could hear them?

"Yes," Sam grunted at last. "That is acceptable."

Carlisle nodded again and turned to the rest of us, inclining his head to the door. Begrudgingly the others started to move towards the door in a single file, Carlisle leading the way while Edward was in the back. I attempted to stand, but Alice didn't budge, growling quietly.

"You stay here," she stated firmly.

I turned and scowled at her, feeling a little insulted and a tad annoyed that she was trying to make me stay. I understood that she wanted to protect me, but this involved me as much as it did her, especially since it was my fault that we were being forced to deal with the wolves like this to begin with. Then again, had I not done what I did, I probably wouldn't know that they were werewolves to begin with, but I digress.

"Alice, I'm part of this family," I stated evenly. "Not only that, but I'm the reason they found out that I was a Cullen to begin with."

Alice pouted and shook her head. "That wasn't your fault, Bella. You didn't know. It's our fault for not telling you sooner. The point is, they're dangerous, especially when they get upset. I don't want you out there if that happens, so stay here, please?"

I pursed my lips. She wasn't going to let me go easily, it seemed.

"Alice, don't be that way. I know it will be dangerous, but this involves me. I can't just sit here while you go out there, Alice. I'm your mate, I need to protect you as much as you need to protect me, even if I can't do shit. Besides, aren't they the protectors of humans or something like that? Doesn't that mean they won't attack since I'll be there?"

"You don't know that!" Alice whined, holding me firmly. "Please, Bella. _Please_ listen to me this once and stay inside." Her eyes smoldered with a pleading look that nearly made me melt inside, but I wasn't going to give in this time.

"No, Alice. I'm not staying here. I know you want me to be safe, but I'll be safe with you and the others around me," I reasoned, touching her cheeks. "I love you and I trust you, so I know that nothing bad will happen to me. I want to be out there with you, so that I can give the wolves my testament should they need it. If anything, me being there would help out more. Besides, you don't want them thinking that I'm not alive any more, do you?"

Alice hesitated momentarily, obviously trying to think of something to say that would keep me inside. Finding nothing, though, she sighed and released me from her iron grip. I stood abruptly, Alice a half second behind me. She looped an arm around me, which I didn't mind, and together we walked after the others outside the house.

Once outside, I saw every member of the wolf pack, including the ones I'd never seen before. In total, there were fourteen wolves, six of them girls, the other eight boys. I found it funny how the guys wore no shirts and the girls wore sleeveless, midriff exposing tank tops. A part of me may have considered ogling them, but I was far too nervous to even think about it at the time.

Sam and Raina stood at the head of the pack, the others fanning out on their sides. Most of them looked either incredibly irritated or tensed up, especially the one I remembered being called Paul and Jacob, whose eyes locked onto mine and never left. I also noticed that their noses were scrunched too, likely because my family smelled bad to them. I found that laughable, but I didn't comment on it, since I knew it wasn't a smart idea.

Only four wolves didn't look angry or ready for a fight, two of the boys and two girls.

I immediately noticed Leah's eyes on me as well, though her expression was more so one of concern and worry then anger. The boy next to her, who I knew to be Seth, her younger brother, looked…curious? He looked like he was taking on the scene with great interest and had almost a childlike innocence, as if this were his first time seeing vampires. The other two were ones that I vaguely recognized by recalling Jacob's descriptions. The girl, whom I believed was Crystal, looked bored and the boy, Brandon, had a relatively calm expression on his face,.

I noticed the tension the moment I'd walked outside, which seemed to only make things worse. The wolves all looked at me, some puzzled, some scowling and a couple uncaring. The sight of Alice being near me added to the jumbled emotions and for a split second I felt as though one of them might start attacking. Jasper, however, was using his gift to send out waves of calm to both sides, likely trying to keep things civil between the two groups.

One thing that I didn't fail to notice was the obvious numbers disadvantage that my family had against the wolves, since there were fourteen of them and only nine of us, which was only made worse because of the fact that Alice and the others had recently finished recovering from their most recent fight. Even worse was the fact that I was utterly useless and more of a liability than anything, especially since I knew that the others would try to protect me from being hurt.

For once, I was the only human among supernatural creatures. And it sucked. I hated knowing that I was the weak link of the family, the one who couldn't do anything other than cower in the background while the others fought.

So for that reason, I really hoped that a fight wouldn't break out.

No one spoke for about a minute. That was when Carlisle decided to take the initiative and break the incredibly awkward silence among us.

"I am sorry for the awkwardness, but we were not expecting guests at this time. Perhaps if you'd called, we would have been better prepared. But that is no problem, of course, because we wish to remain your allies and not become your enemies," Carlisle stated calmly. "Now then, what can we do for you on this day?"

Several of the wolves sneered at Carlisle as Sam's dark eyes fell on me, his brow furrowing. "I would like to know what the meaning behind your adoption of this girl is," he replied simply. His tone was formal and a little rugged, but wasn't as disrespectful as I would have thought.

"I assure you that we mean no harm to her, Sam Uley. If you must know, however, my daughter has chosen her as her mate. Not only-"

"_Mate_?" Raina asked, narrowing her eyes. "How can a human be a mate for a _bloodsucker_?"

Alice hissed. "What does it matter? I love her and she loves me. We are together and there's not a _damn_ thing any of you can say to change that."

"Do not think so lightly of us, leech," Raina snarled, glaring daggers at Alice.

That was when I remembered the accident that had happened between Alice and Billy and Sarah Black years ago and that Raina had tried to kill her. The animosity was still there and as strong as ever, which made me start to worry. Would she try and attack Alice?

Sam placed a hand on her shoulder. "Calm down, Raina. We aren't here to cause trouble; we are merely following the Council's orders and looking into this situation. I know you don't like this, but we need to keep our tempers in check, understand?"

Raina grimaced. "Fine, whatever Sam. Just don't get on my case when this situation blows up in our faces, alright?

"Yes, yes," he sighed.

Jacob stepped towards Sam, growling at him as he did. "What the hell are you talking about, Sam? She's a human and they're _leeches_! You know we can't trust their kind! They could _kill _her, for crying out loud!"

Both sides erupted into growls at Jacob's words, Alice especially. She bared her teeth in an terrifying grimace at him while I glared him down, which he seemed confused by.

"Bella, I'm trying to do what's best for your safety," Jacob stated, taking a step towards me. My body suddenly vibrated as a warning growl escaped my lips, causing him to stop in his tracks. Alice snarled and stood in front of me, crouching down in a defensive position.

"You have no right to decide what's best for me," I spat. "I chose to live with the Cullens, I chose to be with Alice and I have no intention of ever taking back any of those decisions. I don't care what you think I need, Jacob, I'm the only one who can make choices for myself."

"Your choice is the wrong one," Raina spat. "Have you no brains, girl? Do you want to die a painful death when your precious "mate" sucks the life out of you? Unless you…" She paused for a moment, her eyes darkening and her hands curling into tight fists. "You…you're not going to _become_ one of them, are you?"

I grimaced. From what I'd been told, the wolves and the Cullens had a treaty that stated that a human could not be bitten, whether to be changed or to be fed from. But I was already bitten before I had joined them. Would the wolves believe that, though?

"No, she isn't going to be changed," Edward interjected, likely from reading her thoughts or one of the other wolves' thoughts. "We know how to abide by the rules set up by our treaty, wolf. We will not break it, I assure you of that, so there is no need for such hasty actions."

"So what, then? What's the point in keeping her around?" Raina demanded.

Carlisle cleared his throat, a slight bit of irritation crossing his handsome features for a brief few seconds before it was washed away and his usual calm face returned.

"I know this might be difficult to understand, but my daughters are in love with one another, therefore it would be wrong to separate them," Carlisle stated, gently yet firmly. "As far as changing her goes, that was a topic of which I intended to speak with your elders about. However, they did not respond to my calls when I attempted to speak to them. Perhaps we could set up a meeting of some sort?"

Raina and Jacob growled in unison. Several of the other wolves did the same, a few even starting to violently shake. Jasper sent out a stronger wave of calm to the wolves, trying his best to keep a fight from breaking out. Alice tensed and pulled me closer to her, wrapping her strong arms around me to protect me as best she could.

"Everyone, please," Carlisle stated, raising his voice. "There is no need for senseless violence."

"We do not allow your kind on our land," Sam grunted.

Esme stepped forward. "We have not once broken the treaty that we created with Ephraim Black all those years ago. Why do you continue to persist in believing that we would break it now, after having it for so long?"

Sam pursed his lips and seemed to consider it. "Very well, we shall speak to the elders and see if it is possible to set up a meeting of some sort. However, it would not be on our land, I can say that without a doubt."

"Probably stinks there anyways," Rosalie snorted, crinkling her nose. "Just like it stinks here, no thanks to you mongrels."

"What the hell did you say, bitch?" Paul snarled, leaping forward angrily. "You mocking us?"

Rosalie sneered. "As a matter of fact, I am. You stink, dog."

Paul glared scathingly at the mouthy blonde, who continued to sneer. I couldn't help smiling and on the inside, I was rooting for Rosalie.

"Stupid bitch," Paul spat.

Emmett was the next to step forward, glaring down the angered wolf. "Watch what you say, mutt," he warned. "Or else I'll rip out that tongue of yours."

"Fuck off leech, you don't get to give me orders," Paul growled back.

"Enough, Paul," Sam grunted, shooting him a reprimanding look. Paul grimaced and stepped back, glaring at Emmett. Several of the other wolves growled or grumbled amongst themselves, which further irritated both of the Alphas.

"Shut it, all of you!" barked Raina, glaring at her pack-mates.

Sam pinched the bridge of his nose and sighed. "As I said, we will speak to the elders, but I make no guarantees towards your request, Cullen. Our treaty prohibits the changing of a human, you know this." He hesitated momentarily, looking down at the ground. "Unless…"

"No!" Jacob growled, grabbing Sam's shoulder. "There's no "unless", Sam. It's forbidden, you and I both know that. Bella shouldn't even be here with them, it's not safe-"

"Shut the fuck up, Jacob!" I roared, practically leaping at him. I would have had Alice's arms not kept me in place. "What the _hell_ is wrong with you? You're supposed to be my friend, yet all you're doing is acting like a controlling ass! It's not your choice, it's _mine_, damn it!"

Jacob looked aghast by my outburst and just stood there dumbly, unable form an intelligible response as Raina stared at me. She shook her head and muttered something under her breath, which my family must have heard because of the reactions on their faces.

Alice bared her teeth and snarled at the Alpha female, glaring daggers at her. Raina immediately responded in a similar manner. They held each other's hate filled gaze, each tense and ready to attack in a moment's notice. I looked worriedly between them, not wanting Alice to fight and get injured again, especially since she'd just recovered from her last injury.

"Calm it down, Raina," Sam whispered into his mate's ear, wrapping one arm around her shoulders and pulling her a bit closer to him.

Raina visibly relaxed into his arms, though her eyes remained trained on Alice. Seeing what Sam had done, I decided to try the same with my mate. I stepped toward Alice and slowly wrapped my arms around Alice's waist. Alice's body vibrated as she growled, not even realizing that it was me who was holding her. I didn't let go though and slowly pulled her to my body, making sure to be gentle and tender with my movements.

Though she initially hesitated, Alice eventually relaxed into my body. She turned her head and nuzzled into the crook of my neck, breathing my scent in while her hands clenched and unclenched the back of my shirt. I mimicked her motion and nuzzled into her neck, letting out a soft moan when I breathed in her rich scent.

I noticed that the wolves were watching on with a mixed display of emotions. Some of them looked disgusted, but a good few seemed more so surprised than anything. Sam had a relatively thoughtful look as he appraised me, curiosity flickering in his dark eyes.

"You two truly are mates?" he asked, brow furrowing.

"Yes," I replied, holding his gaze. "Alice is the love of my life, just like Carlisle and Esme are my parents and Emmett, Rosalie, Amara, Jasper and Edward are my siblings. They didn't force me to do this, I chose it myself. I love them and I love being a part of this family. Doesn't that matter at all? Shouldn't I be allowed to live this way because I choose to?"

Sam seemed to consider this, surprisingly. Raina looked at me like I was an idiot while the others continued to show a myriad of different emotions depending on the wolf. I noticed Leah was looking down at the ground with a somber look on her face and wondered why she looked that way and not upset or agitated like the others did.

"Let us go," Sam stated, looking at the other wolves. "I will-"

"Wait," Raina interrupted, stepping away from her mate. "You can't seriously just leave at a time like this? You know as well as I do that we cannot trust bloodsuckers, Sam. We can't leave this girl here with them, her stupidity aside."

"_Excuse_ me?" I growled, glaring at the Alpha female.

"You heard me," Raina growled back, glaring right back at me. "You obviously have no sense of self-preservation. And either you are the stupidest human I've ever met or these leeches have somehow brainwashed you into thinking that they care about you. They are _vampires_, bloodsucking monsters and you are a human, their source of _food_. What in God's name makes you think that they could feel anything but hunger towards you?"

I released Alice and took a step forward. "Because I'm not a biased moron like you are."

Raina was in my face seconds later, her body shaking violently. "I'm an idiot, am I? That's funny coming from you," she spat. "Am I the brainless human living with a family of _creatures_ that have _killed_ innocent humans in the past? Am I-"

"No, you're the brainless mongrel who won't see reason!" I shouted angrily, jabbing a finger into her face. "Why don't you go back to your little beach with your tail between your legs and leave my family and I the fuck alone, bitch!"

That, unfortunately, was a very bad idea.

Raina violently shoved me to the ground and nearly pounced on me. Leah shot forward and grabbed Raina's waist to hold her in place, Crystal and Serena jumping in to help her seconds later. The three female wolves held back their Alpha as she snarled and tried to attack me. Alice was in front of me not a moment later, snarling demonically at the Alpha female.

The others jumped forward with bared teeth, which got the other wolves agitated, causing them to step up as well. Everyone was either growling, hissing or glaring at one another as Leah and the other two struggled to hold Raina back.

"Let me go!" Raina bellowed, thrashing about wildly in the other wolves' arms. "NOW!"

Instantly the three of them released her and she attempted to lunge at Alice and I. Sam, however, stepped in front of her and tried to calm her, pulling her into his arms and whispering into her ear. But this time she refused to listen to him. Jacob tensed up and glared at Alice, looking like he was about ready to attack her. I got to my feet abruptly and moved to Alice's side, daring Jacob to try it.

"Bella, what the hell are you doing?" Jacob asked, bewildered.

"Don't give me that shit, Jacob," I spat. "I know what's going through your head, so don't you _dare_ try and reason with me. Why can't you understand? You're supposed to be my friend, yet you're acting like my enemy!"

Jacob ground his teeth together, shooting a glance at his sister. "Because it isn't right, Bella. All the stuff that Raina said is true! You shouldn't be with them!"

"ENOUGH!" Esme roared. Everyone, even Raina, went silent. Esme growled venomously at the wolves, baring her glistening teeth at them. "How _dare_ you speak that way to my child? How _dare_ you come onto our land without our consent and begin making accusations and insults towards us? You have no right for any of it and you _damn_ well know it!"

"I think you need to leave," Carlisle growled, abandoning the calm demeanor that he usually had.

"We don't have to do _anything_, leech," Paul snorted.

"Maybe we should go…" Brandon murmured, frowning. "Is there a point to be here?"

"I agree with Brandon, let's go. I can't stand smelling their stink," Serena whimpered. I noticed that she looked a lot more placid than the others did. "And I don't want to fight with them."

"Definitely," agreed Quil. "Well, I agree with leaving here. It reeks."

"Do we have to leave?" Embry asked, frowning. "I was looking forward to getting into some leech bashing action."

"This is boring," Crystal grumbled, stifling a yawn. "I want to go home."

"Screw leaving, let's have some fun!" Colton crooned.

"Quiet, all of you!" Sam commanded, silencing the other wolves. He turned back to Raina, holding her in place while she writhed around and glared at him. "Raina, stop this. We didn't come here to fight; we came here to look into why there was a human living here. As far as I'm concerned, she's here of her own free will and I won't take that free will away. I say we leave and discuss this with the elders, then go from there. I understand your anger, Raina, but you need to calm yourself down and get it under control."

Raina gritted her teeth. "Understand? _Understand_? You do _not_ understand my anger, Sam. Did I not tell you about what happened the last time with that midget leech?" she hissed, jabbing a shaky finger at Alice. "Must I remind you what she did-?"

"That was an _accident_!" Alice shouted, throwing her hands into the air. "What could I do? It wasn't like what I did was intentional!" Her eyes darkened, but her face grew somber and remorseful as she remembered what had happened. "I didn't…I didn't mean for that to happen, I swear it on my life. I would take it back if I could, but I can't. There was nothing I could do…aside from calling Carlisle."

"I don't give a shit!" Raina snarled, clenching her fists. "Look at what happened because of you, you damn murderous _monster_!"

Alice flinched at her words while the rest of us, even myself, growled at her. The tension in the air was increasingly thickening and not even Jasper's gift looked like it would be able to help calm everyone down. I was infuriated by Raina's comment and wanted to punch the bitch in the face for speaking to _my _Alice that way.

"Shut up! Don't you _ever_ fucking talk to her like that!" I roared.

Jasper placed a hand on my shoulder, sending a powerful wave of calm into me that nearly knocked me out. I fell backwards into Alice's arms, slightly annoyed but grateful in the same. He turned and sent out another powerful wave of calm, straining himself as he did.

"Stop that!" growled Raina. "Quit fucking with my emotions!"

Sam pulled his mate back. "All of you, back off!" he ordered.

Jacob helped Sam hold his sister, confusion written on his face. "Raina, what the hell are you talking about? What accident? What'd she do?" His eyes flickered to Alice, a look of anger forming despite him not knowing.

Alice looked mortified and the others all tensed up. Esme bit her lip, hesitating on whether or not to go and hug Alice. She didn't, though, and I could understand why. I wasn't sure what to do. I wanted to comfort Alice, but I did feel a pang of remorse for Jacob and Raina's loss. Raina, however, was going about this the wrong way, letting her obvious bias towards my family motivate how she acted and spoke. And that wasn't a good thing.

Raina sneered at Alice. "That little bitch is the one responsible for the accident that killed mom and paralyzed dad, Jacob," she ground out, her words filled with malice and spite. "I know it was her because I smell her stink all over the sight. I tried to get vengeance, but I couldn't because the other leeches showed up and I was forced to leave."

Alice tried to speak. "I didn't-"

"Shut up, you little shit!" Raina snarled. "It doesn't matter what you say, you…my mother is _dead_ because of you!"

"Raina…" Sam warned.

Jacob's eyes bulged as he stared at his sister, awestruck.

Sam frowned. "Is that true?" he asked.

Alice grimaced and looked like she was going to cry, a sight that snapped me out of the calm induced haze that Jasper had put me in. I pulled her into me and kissed her forehead, whispering into her ear that it wasn't her fault.

"Is that true?" Jacob roared, jumping forward. His face was contorted into one of sheer rage as he glared daggers at Alice, his entire body shaking violently. "_ANSWER ME_, damn it!"

"Yes," Alice squeaked, burying her face into my neck.

Jacob let out a guttural snarl. I watched as his entire body exploded, his shoes and shorts gone with the wind in an instant. In his place was a large, brown furred wolf, growling menacingly at Alice and the rest of my family.

Quil and Embry both joined in, turning into their wolf forms. From what I saw, Quil became a chocolate brown wolf while Embry became an auburn furred wolf. The others tensed up and watched on with uncertainty as the three wolves growled in unison at us, Alice specifically.

Emmett, Rosalie, Amara, Edward and Alice all growled back, all of them crouching into fighting positions. I tried to grab Alice, but Esme pulled me into her arms, preventing me from doing so. I looked up and saw her eyes were jet black and slit-like as she watched the wolves' movements.

"There's no need for this," Carlisle stated in a firm voice "There is no need for violence. What happened all those years ago was an accident. I treated both of them when they were brought to the hospital; you have to trust me on that. There was nothing that could be done to save the woman, I promise you, because if there had been I would have done it."

Edward growled. "He doesn't believe you. He won't see reason, Carlisle."

Carlisle growled at Jacob. "My daughter is not at fault in this. If you want someone to attack, then attack me, but do not attack her."

Jacob growled in response, his eyes not leaving Alice's. Then he opened his mouth and lunged at Alice's head, aiming to tear her head off. I tried to scream, but I was unable to do so, watching paralyzed as he lunged for my love. Alice hissed and ducked under his massive body with ease, grabbing his legs with her hands and slamming him back down.

Quil and Embry both jumped next only to be blocked by Emmett and Rosalie. Rosalie violently swatted Quil across the face while Embry was pulled into one of Emmett's bear hugs. The other wolves, seeing this, started to turn into their wolf forms, save for Sam, Raina, Seth and Brandon, who didn't budge an inch from where he was standing.

"Stop it, guys!" Brandon urged. His urging fell on deaf ears, though, since the other wolves ignored him, even his own brother.

The wolves all started to encircle us, growling at each vampire. A few even growled at me which earned them a snarl from Alice, who was standing directly in front of me, acting as my own personal moving shield. Amara, Edward and Jasper all readied themselves for a fight. Even Esme and Carlisle seemed to prepare themselves should the wolves start attacking, which I did not want to happen. I couldn't bear to see them get hurt after just recovering from their last fight.

"Jacob, stop!" I shouted at the wolf who leered at Alice. "It wasn't her fault, Jacob. Please, don't hurt her."

"Bella, stay back!" Alice commanded, pushing me back. Jacob growled even louder when she did, but she ignored his growl.

"He won't listen, Bella," Edward stated, watching the other wolves' movements. "None of them will listen to us."

I turned to Sam. "Can't you order them to stop?"

Sam scowled and attempted to speak, but Raina cut him off, pulling away from him.

"Why should we? If anything, that bitch deserves to pay for what she did," Raina spat.

I shook my head at her exasperatedly. "What the fuck is _wrong_ with you? Are you that close minded that you would let your own bias get in the way of your judgment? Can't you see that Alice didn't mean for that to happen? That no one did?"

Raina ignored my reasoning and exploded, turning into her wolf form. As a wolf, she was much larger in size then even Jacob was, her fur a dark gray color. Sam grunted and turned into his wolf form as well, an equally sized black wolf. Now only Brandon remained in his human form, watching on disdainfully.

"Jacob…if you really are my friend, please…don't do this," I tried to reason.

He looked at me as though I had betrayed him, which hurt. I remembered playing with him and Raina when we were all kids years ago, all the fun we used to have. Did our friendship then not matter anymore to either of them? Raina didn't even act like she recognized me, for that matter. I didn't understand, nor did I know what to do.

My thoughts were broken when Alice suddenly snarled. I turned to see both Raina and Jacob sprinting towards us. Alice pushed me back and lunged forward with her teeth bared for the two giant wolves that leapt at her.

I screamed. "No!"

**A/N: Oh noes! **

**There you have it, the wolves have shown up. Don't expect a whole lot to be done with them at this point in time, but this certainly won't be the end of them for this story. They will show up several more times, I can assure you of that. ****Funny note, I wanted to try and make the wolves likable in this story, but that obviously didn't end up happening. There will come a time when more depth is given to the wolves in order to give them a personality and explain why they are the way they are, I can promise that much. It just didn't come out for this story, but I don't think that's a bad thing.**

**Like with this chapter, you'll have to wait until Friday for me to post the next chapter. Homework is a bit more important on my list of things to do, despite the fact that this story is far more important in my book. Apparently that isn't good enough though. Sigh. Sorry gals and guys.**


	52. Tension

**Disclaimer: I don't take credit or claim to anything belonging to Meyer, only for what is MINE. All original characters and ideas are copyright me. Duh.**

**Tension**

Jacob and Raina both snarled in unison as they both lunged for Alice. I wanted nothing more than to grab Alice and pull her aside, but I was too slow. Out of the corner of my eye I caught sight of something gray moving and watched as it careened into both Jacob and Raina, knocking them both to the ground. Alice landed lithely on her feet without hitting her intended targets and jumped backwards as a hazel furred wolf snapped its teeth at her legs.

All of my siblings growled at the wolves surrounding them, most of the wolves growling right back at them. Carlisle and Esme were growling too, though Carlisle's was nearly inaudible compared to Esme's harsh growl as she gave the wolves a threatening grimace, daring them to even think of trying to attack her family again.

I snapped my attention to where Jacob and Raina were and saw a light gray furred wolf with white on its face glaring down both the Blacks. Raina looked like she was seething with rage as she lunged for the gray wolf, but the gray wolf easily avoided her, moving at a much faster speed than I thought possible for something so large.

I inspected the gray wolf and came to realize that it was female, which meant one thing. Leah.

The hate in both Jacob and Raina's eyes proved my point as they encircled Leah, who didn't even blink an eye at the obvious numbers game. A sandy colored wolf moved to Leah's side, looking ganglier, thinner and smaller than the others. I knew by that alone that it was Seth, Leah's younger brother, trying to keep his older sibling safe from harm.

All around me the wolves snarled and growled, a few looking like they wanted nothing more than to rip the members of my family into pieces. They didn't move, however, which thoroughly confused me. Why were they not attacking?

"Their Alpha commanded them not to," Edward stated, answering my mental question.

I glanced over to Sam and saw that he was looking at me with appraising eyes. His gaze flickered to Alice, who stood near me protectively, black eyes glaring down both Jacob and Raina, both of whom growled angrily at her. She curled back her lip and hissed back, crouching down and waiting for them to attack.

Sam let out a loud bark, causing all of the wolves except for Raina to drop down to their knees, even Jacob who appeared to be struggling with something. I furrowed my brow in confusion as to what was going on and turned to Edward for an answer.

Edward frowned. "It's hard to explain. As the Alpha, he is capable of forcing the others to obey his command, no matter what he orders them to do. This is the result of what happens when they try to fight his orders or disobey them. It doesn't seem to affect his mate, though."

Raina turned her angry eyes to Sam questioningly, but Sam frowned and shook his large head at her, much to her dismay. She bared her teeth and growled at him, turning her head to Alice and letting out an angry array of barks. Sam remained silent and sighed, shaking his head once again at her protesting, which earned him another growl.

_What's going on, Edward?_ I asked mentally.

"They're arguing over what to do next. Sam wants them to return to La Push so that they can talk with their council and inform them of what they've learned, but Raina wants to stay. She wants revenge and she doesn't want to leave without getting some form of equal payback, which is causing a bit of a standstill between the two of them," Edward replied.

I heard Jacob snarl and turned to see that his attention was focused on Leah, who was snarling back at him, Seth whimpering next to her. Leah and Jacob circled one another, the look in their eyes making it appear that nothing else mattered but tearing into one another. Neither Sam nor Raina seemed to pay much attention to the two of them. I felt uncertain watching, since I liked Leah and Jacob, or at least I used to like Jacob. He really showed his true colors today.

Suddenly both wolves leapt at each other and collided, barking and growling as they did. Their fight turned into a frenzy of teeth and claws that I could barely see from the dust and debris being kicked up. Several wolves glanced at the fight, but most of them kept their eyes on the members of my family. Sam looked pained as he kept his eyes concentrated on Raina, who continued to growl in irritation at her mate.

That was when an odd yet familiar scent filled my nostrils. Blood.

I whipped my head over to see blood splattering on the ground as Leah and Jacob dug their teeth into one another. Seth was whimpering and looking frantic at the sight, a look of helplessness crossing his features that made my heart wrench. Seeing him like that made me think of how I felt when I watched my family members, Alice especially, being hurt.

My nostrils flared as the smell of their blood filled them. I felt repulsed by their blood, though and wanted nothing more than to throw up. I quickly buried my nose into Alice's back, breathing her heavenly scent in and not the disgusting stench of the wolves' blood, even though I wanted to watch on. I felt a pang of worry for Leah's sake since she was slightly smaller in stature than Jacob, but I wasn't sure about it. I mean, was she my friend still? I didn't know.

Their fight continued on for another minute before a loud booming bark erupted from Sam's maw, silencing both of them and the other wolves altogether. I peered over Alice's shoulder and saw a look of bitterness on Raina's features as she lowered her head to Sam, who growled at both Jacob and Leah. The two were now feet away from one another, each with two wolves near them. Quil and Embry loomed near a bloody Jacob while Seth and Crystal stood by Leah, who was also bleeding relatively badly.

I had to swallow back the bile that threatened to rise in my throat at the sight and the smell of the two bleeding animals. What got me was how horrid their blood smelled and I wondered for a moment if I was the only one affected by it. I snuck a brief glance at my other family members and saw that I wasn't, since everyone save for Carlisle looked revolted by the sight.

I figured if anything the fact that they were werewolves was the reason why their blood smelled bad to us, which made sense to me. But did it have to be so damn strong? Yuck! I thought the wolves naturally stunk, but their blood was an entirely different level of stink.

My nose crinkled in sheer disgust and I had to bury it back into Alice's shoulder in order to allow her sweet scent to filter through. I watched as the other wolves begrudgingly moved away from the members of my family, all of them shooting glares our way before hanging their heads to their Alpha. Sam barked and inclined his head towards the forest.

I noticed Brandon had phased into his wolf form, since there was a new honey furred wolf that I didn't recognized standing near the entrance to the forest. His gaze met mine for a fraction of a second, then he turned his head away and disappeared into the forest. The other wolves slowly began to follow after him. A few remained, however.

Jacob refused to budge an inch despite the protesting of Quil and Embry. He let out a rumbling growl at the two of them, which apparently was enough to make them quit their protesting and leave, though they did so reluctantly. That left Seth, Leah, Raina, Sam and Jacob behind. Raina glared at Alice, paying no attention to her brother whatsoever. Alice glared back at her and hissed rather tauntingly at the dark gray wolf.

"Alice, don't," Edward warned. "Just keep your thoughts to yourself and stay where you are with Bella, alright?"

"Don't tell me what to do," she hissed.

"Alice…" I murmured.

Alice flinched and turned her head slightly, her black eyes peering at me over her shoulder. I gave her a pleading look to let it go and wrapped my arms around her waist, pulling her as close to me as I could. Alice was tense at first, and I could hear her making a low humming noise as she clicked her teeth together in thought. Ultimately she let out a long sigh and relaxed into my body once more, a breath of relief escaping my mouth seconds after.

Carlisle and Esme both blurred in front of us to face the remaining wolves. Raina growled, Seth was helping Leah stand, Jacob didn't move and Sam let out another loud sigh.

"I believe it is time for you to leave," Carlisle stated in a firm tone. I could tell he was struggling to keep his voice neutral and passive, which must've been difficult for him after what had happened and what could have ended up happening.

Sam grunted and looked at Seth and Leah, growling under his breath. Seth whimpered and looked to Leah, who shook her head, giving Sam a pleading look. Raina turned around and snapped her teeth at her in exasperation. Seth whimpered again and both he and Leah fell to their ground, their legs buckling beneath them. Raina growled again, which caused Seth to whimper once more and take off into the forest.

Raina and Leah held each other's gaze when Leah refused to move. Jacob tried to get involved, but Raina snapped at him. Sam growled as well. Jacob grimaced and shot a look in my direction before letting out a shaky growl and slowly trudging into the forest. I noticed that his wounds had mostly healed, as had Leah's. So apparently they could heal at fast rates, then.

Sam turned his head to Raina and inclined his head towards the forest once again. Leah's eyes met mine and she growled before disappearing into the forest. I expected that she had left, but about two minutes later she reappeared wearing different clothing. Raina growled at her, but she flipped the dark gray wolf off.

"Shut up, I'll be a minute or so," Leah jeered. "Fuck off, Raina."

Raina crouched down, as if to try and lunge for Leah, but Sam stood in her way, giving her a pleading look. Raina grumbled under her breath and shot a glare at Alice and I before swerving away from Sam and into the forest, following the other wolves.

Sam looked at Leah, who crossed her arms. "I'll be there in a moment. Just give me these few minutes, that's it. You can bitch at me later; I don't give a shit right now."

Sam closed his eyes and sighed, but he didn't argue with Leah, instead slowly walking off in the same direction as the other wolves went. Leah watched briefly and I noticed a number of bruises and small gash wounds on her arms and upper neck that were slowly healing. She turned her dark brown eyes back, instantly focusing on me.

Leah prepared to speak only to be cut off sharply by Alice.

"What the hell are you still here for, mongrel?" she snarled. "Leave now before I send you back in little shreds."

Leah snorted. "I don't take orders from you, midget leech. Besides, I'm the one who saved your bloodsucking ass a couple of minutes ago. Or did you forget because you were busy being scared of the big bad wolves trying to rip you into pieces?"

Alice broke from my grip and snarled once more, this one causing her entire body to vibrate.

"Fuck. You," she spat.

Leah rolled her eyes and chuckled. "Is that your way of thanking me? Funny."

"Thanking you? For what, exactly? I didn't ask for you to help me, dog," Alice hissed. "And I don't much appreciate the way you've been eyeing my mate. What the hell are you still doing here, anyways?"

Leah's face grew serious as her eyes flickered to mine once again. I stepped forward and walked over to where Alice was, resting my hand on her shoulder.

"Alice, baby, please…calm down a little. The others are gone, okay? I don't think Leah's here to hurt you or me or anyone else. Please, you're going to strain yourself if you stay this mad," I murmured softly, stroking her shoulder.

Alice stared at me, holding my gaze for a minute or so, then closed her eyes and took in a shaky breath to calm herself down. I felt a strong wave of calm slowly envelop both Alice and I and turned to see Jasper was sending out calmness all around to the others.

"Why did you stay?" Alice asked in a much calmer tone after she'd reopened her eyes.

Leah pursed her lips. "I wanted to talk to Bella," she replied evenly.

Alice furrowed her brow. "Then talk."

"Alone," Leah added, frowning. "As in, none of you damn bloodsuckers surrounding me like I'll attack at any given second."

Alice shook her head furiously, instantly pulling me into her arms. "No. I will not allow her to be around a wolf alone, not after what just hap-"

"Oh, come on!" Leah shouted, throwing her hands into the air. "Why the hell would I want to _attack _her when I was trying to keep the others from attacking her?"

Alice blinked, looking at Leah surprisedly. I did too.

"You…you did?" Alice asked.

Leah sighed. "Yes. I was one of the few who didn't want them to attack. They just didn't listen to me, though, which is typical."

"Why would you do that, Leah?" I asked. "I mean, I thought that…you know, because I live with vampires that you would consider me your enemy."

"I…well, I…I thought they blew the whole thing out of proportion," Leah replied, rubbing the back of her neck. "I dunno, Bella. This whole thing is so damn confusing. I mean, I don't like that you're here with…them, but you look all happy and you're protective and shit. It confuses me and I don't know what to do with it."

"Can't you just accept it?" I asked in a pleading tone. "Why can't any of you understand that I love Alice?"

Leah grimaced. "It doesn't make sense…"

"What doesn't make sense? The fact that a vampire can actually _love _someone?" Alice scoffed, shaking her head at Leah. "That is such a typical wolf attitude. You're all biased against us because of what we are."

"Can you blame us?" Leah asked. "We've been taught since we were born the legends of our people and the cold ones, how your kind has always been our enemy and how we have always fought against your kind to survive. We've been attacked by vampires in the past before, too and lost many of our family members. So really, you can't blame us for having our hate."

"Is that reason enough to despise us when we have never done any intentional harm to your kind?" Edward asked. "We who established a treaty of peace when we had the numbers to eliminate your kind from existence years ago?"

"I…I don't…" Leah trailed off with uncertainty.

Alice sneered at her. "That's all it is. You're biased against us. You don't see what we really are beyond being a vampire; you don't know what we think and what we feel. To you, we are nothing but monsters that feed off of the lives other creatures. You know nothing of our struggles, our pain. Yes, I did cause the accident that killed that woman and paralyzed that man, I will admit that. I did not mean for that to happen, though and I hated myself for doing it."

"None of us are perfect," Carlisle stated softly.

"We're all human on the inside," I murmured.

Leah stared blankly at me, trying to discern the words I've just spoken. Alice turned and gave me an odd look, cocking her head to the side and appraising me at my word choice.

"What?" I asked, confused. She bit her lip and shook her head, which only confused me more.

Leah sighed. "Alright, look. I just wanted to say a few things to Bella. I promise I won't attack her or anything like that, okay?"

I glanced at Carlisle and Esme, who both nodded to me. They both started walking towards the house, the others following suit, though they did so hesitantly. Alice was the only one who didn't move from where she was in my arms. In truth, though I did trust Leah, I didn't want Alice to go.

"I'm staying," Alice announced.

"Fine," Leah grumbled. Her eyes immediately moved to meet mine. "Look, Bella, I just wanted to apologize for all of this. I mean, I get where they're coming from, but I can kinda understand your point of view, too. And as much as I hate admitting it, Sam agrees with me."

"Then why…?"

"Because we have to," Leah sighed. "The council gives us an order, we gotta follow it, no questions asked. They get on Sam and Raina if they don't, and that never ends well. It's happened in the past and we all had to suffer for it."

"Do you think that your council will see reason in this to leave Bella with our family and leave us alone?" Alice asked, though she clearly already knew the answer.

"I don't know," Leah admitting. "Probably not, though. They're even more close-minded then most of us are, aside from my mom. I could try to talk with her, but I don't think it would do much good. In the end, it's a group thing and I know that most of the group is against your kind. They'll probably throw a fit about this, I'm sure of it. I'm also pretty certain that they aren't going to drop this until they get their way."

Alice hissed. "Then they can fight for it as long as they want, Bella stays with this family and with me and nothing they do can change that."

Leah held her hands up. "Hey, don't shoot the messenger, bloodsucker. I'm just giving you what I think, that's all."

"Do you have to call her that?" I inquired, finding that I was growing annoyed with the terms "bloodsucker" and "leech", which the other wolves had used a lot.

Leah snorted. "Does she have to call me a dog and a mongrel? No? Yeah, sorry, but it works both ways, Bella. And I'm pretty sure that they're never going to stop insulting us for what we are, so we won't stop insulting them for what they are."

I shrugged. "You _could_ both stop any time you wanted to."

"We won't," Alice sneered "Are you done, mutt? I'm tired of having to smell your putrid stink."

"_My_ putrid stink? _You're_ the one who stinks, leech," Leah growled.

"Guys, please…" I begged.

"No!" they shouted together before growling at one another. I crossed my arms and huffed, resting my forehead on Alice's shoulder as her body vibrated in an irritated, rumbling growl.

"Stupid wolf," Alice hissed. "And why must you keep looking at my mate like that? Keep your damn eyes to yourself or I'll rip them out of your skull."

"I can look at whomever I damn well please," Leah sneered.

"Not _my_ mate!" Alice snarled. "She is MINE. No one is allowed to look at her like that but _me_, do you hear me? Bella is _mine_ and mine alone, so you'd better damn well keep your eyes to themselves or _else_!"

Leah clenched her fists and took a broad step forward. "Is that a threat, shrimp?" she asked.

Alice released me and moved so that she was standing directly in front of Leah, glaring into the eyes of the taller girl.

"It's a _promise_," Alice growled, standing tall despite the obvious size disadvantage.

Leah sneered at her. "You can make all the false promises you want, bloodsucker. That won't stop me from doing whatever I want to do. You don't own Bella. She has her own free will, so she has the right to change her mind."

Alice looked appalled while I gaped at Leah. I couldn't believe she'd said that!

"I won't change my mind, Leah," I stated, putting my hands on my hips. "I don't much appreciate you saying that to Alice."

Leah grimaced. "I didn't mean-"

"Get _out_ of here," Alice snarled venomously, hands balled into tight fists. "NOW!"

Leah scowled at her, then turned to face me, a look of remorse on her tan face. I could tell that she regretted saying what she had, but there was no point in trying to take it back. I could see that she did mean it. She actually _thought_ that there was a chance that I would leave Alice.

"Bella, please, I didn't…"

I bit my lip and shook my head furiously. "How could…how could you even think that, Leah? I thought that you wanted to be my friend, yet you go and say something like that? I love Alice, Leah, more than anything on this planet and I would never leave her. Not as long as she wants to stay with me."

Alice whipped her head backwards to face me, her black eyes boring into mine.

"As if I would EVER even _think _of leaving you."

I smiled at her reassurance and wrapped my arms around her. "Do you see, Leah?"

Leah hung her head and sighed. "Yeah, I see. I'm…sorry I insulted you, Bella. I'll leave now."

She turned and started walking away when I called after her. "Leah, wait." Leah peered over her shoulder at me curiously. "Does this mean we can't be friends?"

"I'm not sure," she admitted in a whisper, staring down at the ground. "I still want to be, but with the way things are and with the way things will likely end up, I'm just not sure if it's possible. I'm sorry, Bella. I wish I could give you some kind of reassurance or something, but I can't."

"Goodbye, Leah," I murmured, sighing.

Leah looked at me sadly before turning around. "Bye, Bella." She took a few steps forward, but stopped once more. "You'd better be serious about keeping her safe, bloodsucker."

"With my life," Alice grunted.

"I'm not so sure that's good enough," Leah snorted.

Alice curled back her lip and hissed. "Come back here and see for yourself, mongrel."

Leah laughed and continued walking into the forest, the sound of her laughter dying down a minute later. Then it was silent as Alice and I both watched the direction that she and every other wolf had gone in.

Alice gently pulled away from my arms and ran her fingers through her hair, shaking her head.

"Stinking mutt," she spat. She turned to look at me. "I need to hunt. We'll talk in a few."

"Okay," I replied.

She nodded and, after a moment of hesitation, blurred into the forest in a different direction from where the wolves had gone. I sighed and ran a hand through my hair, feeling a little mentally exhausted from all the stuff that had happened. Deciding that, especially since I was still injured, that I should go and rest, I turned and walked back to the house.

Upon opening the door I was greeted by Esme, who immediately pulled me into a warm hug. I wasn't startled by it like I usually would have been and melted into the hug, wrapping my arms around Esme and letting her love wash over me, causing all of the other emotions to dissipate. I smiled warmly at her when I pulled away, thankful for the hug.

"Thank you, Esme."

"You're welcome, dear," she replied, giving me a thoughtful look.

I smiled at her once more and made my way to the couch, gently sitting down and resting my head on the back of it. I felt a slight wave of calm envelop me as I rested, which I was thankful for because it helped clear my head.

I couldn't shake the feeling that I hadn't seen the last of the wolves, however.

"None of us have," Edward sighed, running a hand through his spiky hair. He was sitting next to Emmett, who was sitting with his arms crossed and a scowl on his face. "I heard the thoughts of most of the wolves and I'm certain I can hazard a guess as to how their council will react."

Emmett snorted. "We should've just clobbered them and been done with it."

"I don't think that would have been a good idea," Jasper disagreed. "They outnumbered us fourteen to nine, Emmett. We might have been able to defeat a few, but the entire pack? I'm fairly certain that we would have been killed were we to fight them."

I cringed, images of the wolves standing over the ashes of my family dancing around my head. I shut my eyes and forced them out, not wanting to think of that possibility. Jasper sent me another wave of calm, this one stronger. I happily accepted it and allowed it to blanket me as I relaxed back into the couch with a sigh.

"What a week," I breathed.

"Never a dull moment in the Cullen house," Rosalie grunted.

"Are you hungry, Bella?" Esme asked, walking over to me.

I thought about it. "No thank you, not right now. Maybe later?"

She smiled and nodded. "Very well then, dear. Let me know if you change your mind."

Esme flitted up the stairs and disappeared, leaving me and my siblings. Carlisle walked down at that moment, however, and smiled at me, giving me the same thoughtful look that Esme had. I was confused again, wondering why they were looking at me like that. Did I do something wrong or say something wrong?

Edward chuckled, the entire couch shaking with his laughter.

"Shall I explain it to her or do you want to, Alice?" Edward inquired as the door opened.

Alice danced inside and seconds later I was lifted up and placed on her lap. We locked our arms around each other as I snuggled into her chest and Alice rested her forehead on my head, burying her nose in my hair and breathing in and out several times. She let out a content sigh as she continued to smell my hair, her body starting to vibrate in a purr a moment later.

"I'll tell her," Alice murmured, kissing the top of my head. "In a moment or two."

"Tell me what?" I asked, though my voice was muffled from my face being pressed against her.

"Ooh, ooh, ooh! Are you gonna get laid?" Emmett asked, his serious expression gone with the wind and replaced by his trademark grin. Rosalie rolled her eyes and swatted him on the back of the head, making him whine and rub where he'd been hit. "Ow! What, I was curious! I think they both need to get laid. What's so bad about that?"

I ignored Emmett's humorous remark and peered up at Alice curiously. She was staring down at me lovingly, a placid smile on her angelic face.

"Well? What are you going to tell me?" I asked, kissing her collarbone.

Her smile grew. "You're quite the impatient one, aren't you?" she asked. I grinned rather innocently at her, which she rolled her eyes at. "Alright, hold on."

Alice stood up with me in her arms, smiled and gracefully strode up the stairs and into our room, gently setting me down on our bed. She immediately wrapped around me and kissed my cheek, grinning ear to ear.

"So what are you supposed to talk to me about?" I inquired again, curling my arms around her.

Alice's smile fell slightly and she took on a contemplative look as she appraised me.

"Well, I'm certain that the others are thinking along similar lines as I when I ask you this. When we were outside, talking with that mongrel-"

"Leah," I interjected.

Alice frowned. "What?"

"Her name is Leah," I sighed. "She's not here, so can you at least use her name? You can call the others mongrels if you'd like, though."

Alice crinkled her nose. "Ew. Why should I call her by a name? She's a stinky dog, not a human or a vampire!"

"Alice…"

"No," she huffed, pouting in her usual adorable fashion. "She stinks and I refuse to call her anything other than dog. Besides, she called me leech and bloodsucker and you didn't do anything about that."

I frowned and ran a hand through my hair. "You're right. I'm sorry. You can call her whatever you'd like to and I won't complain about it, I promise."

"Good," she replied. Her facial expressions softened and she turned to face me fully, her golden orbs smoldering and gazing intently into mine. "Anyways, what I was going to say is that…well, we're all sort of wondering about the comment you made to her. That "we're all human on the inside"?"

"That's what I said, yeah," I said, shrugging. "I didn't mean it as an insult."

"I know," Alice murmured. "It's just…we're not used to hearing someone say that. Did you mean it, though? Do you really think that we're still human on the inside, despite the fact that our hearts are dead and that we drink blood?"

I stared at her incredulously, wondering if she was being serious. I saw the look in her eyes, though, and I could see that she was genuinely curious about how I felt. There was a glint of something in there that I could barely recognize. Worry. She was…worried. Worried about what, that I would change my mind?

I pinched the bridge of my nose and shook my head. "Alice, do you really think I'd say something like that and not mean it?" I asked. "Of course I think you're still humans on the inside, why wouldn't I? So your hearts don't beat anymore, that doesn't mean that you don't have a heart. I'd think that Carlisle, Esme and you would be prime examples of that. Hell, you all have hearts, because if you didn't, I'd be dead by now."

Alice's eyes bulged at my words. I forgot that she didn't like it when I talked about me being dead or hurt in any way, shape or form, even if it was just an example or a joke. But she needed to hear it, whether she liked it or not.

I grabbed both of her hands and squeezed them. "I don't think you're a monster, Alice. I've told you that before and I'll tell you again. Don't let what's happened in the past make you think otherwise, alright? So to answer your question, yes, I do think that you're all still human on the inside, no matter what you've done in the past. And yes, I think you have a soul and that none of you are monsters, because that just isn't possible."

Alice stared at me in silence for about a minute and a half. Then she leaned forward and pressed her lips to mine, kissing me softly. I smiled against her icy lips and deepened the kiss, pulling my pixie closer to me. We kissed tenderly for as long as we could before oxygen became my primary need and I was forced to break away in order to breathe. Oddly enough, as I gasped quietly and Alice pressed her forehead to mine, I noticed that I was able to kiss her longer then I had been a few days ago. Not only that, but the need to breathe was becoming…less prominent.

I wondered if the process was moving faster than Carlisle thought. Or maybe I was reading too much into it and freaking out, which I shouldn't be. I have too much in front of me to worry about the inevitable right now.

"Thank you, Bella," Alice whispered. "What you said…it means a lot to me. More then you could possibly imagine, honestly."

"What can I say? I try."

She giggled and started to purr happily as we snuggled closer to each other. The day wasn't close to being over yet, but neither of us cared at that moment. All we wanted to do was spend time with one another, knowing that another confrontation with the wolves was somewhere on the horizon. And that was something none of us looked forward to.

**A/N: Okay, so you get this chapter a bit earlier, despite what I said about it being three days. I was able to find some time to post it, so there you go. Keep in mind that my updating won't be as fast due to school and homework, but it will still get to you before you start to go insane from waiting. :)**

**Angry wolves, thoughtful comments and cuddling. Always a good combination, don't you think?**

**I thoroughly enjoyed writing the Alice/Leah rivalry. You can bet that this isn't the end of that, since I had a lot of fun with it. The rivalry with the wolves was also pretty entertaining to write as well. And no, this isn't the last you'll see of the overly angry fuzz-balls, I can assure you of that. **

**Random note time, I thought I'd post the colors of all the wolves here. Some are canon, some aren't. Some probably aren't even natural wolf fur colors, but that doesn't bother me:**

**Sam: Black.**

**Raina: Dark gray.**

**Jacob: Brown.**

**Leah: Light gray, almost silvery.**

**Quil: Chocolate brown.**

**Embry: Auburn.**

**Colton: Red.**

**Brandon: Honey. Or yellow, if you'd like.**

**Serena: Hazel color; she's much lighter in contrast to Jacob.**

**Crystal: Cream colored.**

**Seth: Sandy colored. He's darker than Brandon is and more brownish. **

**Paul: Silver gray. He's darker than Leah, but lighter than Raina.**

**Kim: White.**

**Jared: Dark brown. Not as dark as Quil, but still darker than Jacob.**

**Why did I do that? Mostly just to help distinguish the wolves a bit, show how they're different from one another. It might've been a bit pointless to do, but meh. I'm random**


	53. Call

**Disclaimer: I take credit for my own creations and ideas only. Everything else is copyright Stephanie Meyer and her dang Twilight series.**

**Call**

For the most part, the next few days ended up passing by at a slow, steady pace. I spent most of that time resting and snuggling with Alice, though I would get up to eat and deal with my usual "human moments". I also spent a bit of time talking with Carlisle and Esme and playing games with the others, sometimes winning, sometimes losing.

Alice remained fervent that I not do anything too strenuous and was always nearby whenever I did anything, which I didn't mind too much. It took about two days for my body to fully heal, namely due to the venom inside of me. From what Carlisle had told me, I would be healing at an accelerated rate for a period of time, which I thought was cool.

It was Friday by the time my body had fully healed and Alice had let up on her super-protective mode—okay, she never stopped being super protective, but she wasn't as nervous or cautious around me as she had been, which was nice.

We had not heard from the wolves since they had come to our house, which worried me. I wondered what their council had said and whether or not they would return any time soon, though whenever I asked Alice she always told me not to worry about it. Eventually I gave up on asking her about it, though I still worried.

I sighed quietly and raised my arms to stretch both them and my neck. Currently I was in mine and Alice's room, pacing around as my mind wandered about. I was trying to think of something other than the threat of the wolves, but as usual, I couldn't.

"What's wrong, Bella?" Alice asked, lightly poking my stomach.

I giggled and wrapped my arms around her, pulling her into me.

"Nothing's wrong, Alice," I replied, kissing her on the lips. "I'm just thinking."

"About what?" she asked, tilting her head to the side.

"Stuff," I replied.

She pouted. "That's not telling me much. C'mon, what are you thinking? Tell me, _please_?"

I bit my lip and pressed my forehead to hers. "Honestly? I'm worried about this whole wolf situation," I admitted. "We haven't heard anything from them and that scares me, Alice. What if they attack again, only this time the Alpha doesn't stop them?"

Alice pursed her lips. "Bella, how many times must I repeat myself? Will you please stop worrying about them already? They aren't your problem to worry about, they're for the rest of us to deal with, not you, Bella."

"But what if they decide that it's not "safe" enough here for me and they try to take me away or some shit like that?" I asked.

In truth, what I hadn't told Alice was that I'd had nightmares about that very thing happening. In my nightmares, the wolves would break into the house and begin fighting with my family members in an attempt to kill them. I would scream and beg them to stop, but no one would pay attention to my incessant shouting. They all continued to growl and snarl and fight.

Then a large figure would appear in my peripherals and grab me. I screamed and writhed around in the iron arms that held me, struggling with all my might to free myself. When I turned, I saw that my captor was Jacob, a blank look on his face as he started walking away from the others as they fought against each other. I tried to fight out of his grip and shouted Alice's name.

I watched as Alice sped after Jacob, eyes blazing and her arms outstretched to reach me, yet no matter how fast she ran, she couldn't catch up to him. That was usually the point that I would wake up with tear-stained eyes. Alice, who was always next to me, would snuggle into me and coo in my ear as she rubbed my back tenderly. She never once asked what I had dreamt of because she didn't want me to relive them.

Alice's eyes darkened intensely at my question. Her lips curled back and she let out a low, rumbling growl that caused her entire body to vibrate.

"They. Will. NOT," she snarled venomously. "I will _kill_ them before they can even _think_ of trying to do that, mark my words. Do not even_ start_ to believe that I would _ever_ let those damned mongrels get their stinking paws on you."

I grimaced at the underlying threat in her voice and realized that I'd upset her. Smooth.

"I'm sorry Alice, I didn't mean to make you angry," I murmured, giving her an apologetic look.

Alice's face softened and she shook her head. "Oh no, Bella, I didn't mean to snap at you. I just don't like that you're thinking that way." She zoned out for a moment, her eyes glazing over as a vision hit her. When she came out of her, her brows knit together. "Bella…you were having nightmares about this? Why didn't you tell me about it?"

"I didn't want to scare you?" I offered.

Alice closed her eyes and pushed me down onto the bed, crawling on top of me a moment later, curling her arms around me and making certain that our foreheads were pressed together. Her honey orbs gazed into mine with nothing but love and warmth, showing that I meant the world to her and that she knew I felt the same way.

"Bella…" Alice paused and sighed. "I don't understand why I have to keep saying this. I mean, I get that this isn't something you're used to, I can understand that much. But I've told you time and time again, and yet you don't seem to hear me. So I will tell you one more time and I never, _ever_ want you to forget it, do you understand?"

I bit my lip again, lightly chewing it. "Yes Alice," I replied, knowing that saying "no" would never work because she would keep at it until I gave in and said yes.

"Good. Bella, I love you," she stated firmly.

I rolled my eyes. "Alice, I know-" She cut me off with a fingertip to my lips.

"No. Let me finish first, okay?" she asked, kissing my forehead. "I. Love. You. You are my world; I want you to remember that. So when something bothers you, no matter what it is, I want you to tell me. And then I want you to forget about it. I want you to stop worrying about things that aren't worth your time. In fact, I never want you to worry ever again, because I will always be there to take care of your problems, I promise you."

She held my gaze, making sure that she meant every word that she said. I pulled her closer to me and rested my chin on her shoulder.

"I understand," I murmured.

Alice smirked and kissed my cheek, letting her lips linger. "Good. Now let's head downstairs and get you something to eat, hm?"

I frowned. "I'm not hun-" I stopped when my stomach let out a rumbling growl that sounded something like a demented lion, much to my embarrassment.

I blushed as Alice let out an airy laugh, kissing me tenderly on the lips upon finishing.

"Oh Bella, you amuse me sometimes," she giggled.

I rolled my eyes. "Yeah, yeah, give me a break. What's for lunch, by the way?"

Alice giggled again as she stood up, me in her arms as always. I was used to being carried around most of the time, despite my initial reluctance in allowing it. I used to feel bad because I felt as though I was forcing Alice to do it, but she idly waved off my protest and told me time and time again that she loved carrying me. Even after that, I felt odd having her carry me. But I didn't put up a fuss about it anymore and just let her, especially since I'd grown to enjoy it.

We were downstairs a few seconds later, Alice humming to herself as she gently set me down on the couch, sitting on my lap not even a second after. I grinned and pulled Alice closer to me, wrapping my arms around her waist as she snuggled into me.

Emmett and Jasper were currently sitting on the couch making a bet on whether or not Rosalie would be able to beat Edward in the video game they were playing. Carlisle was currently working while Esme was in the kitchen, apparently already on the ball with making me something to eat, which she always did. And Amara was…

"Where's Amara?" I asked.

Alice giggled. She certainly was full of giggles today. Well, every day, but that was far from being a bad thing.

"She's outside training again," she replied.

"Again? She's really persistent on training, isn't she?"

"Thanks to you," Alice replied, pressing her lips to mine once more.

Amara had apparently taken what I'd said, along with what Jasper, Esme and Carlisle had said, to heart and had buckled down on learning to better control her gift. She would spend hours on end in the woods behind our house manipulating fire, shaping it, manipulating its size and even trying to train herself so that she could both control fire and focus on other things at the same time, since she never wanted another accident to happen. Or almost happen, like in the forest on the day that James, Sarah and Victoria had attacked.

Speaking of them, Alice had seen that what Arthur and Sophie had told us was true. The three had broken apart as a whole, with Victoria going in one direction and James and Sarah going in another. She couldn't see where they were going since they all made snap decisions, but she could tell that they wouldn't be returning to Forks anytime soon, which I was glad for.

Esme sauntered into the living room with a plate of chips and…a steak?

"Holy crap, Esme. You made me a steak?" I asked, my mouth watering already.

Esme chuckled delightedly. "Yes indeed, I did. I figured you were tired of sandwiches and simple meals, so I made you something else."

I mumbled a "thanks" and started to dig into my meal. I hadn't had something like this for a good while, it seemed. And since when was I so hungry? Ah well, probably just another side effect to me slowly changing. As I ate, Esme chuckled again and walked back into the kitchen while Alice watched, her nose crinkled adorably as her golden eyes smoldered with both love for me and wonder at my eating human food.

It didn't take me long to finish my meal and by that time Amara walked into the house, her nose crinkling shortly upon entering the door.

"Yuck! What stinks?" Amara asked, grinning at me. "Oh, it's just you Bella. Never mind."

I stuck my tongue out at her as Esme retrieved my fully cleaned plate. "Shut up!"

Amara snickered and plopped down on the couch between myself and Emmett, stretching both of her arms out, one wrapping around my shoulder, the other around her sibling's.

"So who's winning Em, bitch number one or bitch number two?" she asked, smiling wider at the glares shot at her from Edward and Rosalie.

Emmett guffawed. "Number two is!" he boomed happily, earning a smack from Rosalie.

"That's Queen Bitch to you, thank you _very_ much," Rosalie snorted, a small smile in place.

Alice and I both giggled together like school girls and watched as Rosalie continued kicking Edward's ass around in the game they were playing. Edward growled and got in a few shots here and there, but in the end Rosalie was able to beat him. She beamed and stretched her arms out victoriously as Edward sighed and set the controller down dramatically.

"Psh, you stink Edward," Alice teased.

Edward rolled his eyes. "As if you could do better, short stuff."

"Ooh, great comeback. I haven't heard _that_ one before," Alice replied sarcastically.

Emmett, Jasper and Amara all laughed as Edward ran a hand through his hair, rolling his eyes at his sister's childish antics. I laughed along with them and hugged Alice tightly, pressing my nose into her hair and breathing the sweet scent in.

"Alright bitch queen, I'll take you on," Amara crooned.

"I will too!" Alice shouted, kissing me before jumping off my lap and grabbing a third controller.

I laughed at the expression on Alice's face as she anxiously awaited the game to start. She looked like a sexy psycho with the demented sneer that formed on her face as the three began to play their game, each of them aiming to defeat the other. That was one of the—ten thousand—things that I loved about my Alice: how competitive she was with others and how damn sexy she looked when she was doing it. Of course, she was always sexy, but still…

I watched them play for a few minutes, then turned my head to see what everyone else was doing. Emmett, who had lost the bet, was wrestling with Jasper outside as Edward watched on, looking he was waiting for the perfect opportunity to jump in. I noticed that Esme wasn't in the kitchen and figured that she might be outside too. Curious, I got off the couch and headed outside, wondering where Esme had gone.

"She's in back," Edward replied.

"Thanks," I stated, heading towards the back of the house. Strangely enough, I realized that I had never been in the actual back of the house that I lived in. Once I'd gotten to the back, I saw Esme, kneeling down in front of a massive flower garden. I gaped at the sight that I had no idea existed as Esme looked up and smiled at me, beckoning me over.

"Hello Bella," Esme greeted. "I see you've found my garden."

"What the…how…when…?" I shut my mouth and waited until I could form a proper sentence before speaking again. "How long has this been here?"

Esme chuckled. "Oh, I've had this for about two years now. I've always enjoyed gardening, so I often plant a garden at the house we're living at. I'm a little surprised that Alice never mentioned this to you before."

"I guess it never came up," I murmured, kneeling down next to her.

I marveled at the spread of flowers before me, tulips, lilies, roses, daisies. There was a little of everything that formed a beautiful patch. I glanced down and saw a yellow lilac and looked to Esme for permission. She smiled and nodded so I reached down and gently pulled the flower from the soil. I brought it up to my nose and breathed in the flower's aroma, finding that the scent was far stronger to my nose. It was nice.

"They smell wonderful," I said, twirling the flower around in my fingertips.

Esme chuckled again. "Well, that's partially because the one handling this garden happens to be a vampire, but thank you nonetheless. You could give that to Alice, though. She'd love that."

"But…" I hesitated, looking down at the flower.

"Come now, you know she'd love anything you gave her, even if it's a flower growing in her backyard. It's not the gift, but the thought that counts, after all," Esme giggled.

"Yeah, you're right," I replied, smiling at her. "Thanks Esme."

"Any time, dear. And feel free to come out here and enjoy the garden any time you want. It's as much yours as it is mine."

I hugged her, which she happily returned. "Maybe I could help you one of these days?" I offered.

Esme rolled her eyes. "Oh, Bella. You know you don't have to help me out since I'm quite capable of doing things myself. But I appreciate the thought nonetheless, so thank you, honey. If only my_ other_ children were as thoughtful as you."

"Hey!" Emmett boomed from the front of the house.

I heard a few grunts from the others, which Esme and I both laughed at. I gave her another smile and walked back towards the front door, the flower in hand. I knew Alice would likely see it coming, which was something that I would have to cut down for the future. I wanted to surprise her a few times, after all, and with her future seeing ability, that was hard to do.

Once I'd entered the house I saw Amara in a victory pose, celebrating her victory in the game that she, Alice and Rosalie had been playing. Rosalie had her arms crossed petulantly while Alice scowled, still looking as adorable as ever. Her face immediately lit up upon my entering the room and she grinned happily as I walked towards her.

"For me?" she asked, smiling at the flower in my hand. "How sweet."

Rosalie made a dramatic gagging noise as Alice accepted the flower. I glared at her, but all that did was make her and Amara laugh. Alice whipped her head around and snarled at the two of them, silencing their laughter in an instant. Satisfied, Alice smirked and brought the flower to her nose, sniffing it several times.

"Thank you, love," she purred, pulling me into a loving kiss. "I'll go put it in our room."

With that said, Alice happily skipped up the stairs into our room. I watched after her feeling content with myself. Even though it was small, I liked being able to show her that she was important to me. Of course, I didn't think I could ever show her how important she was to me.

"I hope that isn't the best you can do," Rosalie snorted.

I rolled my eyes. "Oh? And when is the last time Emmett gave you something as a gift?"

Rosalie's face fell and she actually considered that question for a moment. I heard Alice's musical laughter from upstairs as she danced back down and wrapped me into a hug. We stood there holding each other for a few minutes, ignoring the jabbering between Amara and Rosalie about gifts their mates had gotten them in the past. Suddenly both of them stopped and Alice tensed up in my arms, which concerned me.

"What's wrong?" I whispered.

Her nose crinkled and her upper lip curled back in angry disgust. "Mongrels," she spat.

"Shit," I cursed. "What do we do?"

Alice bit her lip. "You stay here, I'll-" I cut her off sharply.

"Don't start that bullshit again, Alice. I am not staying here. I go _with _you, got that?"

Alice grimaced, but gave in and nodded reluctantly. "Fine. Let's go."

Amara, Rosalie, Alice and I all walked outside to see Esme and the boys standing in a line, glaring down the forest ahead of us. My nose was instantly invaded by the foul stench that seemed to cling to the wolves and I had to keep myself from gagging. Alice covered my nose with her hand, allowing me the chance to breathe her smell in, which I did gratefully.

Out of the forest came two large wolves, one a reddish color, the other a hazel color. I could tell that the hazel colored wolf was a female and, since I knew it wasn't Raina, Leah or Kim, guessed that it was either Serena or Crystal. Judging by the relatively placid look on her face, I guessed that it was Serena, since I remembered being told that she was supposedly the friendliest. The male I swore was Colton from the way the fur on his head was spiked.

"What do they want?" Rosalie hissed.

Edward pursed his lips as the hazel wolf slowly trotted toward us, keeping that placid look on her face, even with all the growls directed at her. A few feet away from us, the hazel wolf slowly lowered herself downwards…bowing?

That was strange.

"She says that they have been assigned to keep an eye on our land," Edward grunted out. "They don't want to, but they have to follow their orders. The council doesn't trust us with a human and they are here to ensure that she remains safe."

Alice snarled. "What? They can't do that!"

"She's right. That's breaking the treaty," Jasper growled. "Which, need I remind everyone, they did the moment they came onto our land unannounced. We have never done that on your land, so why do this now? Why destroy the treaty we established?"

The hazel wolf, who by now I was certain to be Serena, grimaced. Edward ran a hand through his messy bronze hair.

"She says that they didn't say anything regarding the treaty. They realize that we didn't try to kill them for breaking it, however, so that's earned us a few points in their book. It isn't enough for them to trust us, though, and they refuse to leave Bella unprotected until this can be sorted out."

"I _am_ protecting her," Alice hissed. I had to hold her back from attacking Serena, who sighed.

Emmett pounded his fists together. "I say we clean our property up."

From where he was, Colton growled. Serena remained silent, though she got up, alert.

"No, Emmett," Esme sighed. "That won't do us any good. If we wish to gain their trust, then we must hold our tempers in check and deal with them for the time being. So we must do as they say and not cause any trouble. Am I clear?"

A few grunts were her reply. I could tell that she didn't like this either. I knew I didn't.

"What do they expect you to do?" I asked, looking to the hazel wolf questioningly. Her large eyes moved from mine to Edward's.

"They expect us to go about our daily lives, but they'll be watching to make sure that nothing happens to you," Edward replied with a sigh.

"They aren't going to do anything to me!" I shouted, throwing my hands in the air. "Why is it so damn hard for you wolves to understand that? The only vampires trying to kill me are long gone now! Which reminds me, where the hell were you clowns at during that whole time, huh?"

Colton's eyes bulged and Serena looked at me quizzically.

Edward frowned. "They didn't know there were other vampires here."

"Typical," Alice snorted.

"They want to know what happened and where they went," Edward stated.

"They're _gone_ now," Rosalie replied with a hiss. "We drove them off, so now you don't have to worry your fuzzy asses off. You're _welcome_."

"They want to know more about these other…vampires," Edward stated, frowning.

Esme took a step forward. "You have no right to demand answers from us with the way your pack has acted in this past week. If you want answers, then you will have to work for them, not flat out demand them. We will speak of this no further. If you wish to patrol our lands, then you may do so, despite the fact that there is no purpose to it. I ask that you be respectful of our lands, since your being here is breaking the treaty that we established with Ephraim Black years ago."

Serena nodded and trotted off to Colton, who looked uncertain. She nudged him with her snout and together the two of them vanished into the woods, leaving behind a strong air of tension and their horrid stink, which I tried hard not to breathe in again.

"They'd better not shit on our property," Rosalie growled.

Emmett, despite the severity of the situation, cracked a small smile, but dismissed it quickly.

"What do we do now?" I asked.

"Inside, all of you. I'll call Carlisle," Esme stated, ushering us inside the house.

Most of us sat down on the couch, Jasper sending out waves of calm to ease everyone down a bit since the tension still remained. Esme was on the phone shortly after we were inside, calling Carlisle at the hospital to inform him of what had happened. Alice sat next to me, staring down at the table with black eyes. I wanted to comfort her, but I didn't know what to do or say.

"This stinks!" Alice yelled, throwing her hands into the air. "Why the hell do those damned mongrels keep pestering us like this? It's not fair! We haven't done anything to them for years now! In fact, we've never once broken their stupid treaty, yet here they are breaking it and making demands of us like we're their slaves!"

"Damn right, we need to fight them and teach them a lesson," Emmett growled.

Amara nodded tersely. "It might help show them who the dominant species is."

"Or it could get you all killed," I interjected.

"Bella's right," Edward said, grimacing. "Our numbers are far too slim to fight the wolves. And let's not forget Bella herself, who not only happens to be a human, but have we forgotten that she is slowly turning into a vampire? I doubt the council would take kindly to that information."

Esme placed the phone down and walked over to us, sitting down in one of the chairs.

"That is something we need to decide on: whether or not we intend to tell them of Bella's slow change into one of our kind," Esme stated.

"No," Alice growled. "They'll jump to conclusions and attack us. Not only that, but they could hurt my Bella, too. I _won't_ have that."

"We know, Alice," Jasper stated. "Calm down, alright?"

Alice's body vibrated in a tense growl. Sickened that my mate was upset, I wrapped my arms around her and pulled her close to me. She remained tense for a minute or so before relaxing into my arms and wrapping her arms around me. Alice eventually resituated herself so that I was the one in her arms, which I was fine with. She let out a quiet sigh as she nuzzled into the crook of my neck, rubbing her nose against my skin and smelling it to ease herself.

"Carlisle will be here shortly," Alice murmured against my neck, kissing it. "Then we can figure out what to do.

"Has the council called, yet?" I inquired.

"No," Esme replied, pinching the bridge of her nose. "They haven't called. This entire situation is a mess and they still haven't called for anything. I don't understand why they hate us so when we have done little to nothing to them. Any past incident was never intentional; we made certain to show them that. Not only that, but we did not harm their wolves despite breaking the treaty they formed. And yet still they hate us and treat us so. It makes no sense to me."

"Not everyone is as understanding as you, Esme," Amara sighed. "I wonder if all wolves are as closed-minded and annoying as these ones are."

"Probably," Emmett snorted.

Our thoughts were broken by the sound of a car pulling up. It didn't take long for Carlisle to make his way inside, a worried look on his face as he appraised each of us. He hugged Esme, then sat down next to her, clasping his hands together in thought.

"So the wolves have decided to keep an eye on us, hm?" he mused, shaking his head. "I thought that the elders would be more trusting of us than that. It would appear that they are not, which I feared when we first had dealings with them."

"You should have eliminated them when you had the chance," Alice hissed. "Then we wouldn't have to deal with the damned dogs."

Carlisle pursed his lips. "You know that we aren't like that, Alice. You know you aren't like that either, you're letting your anger do the talking for you. Calm your thoughts and think. Would killing a group of living beings that have been taught that we are their natural born enemies would have benefited us? We who chose to abstain from ending human lives because we did not feel that it was right? Would that have made things better?" he asked in a gentle voice.

Alice's face fell as she absorbed his words. After a moment, she hung her head ashamedly and nodded to her father, realizing that he was right. I kissed her cheek and tenderly ran my fingers through her hair in order to further help her relax, which worked, thankfully.

Carlisle smiled softly, pleased that he had helped quell his daughter's anger, then went back to thinking to himself. The others remained silent, each thinking to themselves. Rosalie twirled around a strand of her golden hair, Amara stared up at the ceiling, and Edward stared down at the table while Emmett silently pressed his knuckles together. Jasper had his eyes shut in concentration as he kept the mood in the room calm.

"I think that we must set up a meeting of some kind with the council," Edward suggested.

"How do you propose we do that when we can't even reach the bastards?" Rosalie asked.

"We can't just ignore them," Jasper sighed. "We have to do _something_."

Esme ran a hand through her caramel colored hair, stopping to rub her neck. "What can we do, though? They won't listen to us and if we go there unannounced, they might mistake our purpose and choose to attack us. These are young wolves; they are prone to having ill tempers and making rash decisions. We saw that firsthand a few days ago."

"That is true," Carlisle replied, frowning slightly. "What to do…"

I thought about it, then came up with an idea. "Well, what if I-"

"Absolutely not," Alice interrupted, staring me down. "That isn't an option, Bella. No."

I scowled and clamped my mouth shut. There was no point in arguing with Alice when she was in protective mode, so I didn't even bother with it. A few of the others shot me curious looks, but I waved it off, since I knew Alice would just get more agitated if they discussed it.

Edward appraised me thoughtfully. "Actually, Alice, it's not a bad-'

He too was cut off, but this time it wasn't Alice doing it. It was the phone ringing.

All ten of our heads shot up in the direction of the phone as it rang loudly in the kitchen. Carlisle stood up and blurred into the kitchen to pick it up.

"Hello?" he asked into the phone. "Yes, this Carlisle Cullen. Yes…"

Carlisle proceeded to talk at a low volume at a speed that I could barely make out. The others heard his words, frowning as they listened to him speak softly to whomever it was that was on the phone with him. Wait. Who else would it be that would have everyone reacting this way?

The council! They finally decided to call. Took them long enough, the bastards. It amazed me how talking about them long enough finally seemed to get them off their rears in order to call us so that we could talk to them about this whole mess.

Edward furrowed his brow and scowled as he listened to his father's thoughts. His eyes widened, then narrowed into slits.

"Yes, I see. I'm not sure. I have to discuss that with my family first before I make a decision, please understand that," Carlisle murmured into the phone. "No, that's not it. She has a right to decide whether or not she will agree to your terms. I don't want to force her into something that she would be uncomfortable in. Yes, I was aware of that…"

Carlisle continued to converse with whoever it was he was talking to and the tension in the room continued to grow. Jasper had to send out another wave of calm to ease everyone down a bit as Carlisle finished up his conversation. About five minutes later, Carlisle set the phone down and walked back into the living room, pinching the bridge of his nose.

I noticed that Edward's eyes were dark, an irritated grimace on his face. What was wrong?

"What's wrong, Carlisle?" Alice asked, squeezing me tighter to her.

Carlisle sighed and removed his hand, his amber eyes alight with worry. "The council has requested that they have a meeting in order to discuss the events of the past and the vampires that appeared in Forks that they supposedly had no knowledge of."

"Is there a problem, Carlisle?" Jasper asked.

Carlisle nodded. "Yes. They want to have this meeting tomorrow…with Bella alone, over on their territory."

I grimaced. Me, a clumsy human who's soulmate is a vampire, on the reservation filled with every vampire's greatest enemy, knowing who I was and who I lived with. Not to mention the fact that most of them probably hated me.

Wonderful.

**A/N: Wonderful indeed. The Cullens just cannot get a break, can they?**

**For those of you reading this that are wolf fans for the canon wolves, I apologize for making them the way they are. I'll work to making them a bit more enjoyable in the future, as I've said before. Things just didn't work out the way I initially intended them for this story, not that that's a bad thing. In fact, I think it's a good thing, but that's just me.**

**Thank you to my lovely readers and reviewers and to my awesome betas. Heck, thank you to anyone who likes this story, even if you've never reviewed or anything of that sort.**

**I hope that, despite the minor bugs here and there, this story continues to be good in your eyes. I certainly believe so. Until next time.**


	54. Proposal

**Disclaimer: So, you know, Meyer owns Twilight and all related characters, I own all original ideas and characters. Yeah. I know you know.**

**Proposal**

"NO WAY!" Alice roared, flying off of the couch. "No, no, no, no, NO! That is NOT an option!"

The others growled in agreement, Emmett's the loudest. I sat there, biting my lip. I couldn't believe that the council actually wanted me alone on their land. If that didn't sound fishy, then I wasn't sure what would. There was no way in hell that they would have me over there alone just to talk. Hell no. If anything, they'd either kill me or capture me or some crazy shit like that. And I was NOT about to be the cause of another fight. Not this time.

"You'd better not have fucking agreed to that!" Alice snarled, glaring up at her father.

"Alice, enough!" commanded Esme. "Do not speak to your father that way."

Alice grimaced, but remained standing tall, her entire body vibrating violently.

Carlisle sighed. "No, Alice, I did not agree to their terms. I told them that I would speak with the rest of you on it and ask Bella on her opinion before giving them an answer. No, I do not think that it is a wise idea and I do not consent to it, either."

Alice's body relaxed and she hung her head. "C-Carlisle…oh God, I…I'm sorry. I shouldn't have snapped at you…I'm so sorry. I just…I don't want Bella to be hurt…" Alice's voice was quiet as she apologized and my heart ached for her.

Carlisle's face softened and he pulled her into a warm hug.

"You don't have to apologize, Alice. I know how much Bella means to you and I know that you would do anything to protect her. We're going to work something out that would benefit both sides and hopefully bring peace to us once again. I refuse to allow Bella to go there alone, however, as I'm sure most of you do, so that is not an option. Are there any ideas?"

"I say we torch them and their stinking reservation," Amara growled. Carlisle frowned and looked like he was about to say something, but Amara quickly added on to her previous statement. "Of course we would evacuate all of the innocents, naturally, and we could probably chase the wolves away or something. But it would get them out of our hair and they would know not to fuck with us anymore."

"I'd rather not have that, Amara," Carlisle stated. "I want to avoid violence with the wolves, especially since they outnumber us."

"Numbers aren't everything," Emmett boomed.

Jasper shook his head. "They are when it's a battle to the death between mortal enemies, Em."

"That's precisely what we _don't_ want to have happen," Edward grunted. "An all out war with the wolves is a bad idea, not only because they have the numbers advantage, but because our gifts are nearly useless against them. Alice can't see their future, my telepathy can't work if it's reading fourteen minds at once and Jasper can only do so much with his empathy. I say we try to bargain with them and come to some sort of an agreement."

"Would they even want to make an agreement?" Esme inquired, sounding concerned.

"They don't have a choice," Alice hissed. "If they want to speak to Bella, then they can do it in our presence or they can not do it at all, plain and simple. Werewolves do not control us. They do not make our decisions for us and they sure as hell don't get to make the rules for how we do things. And if they don't like it, that's tough for them. They can deal with it."

"I'm with Alice. I won't go without the rest of you there," I agreed.

"We can't go onto their property, I know that," Carlisle mused, rubbing his chin. "Maybe if we suggested that we meet on the treaty line? That would make things easier since neither side would be trespassing on the other's lands. Of course, they did break the treaty, so we'll have to renegotiate with them."

Rosalie hissed. "Why do we need a stinking treaty, Carlisle? It's not like they won't break the damn thing again in a while anyways."

"Because, Rosalie, it shows that we are better people than they are," Carlisle replied. "It's true that the treaty will likely be broken. It has been broken in the past, and each time we renegotiated in order to maintain a peace, no matter how fleeting it may be, between our groups. That shows that we are not the violent monsters that the Quileutes have come to believe us to be and proves that not all vampires are vicious human killers."

"We _are_ better than they are," Esme crooned. "We do not complain about their stink or the way that they treat us. Yes, some of us do insult them, but with the insults they aim at us, it is only fair that we defend ourselves in some way. I used to believe that we could coexist with them and I hoped that we would be able to, but it seems that no matter how hard we strive for peace, there will always be tension and anger between our groups."

I noticed how sad Esme looked after she'd finished speaking and realized that she didn't like the fact that the wolves were her enemies. She was the kind of person who hated having enemies because she was such a kind, loving individual. I ran a hand through my hair as Alice sat down next to me, pulling me into her lap and cradling me in her arms.

I gently stroked her cheek. "We'll figure this out, Ali," I cooed softly.

Alice's dark amber orbs gazed back at me as she leaned in to brush her lips against mine.

"I hope so," she murmured. "I don't want anything to happen to you."

"Nothing bad will happen, Alice. I've got you, remember?" I pointed out. "You're my supremely-badass, super-awesome little protector."

Her lips twitched and curled into a small smile. "Well, I _am_ pretty awesome."

"Yes, yes you are," I replied.

Swelling her ego might not have been the best idea, but at the time, I was more than willing to do so in order to cheer her up. Despite the obvious anger and worry smoldering in her eyes, I had managed to soften her up a bit. She pulled me closer to her and nuzzled into the top of my head like she always did, which I loved.

Carlisle stood up. "I shall call them and tell them of what we have decided."

"What if they don't agree to our terms?" Emmett asked. "What happens then?"

"I won't allow for anything that isn't similar to our request," Carlisle replied simply. "I won't have Bella alone with them no matter how many threats they might issue. It is non-negotiable. If they do not adhere to our request, then we will form some sort of balance. But I'm certain that the council will be willing to accept it, since it doesn't endanger their people."

No one chose to argue with that and we sat in silence as Carlisle speedily dialed the number of the council to call. Apparently someone answered on the second ring and with that, Carlisle started speaking quietly to whoever had picked up. I rested my head on Alice's shoulder, her cool hands slowly running through my hair. I kissed her chin and hugged her tightly, hoping that this wolf scenario would be over soon.

I turned slightly to watch Edward's facial expressions, since they would always give me some insight on what was going on. His face was hard and a frown was firmly placed, even as Carlisle finished his conversation and set the phone down. It was only when Carlisle walked into the room did Edward's face soften as he sighed and shook his head.

"I'm amazed they accepted," he muttered.

"They did?" I asked, surprised myself.

Carlisle smiled and nodded. "Yes, they did. We have set the meeting for tomorrow afternoon on their treaty line in order to discuss this situation fully."

"Whoa, whoa, whoa. Hold on a minute," Emmett grunted. "They actually accepted our terms, no questions asked?"

Carlisle nodded once more. "Yes. The person who I spoke to, Sue Clearwater I believe, said that she agreed to our terms and that she would relay the information to the other council members."

Sue Clearwater? Leah and Seth's mom. Maybe she was on our side after all. At the very least, even if she wasn't on our side, she seemed to be willing to give us a chance.

"I don't like it," Edward murmured, shaking his head. "It seems too good to be true for a member of the council to openly accept something we say without trying to alter it around in their favor in some way. That's how they've been in the past. Even Ephraim Black, when he was the chieftain, did that. It seems odd that their council would willingly go along with us for once."

"Perhaps they're seeing reason?" Esme openly wondered, only to scowl and shake her head.

"It seems unlikely," Jasper sighed. "They wouldn't just openly start trusting us like this."

"Maybe I should bring a few matches with me…" Amara murmured, staring down at the table.

"That'd be a bit too dangerous," Jasper replied, rubbing her back. "You're still in the midst of your training, remember Ama?"

Amara scowled. "Well it would beat walking into a trap, wouldn't it?"

"Do you think it would be a trap?" I asked, looking to Alice.

Alice bit her lip. "I can't say for certain. I'm guessing so, knowing them."

Carlisle cleared his throat, catching everyone's attention. "If I might say something?" he asked in a calm voice, waiting for the conversations to die down. "Thank you. I realize that all of you are skeptical about this situation. I'd be lying if I said that I myself wasn't a little skeptical."

Alice pointed her finger at him. "You see? You feel the same way that we do! We shouldn't even be having this conversation, Carlisle! It doesn't matter if-"

"Alice," Esme chided in a soft voice.

Alice stopped, seeing that she was shouting again for no reason and sighed.

"Sorry," she mumbled, burying her face in the crook of my neck. I rubbed her back soothingly as I squeezed her into me. I knew that she was only having outbursts because she loved me and that she wanted to keep me safe, which I thought was endearing.

Carlisle didn't seem bothered in the slightest and continued on. "Be that as it may, I believe that this won't be a trap, primarily because of the fact that they are more interested in Bella's life than us. Their duties are to protect humans, and it wouldn't be right if they acted on something other than their primary duties. Therefore, I can safely assume that we won't be in any immediate danger. That is not to say that you shouldn't be prepared for the worst to happen, but I ask that you don't jump to conclusions beforehand."

Edward clasped his hands together. "If they should consider attacking, I'll be certain to give everyone a warning ahead of time."

"I'll probably feel it, too," Jasper added.

"Yes, that is true. All I ask is that everyone try to be on their best behavior when we go to meet with the elders. If we can prove that we are better than they think we are, that may further persuade them into seeing our point of view. We have never had an issue with the council before and I don't see a reason why we would have one now. Still, it is better to be prepared. Do all of you understand? I only want for us to behave well," Carlisle stated calmly.

Everyone nodded in unison. None of us wanted a repeat of last time, especially since it could have ended up a lot worse. Had Leah not jumped in to help Alice out, I dare not think of what could have ended up happening.

"Tomorrow, then?" I asked quietly.

"Yes, tomorrow," Carlisle replied. "It would seem that they're wolves will remain patrolling our land, at least until tomorrow. If we want for them to trust us, it is best that we merely respect the wolves and pay them no mind. That doesn't mean you're being forced to remain indoors, we are just required to inform the wolves should they grow to suspect anything."

Rosalie stood up and threw her hands into the air. "Seriously? What are they, our fucking babysitters? Ugh! This is bullshit, Carlisle! We should _not_ have to tell them every little thing that we do before we do it. We do not need their permission for anything at all, damn it!"

Carlisle chuckled. "Rosalie, dear, I never said that we needed their permission to do anything, nor did I say that we had to tell them everything. They merely wanted to know when Bella leaves, since her safety is apparently their top concern."

Was I the only one who noticed that Carlisle didn't sound too sure of that? No? Didn't think so.

"They're probably going to try and spy on us," Edward grumbled, shaking his head.

Alice shifted slightly. "Not if we keep them away from our house they won't."

I gave her a curious look and saw that she was smirking. "How would you do that?" I asked.

Her smirk grew. "We stink to them, remember? Well, all we have to do is extend our scents outwards whenever they get too close. The sheer intensity of our scents would surely drive even the Alpha wolf away. That way, they wouldn't spy on us and we could have a bit of fun along the way, don't you guys think?"

I noticed a few grins on my siblings; even Carlisle and Esme were smiling, though they kept them better concealed.

"That _could_ be fun," Amara mused.

"Hell yes! It's not as fun as fighting them, but it beats not doing anything!" boomed Emmett, giving Alice a big grin. "Nice idea, half-pint!"

"You're an evil little thing, you know that, right?" I asked, lifting an eyebrow.

Alice gave me a wicked grin and kissed me. "Evilly awesome, you mean."

"That you are, Alice," I agreed with a giggle.

Esme stood up and cleared her throat, the serious look on her face cutting off all of the laughing and joking.

"I'm glad that you can joke at a time like this, but I want all of you to be serious when it comes to dealing with the wolves. I don't want any fights breaking out, so please try to keep your joking to a minimum. Hopefully, we will be able to solve our dilemma with them tomorrow so that we can go back to living peacefully once more."

"We can hope," Edward commented. "But with the way that most of the pack is now, it seems unlikely that our peace will be forever."

"We could make a plan," Jasper offered. "Some sort of strategy of escape should things backfire on us."

"I don't believe they will," Carlisle said, sounding rather confident.

Esme nodded in agreement. "I don't believe so, either. It might be tense, but I feel that this will have a much better turn out if we maintain positive thinking. And if we make sure to _behave _ourselves when in the presence of the wolves." She shot Rosalie a semi-reprimanding, semi-teasing look, since the blonde had made a few crass comments to the wolves before. Rosalie scowled and crossed her arms in a huff, but made no argument back.

"So it's decided, then," Alice said, still hugging me. "But if they try to take my Bella away…"

I sighed and rubbed the back of her head. "They won't, Alice."

"But you don't know-"

I shushed her with my lips. "I do know, because I won't let them. I'm staying here, whether they like it or not. It's not their choice to make, it's mine."

"Bella is right," Carlisle agreed. "It is her choice. It has always been her choice."

"Now if we could get the dogs to see that," Amara snorted. "Which, knowing them, will be a lot easier said than done." She stood up and moved her head side to side. "And on that note, I'm heading back to work on my gift a bit."

"I'll tag along," Jasper said, standing with her. They smiled at the rest of us as they made their way outside, vanishing from the house.

Carlisle stood from his seat. "I think I'll go and do a bit of studying." He smiled at me. "Feel free to come and visit if you'd like to talk, Bella."

"I will, thank you," I replied, smiling back.

He nodded and strolled up the stairs, leaving the rest of us to our thoughts.

"I think I'll go and check on my garden," Esme murmured, walking out the door.

"So…" Emmett started, glancing at the remainder of us. "Games, anybody?"

"I'll pass," Edward replied, standing and blurring into the next room. Piano music started to play throughout the entire house, forming a peacefulness of sorts. I found that Edward played rather beautifully and wondered if Alice would ever serenade me one of these days.

She promised me she would and she had yet to make good on that promise. Maybe when there weren't raving vampires trying to kill me and a bunch of wolves wanting to kill my family, I'd have the chance to bring it up with her.

"Well darn," Emmett groaned. "Now what am I supposed to do? Rose?"

Rosalie considered it, then shook her head. "I need to hunt. It's been a while. Do you feel like coming with me, Em?"

Emmett shrugged. "Sure, beats sitting around here doing nothing." He paused and smirked at Alice and I, neither of us having moved from our current cuddling position. "Unless you two decide you're gonna start making out…"

Rosalie rolled her eyes and smacked his shoulder. "It doesn't matter if they do or not, YOU will not be here to enjoy it, mister. Now off with you and I'll play a couple rounds of Halo with you later on."

Emmett pouted. "Aw, man. You always win at that game!"

"Because I am superior to you, of course," Rosalie replied, smirking. "Now go!" She pushed Emmett out the front door despite his whining and protesting, since he seemed adamant in watching Alice and I make out. I rolled my eyes and chuckled at my siblings before snuggling back into Alice, who was purring contently.

I laid back on the couch, Alice on top of me purring, and listened to Edward's playing, letting all of my tension and worries wash out of me. Something that had been bothering me for some time now popped into my mind as I hugged Alice: Why did the wolves hate my family so much that, to the point where their opinion was biased against them?

I didn't think that the one accident that had happened involving Alice was enough to make an entire pack hate them, unless Raina or Sam were somehow ordering them to, which I doubted.

Then I thought about Raina.

I could, in some ways, understand her point of view. She had lost her mother, who she had been close to, and her father was forever paralyzed in an accident caused by a vampire. Since vampires were already considered their enemies, that would naturally give Raina a reason to hate my family, Alice especially. But was that hate so strong that she would willingly sacrifice herself just to get revenge for something that wasn't intentional? It didn't make sense to me. Why would the wolves feel the way they did on their own? It just wasn't right.

"What are you thinking?" Alice asked in a soft hum.

I breathed in the sweet scent of her hair. "I was thinking about why the wolves hate you so much despite the fact that you've never done anything to them."

Alice took in a deep breath and sighed. "Despite what I or one of the others might say, it isn't really their fault that they hate us so much."

"What do you mean?" I inquired, noticing that the piano music had stopped.

Edward stepped into the room. "If I might answer, Alice?" he asked.

"Sure," she replied with a shrug, burying her face into my hair and continuing to purr.

His amber eyes met mine. "These wolves are relatively young, Bella. A young werewolf is the equivalent to a newborn vampire in some ways, primarily in the fact that they can be easily coerced by someone else and that they have temperament problems."

"I've noticed that," I murmured. "Is that why they shake so much whenever they're upset?"

"Yes," he replied. "Wolves are known for having terrible tempers, one of the reasons why keeping them calm is such a wise idea. If their anger gets to a high enough point, then they phase and for a brief period of time their control isn't very strong. However, that's not the point that I'm trying to make. The fact is, the wolves do have a few good reasons for not trusting us."

"Like what?"

"Like being stinky dogs with crappy biased attitudes," Alice grumbled.

I giggled while Edward rolled his eyes, a small smirk on his lips.

"That's not what I meant, Alice," he pointed out, clearly stifling his laughter.

"Well they _do_ stink," I pointed out.

"Yes, they do!" Alice chirped in agreement, kissing my neck. We giggled with each other like crazy schoolgirls, but I couldn't help myself. She was always so damn adorable when she was like this, so it was hard not to laugh, even if I wanted to hear what Edward had to say.

"_Anyways_," Edward interjected, shaking his head.

We both stopped our giggling and looked at him. He raised an eyebrow, I'm guessing at Alice's thoughts, then continued on from what he'd been saying earlier.

"So what reasons do the wolves have for hating you?"

"It's not us, but vampires in general. We are mortal enemies, after all," he replied.

I rolled my eyes. "Yeah, I got that fact. But _why_?"

"I don't know all of the reasons, but I believe that it goes back to a legend of theirs from when they first met our kind. Apparently a vampire happened upon their land and killed several of the younger tribe members, causing the wolves to attack and kill him. Years later, his mate arrived and sought vengeance, killing nearly half of the Quileutes and a few wolves. It was only when the wife of the Chieftain sacrificed herself in order to make an opening for him to kill her did she finally die. But the Quileutes never forgot that and soon they began to hate vampires."

"I can say without a shadow of a doubt that the primary reason for the hate of the wolves of this age is because of the Council. Many members of their council have lost loved ones because of vampires in the past, such as a few years ago when a nomadic coven happened upon their land and attacked them for food. They are bitter and angry, so they would likely tell their wolves all about the death and destruction caused by our kind. They have forgotten that it was our family that sought peace with them years ago and our family that has actually _helped_ them in the past."

"Can't the wolves see that they've been manipulated by the bitterness of their council?" I asked.

Edward sighed. "They have been raised in such a way for them to revere their council, believing all of their words to be true. I did, on one occasion, hear the Alpha male's thoughts and saw that he was thinking along those lines, however. The council has always been a very uptight group of humans, I've seen it before. Over the years, though, I've also noticed that they are beginning to slip in some ways, which I think is a good thing. Were the wolves free of the council and given the chance to see things for themselves, they might actually come to understand that not everything they have been told is true, especially about our family."

I scowled. "So it's the council that's been doing all of this, then. They're the main reason the wolves hate us so much and the reason that they don't trust that your intentions are good with keeping me here."

"Precisely," Edward replied.

"Then why…?"

"Doesn't anyone do anything about it?" Alice finished. "Because they're all too dense to put two and two together, that's why." She moved and pulled my head under her chin, burying her nose into the top of my head and sniffing my hair.

"In a manner of speaking, if any of them were to figure it out and say something, they would likely be punished for it. Apparently the Alpha's mate did this several times and was openly punished for trying to go against the council some years ago," Edward murmured, crossing his arms in thought. "They are a very controlling group and I can tell that the control they have puts strain on the wolves, another reason for their nature."

"Why do they have a council, then?" I asked, finding myself hating these people for the way they treated their own tribe-members. I wondered if Sue Clearwater was in on this. I couldn't imagine someone related to Leah, who had broken the rules to help Alice, having some horrible punishment for her daughter, not with how Leah described her.

"I believe I can answer that." I turned my head to see Carlisle walking down the stairs. "You see, the council was created by the chieftain at the time in which the first treaty was created, Ephraim Black. He did so not because he didn't trust us but because he felt that having a council of his closest friends would help him in being the chieftain. After he died, his son took over and, well, he made a few drastic changes. Whereas Ephraim had been willing to coexist, his son was not as willing, and that is where our problems began."

"Things were never the same when he became the leader," Edward mused.

Carlisle sat down and gave me a thoughtful look. "Ephraim's third son, William Black, was the man who became chieftain when Ephraim passed away. He did not like us nor trust us, so he formed a larger council consisting of fellow Quileutes who held a grudge against our kind. He was the one who formed new laws for his people and, because of him, those laws and rules remain for the wolves to always follow, no matter what."

"Is he the current chieftain?" I asked.

Alice laughed. "No. He was killed by a vampire, funnily enough."

"Alice…" Carlisle sighed. "That isn't something to laugh about."

"He's right, Alice," Edward agreed.

Alice bit her lip and frowned. "I…yeah, I suppose you're right. Still, he did get what he deserved for the way he acted and treated us, don't you think?"

"Perhaps," Carlisle admitted. "Sometimes fate has a way of coming back to haunt those that treat others the way that that man did. He was never very kind, even to his own kin. In the end, though, it is not right for us to speak ill of those whose lives were lost in tragic accidents."

She grimaced and, likely thinking of the car accident, nodded her head ashamedly.

"You're right. He didn't deserve it, no matter how much of a bastard he was. I am sorry."

Carlisle chuckled. "You don't have to apologize, dear. As I said, you are not at fault for having your own opinion; I merely ask that you try to tone your anger down a tad. I realize that you are still upset over the wolves wanting Bella gone from here, but as Edward and I have explained, a good part of it isn't their fault."

"I can try," Alice said. "I won't make any promises that I'll be able to succeed, though. It's hard to control my urges, Carlisle. I love Bella and I would do anything to protect her, even if that means giving into my maternal instincts to do so."

"I understand," Carlisle replied, nodding his head. "It is how all mates are."

"I promise you that I'll try to keep myself in check, Carlisle," Alice murmured. Her honey orbs flickered to mine. "I also promise that I will do everything I can to protect you, Bella. You are more important to me then some stupid treaty or a werewolf. Just know that, alright?"

"I do know, Alice. But please, don't do anything too rash, okay? I'll be fine," I reasoned.

And I did know. I knew that she would do whatever it took to keep me safe from harm, even if it meant ruining our chances at forming a treaty with the werewolves. I didn't want that to happen, so I would make sure to avoid putting myself in danger. I couldn't risk screwing up, even it meant holding my tongue back, which I could probably do.

Edward snickered. "I find that hard to believe."

_I find it hard to believe that you're a man._ I growled at him mentally.

"Ooh, great comeback. You and Alice definitely have that in common," he taunted.

"Go jump off a cliff, Edward," Alice snorted.

"I'll pass," he replied, standing up. "But if you want, I could drop you off at the mall and set fire to the clothing store."

Alice's eyes bulged and I struggled to suppress my laughter at the look on her face. Edward lips were curled into a crooked smile as he walked off, Alice glaring daggers after him.

"No you won't, Alice. You can try, though," Edward chuckled as he walked into the other room.

"Fucker," Alice hissed under her breath.

I kissed her cheek. "You have quite the mouth on you."

Her irritated glare turned into a smug grin. "Would you like to see how much of a mouth I have, my dear Bella?" she asked, lifting an eyebrow.

I was vaguely aware of Carlisle chuckling as he stood and went back upstairs, leaving only Alice and I, staring intently at one another. Alice licked her lips and re-situated herself on top of me, her cool forehead touching mine.

"I think I'd like that very much," I replied in a whisper.

Alice smirked and leaned in to capture my lips in a gentle kiss. I deepened the kiss and started running my fingers through her silky hair, kneading into it as our lips moved together in a dance of love and passion. For once, I decided to be gutsy. I extended my tongue outwards and lightly brushed it against Alice's bottom lip, causing her to gasp in surprise.

It didn't last long since she let out a quiet moan and opened her mouth, allowing my tongue access within. I couldn't help the slight moan that escaped my lips when my tongue delved inside of her mouth, tasting all that was Alice. It was…magnificent. She tasted exactly like she smelled; only it was stronger and more flavorful, making my mouth water.

I began to swirl my tongue around her mouth, licking the cool inner walls and moaning more at the intensity of the flavor. She started running her fingers through my hair as I pulled her as close to me as I could, enjoying the closeness that we had.

I surprised even myself when my hands moved away from her hair and moved downwards to her shirt, lightly clenching and unclenching the soft fabric over and over again as my tongue and her tongue had a slow, tender battle over her mouth. My tongue ultimately lost and I retracted my tongue back into my mouth. Alice's icy tongue slipped through my lips almost instantly and she began doing what I had done. I moaned again, reveling in the sensations surging through me.

"Hell yes! I _knew_ I'd get to see some action!" boomed Emmett as he walked through the door.

I gasped and stopped immediately while Alice removed her lips and snarled at her brother for intruding upon our private moment. Emmett just grinned goofily at us, pleased with himself that he'd caught us in the act. Rosalie, who had moved into the room seconds after Emmett had, rolled her eyes and smacked her husband on the arm once more, shooting him a reproving look.

"Aw, you're not gonna continue?" Emmett whined, pouting like a five year old.

Alice hissed and stood up, pulling me into her arms and dancing up the stairs, ignoring Emmett's raucous laughter ringing through the house. She slammed our door shut and gently set me down on our bed before crawling back on top of me, touching our noses together.

"Sorry about that," she murmured. "I was too distracted to see that they would be returning."

I smiled and re-wrapped my arms around her. "It's fine."

She sighed and brushed her lips against mine. "It stinks that our moment was ruined. You were doing really well there, actually. I never thought the day would come where you would be so forward with me, Bella. I like it."

My face heated up. "I, uh…y-you did?"

"Yes," she purred, kissing me once more. "I liked it a lot."

"O-okay," I stammered.

Alice snuggled into me and let out a long sigh. "You're worried about tomorrow, aren't you?"

I blinked. "No I'm-"

"Bella, I had a vision of you talking to Carlisle about it." She shook her head. "Please, don't worry about it, okay? I'll protect you, I told you that already. I won't let anything bad happen to you Bella; I swear it on my life."

"I know, Alice," I murmured.

She stroked my cheeks tenderly, her honey orbs smoldering with endless love. I chose not to say anything more and just relaxed into her arms, letting her scent and her purring lull me into a peaceful state once more. I couldn't stop worrying, though. Tomorrow was an important day, and I needed to make sure that I didn't screw it up.

**A/N: Not much to say for this chapter. Just sort of moving it along to get to the meeting with the council. Any guesses how that's going to go?**

**Actually, I do want to say that I really like my version of Edward. That might be stupid of me to say, but I would definitely have rather seen Edward like this (playful and less serious) than the one that was in the book. Of course, I would have rather seen Alice and Bella together, but then again, I'm sure most of us would have too.**

**Big note girls and guys, I won't be updating for probably three days. It's not school this time, since I can't go to school this week. I have what's called pericarditis, which is an inflammation around the heart. It's not too serious, but it's keeping me away from school in order to avoid getting sicker. Don't worry, I'm still writing (I'm too stubborn not to), so there's nothing to worry about. Peace. **


	55. Council

**Disclaimer: You'd think after fifty four chapters I'd be sick of writing this thing. Well, I am, but I'm afraid of what will happen if I don't put it. So you all know the drill already.**

**Council**

"Does this outfit look okay?" Alice asked, turning to give me a full view of the clothes she was wearing today for the meeting with the Quileute elders.

I narrowed my eyes and briefly studied her clothes, my eyes being more interested in the person wearing them than anything. I couldn't help smiling when Alice caught my staring and smirked rather seductively at me before strutting over and kissing me. We held our lips together for about a minute and a half until breaking apart, both of us grinning like fools at one another.

"I'm serious," she giggled. "Does this look good?"

I rolled my eyes and pulled her into a hug, nuzzling into the crook of her neck.

"You look good in _anything_, Alice. You should know that by now, especially with the amount of time you spend looking at yourself in front of a mirror," I teased. "I think you're almost as bad as Rosalie when it comes to being a narcissist."

Alice giggled again and squeezed me slightly. "Hey, give me a break. I like to look my best for my sexy mate, don't I?"

"Alice, I don't think you could ever not look good. It's just not physically possible," I stated, kissing her neck. Then a thought hit me. "Wait, why are you fussing over what to wear, Ali? We're going to be near the wolves, remember? Do you want your nice clothes to stink like they do for God knows how long?"

Alice blinked, realizing that I was right. "Yeesh, that's true." She stared at her attire for a moment, then pouted in her usual super-adorable Alice fashion. "Well that stinks!"

"It'll stink more in a few hours," I pointed out.

"Touché," she giggled, smiling and kissing me once more. "Guess I gotta find some clothes that I can afford to sacrifice for later on."

We remained in each other's arms for a few minutes, snuggling. We broke apart at the same time, smiling contently as Alice kissed me again and bounced over to her closet to exchange the nice clothes she was wearing for something less flashy. I was already set in what I was going to wear, which was nothing more than average street clothes. I know that Alice didn't like it, but with the point I made earlier about the smell, she wouldn't be complaining any time soon.

"Do you think this is going to work?" I asked as I sat on the bed, happy just watching my beautiful girlfriend dance and hum to herself as she sorted through our massive closet for an outfit to wear. Her and her clothes, I swear.

Alice stopped in her motions and turned, her hands on her hips abruptly.

"Bella, what did I tell you worrying?" she asked. "If you don't stop, I swear to tickle you for an hour endlessly, do you hear me?"

I grimaced at her threat, then sighed. "Alice, I'm not worrying about it, I promise you. I'm just wondering what you think about it. You know, your opinion on how things are going to end up."

Alice frowned, clearly not believing what I was telling her. In truth, I was worried, but I was doing everything in my power not to think about it or show it so that Edward or Jasper would know, since I knew that she would find out about it through them. I _was_ trying not to worry, I really, truly was. I couldn't help it, though.

"I think that there will be a lot of tension between our groups," Alice replied at last, coming over to sit near me. She looped the fingers of her left hand around my right and squeezed it reassuringly, her eyes smoldering. "It doesn't matter what I think, though. What matters is getting there, telling them what they need to know, and leaving. That's it. Nothing else needs to happen and I vow to make sure that you are safe, mark my words."

"I know, Alice. I trust you implicitly," I told her, squeezing her hand back. "I trust everyone else, too, so I know that I'll be protected to the fullest, even if I hate having to be protected by everyone all the damn time."

She cocked her head to the side. "What do you mean?"

I bit my lip. "It seems like every time I turn around there's someone, whether it's a vampire, a werewolf or one of the kids at school, that you're forced to keep me safe while I cower on the sidelines like a helpless child. I hate it. I hate being so damn weak because it makes me think of Renee and all the things she used to say to me and…and…"

I sniffled and forced back a few tears that started to form. I cursed my emotions for being so fragile and my body for always crying whenever I became emotional. I hated that, too.

"Bella," Alice murmured, cupping my cheeks.

I forced back a few more tears, though one escaped. "S-sorry, Alice. I don't mean t-to cry. I'm just sick of being the weak link in this family." I paused to rub my eyes, but Alice did so for me, stroking my cheeks with her thumbs and wiping away my tears as she did.

"Don't cry, baby," she cooed, kissing both of my cheeks. "Please don't cry." She leaned in and pressed our foreheads together. "Bella, listen to me. You don't have to feel bad because we protect you from danger. There's nothing to feel bad about. I like protecting you, Bella. Not only that, but you are my mate, therefore it is my duty to protect you from anything and everything that I can. That doesn't mean you're weak or defenseless, that just means that your girlfriend is a tad on the overprotective side. But Bella, I never want you to think that you are the weak link in this family. I love you and will always love and protect you, even if you don't need it, okay?"

I nodded sheepishly. "Okay. Sorry."

Alice tsk-ed and kissed me, letting her lips linger for another minute before pulling away.

"Bella, you should know better than to apologize for nothing," Alice sighed. She then got off the bed and gently ran her fingers through my hair. "Alright, I have to find some normal clothes to wear today, so stop distracting me with your cuteness already."

"Wha-wait a minute, my _cuteness_?" I asked, confused. "You think I'm cute?"

Alice laughed her musical, sing-song laughter. "Of course I do, silly. Why wouldn't I?"

"Um…" I blinked several times and shrugged, not really having an answer for her. She smirked rather triumphantly and returned her attention to her closet, sifting through shirts at lightning speed, still trying to find the right one to wear. Eventually she found a much, shall I say, duller attire to wear and quickly shrugged her current clothes off and put the new ones on.

"There," she exclaimed, skipping over to me. "These should work."

"Should I go and take a shower?" I inquired.

Alice thought about it for a moment, then smiled and shook her head.

"No, I don't think you should yet. I think that you should wait until afterwards, since you won't smell as good when we're done. Besides, I think it would be funny to since you have my scent all over you and they think we stink, don't you agree?"

I raised an eyebrow at her. "Weren't we going to try to avoid doing that?"

She looked at me innocently. "Do what? All I said was that we'll stink to them no matter what, so why bother bathing in order to hide our scents, hm?"

"Uh-huh," I said, smirking. I got off the bed and, after doing a quick check to make sure that what I was wearing was in order, I looped an arm around Alice's waist and together we walked at a human pace downstairs. "This doesn't bother you, does it?"

Alice gave me a curious look. "What? Walking at a human pace?"

"Yeah," I replied.

She shrugged. "Sometimes it does, yes. I've gotten a bit used to over the years, but I'm naturally a very impatient person. Then again, I guess that comes with being a vampire, since we have a much different understanding of time. Time moves by much slower for us, so we have to learn to be patient with you humans. But it's no big deal, so long as we're holding hands," she cooed, winking at me as we stepped off the last stair.

"You two need to cut the mushy crap out," Rosalie snorted, breezing past us. "I swear if I could, I'd get a stomachache listening to the two of you giggle and kiss and coo over one another all the stinking time. It's so disgusting."

"Oh Rose, you know you like it," Alice retorted, grinning evilly at our sister.

Rosalie rolled her eyes. "You know, what the two of you really need to do instead of all this kissing, cuddling and belly button licking is fuck and get it over with. That's what I'm waiting for. Hell, we're all waiting for that big moment," she said, sneering.

My face flushed furiously at her comment and I had to stifle choking on my own saliva as I hurriedly sat down on the couch, pulling Alice into my lap. She giggled quietly and snuggled into me, thankfully allowing me to bury my face into the crook of her neck to hide my obvious embarrassment at Rosalie's statement, though I knew that did little good.

"Dude, that'd be epic," Emmett chortled.

"I sincerely doubt that Alice would consent to it being a public spectacle, Em. Unlike you and Rosalie, Alice and Bella would have more of a conscience about their private lives," Edward stated, slicking back his messy bronze hair.

"Aw," Emmett whined. "Why you gotta ruin my fun?"

Rosalie lightly smacked his shoulder. "Need I remind you that you will not, in any way, be around to witness it, Emmett? Besides, Alice would probably rip your head off if you got too close, wouldn't you, Alice?"

Alice shrugged nonchalantly. "Most likely."

"Why would you do that?" I murmured against her icy skin. "I mean, aside from the obvious."

Her honey eyes met mine and she smiled softly at me. "Do you remember what I told you before about mating and how we're territorial regarding it?" I nodded. "That is the reason why. When mates have sex for the first time, it's a very private, personal thing. Any sort of intrusion is not welcome and I would be more than happy to rip off the head of anyone who dared disturb us when the time came for us to share that experience."

I gaped at her for about two minutes, then nodded slowly. "Okay then…"

Alice frowned. "I'm sorry, did I scare you? I didn't mean to, I swear."

"Er, no, I'm fine," I murmured, kissing her neck.

"She's just not used to that type of topic yet," Edward noted. "Though I can't see why, since she has certainly been more forward thinking in her thoughts about you as of late."

I turned and glared at Edward, who was smiling on his end of the couch.

_Asshole_, I growled internally.

"I'd have to disagree with you on that," he chuckled, turning his attention to the television.

I looked at Alice and pouted. "Can you make an example out of him, please?"

"Certainly," she replied, giving me a crooked smile. "Once we're done with the filthy mongrels, I'll kick Edward's butt around a bit for you. Does that sound good?"

I smiled and nodded while Edward rolled his eyes at us. Rosalie and Emmett both chuckled in unison as the front door opened. Jasper, Amara, Carlisle and Esme all walked in, one after another, Jasper closing the door behind everyone else. I noticed that all of their eyes were a rich, glowing gold color, so I figured that they had all gone hunting.

Amara groaned, crinkling her nose. "That was the most annoying hunt I've ever gone on. The wolf stink was _everywhere_. It was gross! Ugh."

"It wasn't that bad, Ama," Jasper chuckled.

Amara glared at him. "Maybe not for _you_, goldilocks, but I'm the one with the heightened sense of smell here, remember?"

"You realize that it's going to be ten times worse in a few hours, right Amara?" Alice asked.

"Don't remind me," she groaned, hanging her head.

"What time is the meeting at, by the way?" I asked.

Esme replied. "We will be leaving to meet with the Quileutes in about two hours."

"Two hours of sitting around and waiting. Joy," Rosalie grumbled, crossing her arms.

"Ooh! Video games!" Emmett exclaimed, grabbing a game controller. "They're a great way to pass the time."

"I'm in," Alice chirped. She smiled at me and I nodded enthusiastically. "Bella is, too."

Emmett grinned. "Sweet."

As odd and nerdy as it was, all of us spent most of those two hours playing video games. We started playing a shooting game on Emmett's Xbox, then we switched to playing Amara's PS3. By the time the two hours were up, Alice had beaten everyone the most at every game. I'd actually beaten her a few times, much to her surprise, but she squashed me shortly after. In the end, I gave her a victory kiss, which turned into a brief victory make out session that Emmett once again ended up interrupting, the jackass.

"That was fun," Alice giggled happily.

I snorted. "You're only saying that because you won practically every time."

She smirked and kissed me. "Aw, is my little Bella upset that she lost to the great Alice?"

"You really do have an ego problem sometimes, you know that?" I asked.

Alice shrugged. "I do, but what can you do about it? Besides, I thought you liked my ego."

I rolled my eyes and stood up to stretch. She stood after me and giggled while poking me in the stomach while Emmett grumbled under his breath, obviously upset about losing so badly. Rosalie, who had mostly watched, snickered in amusement at her husband's failings, the others chuckling along with her. I glanced at the clock and saw that it was twelve o'clock.

"The meeting will be in thirty minutes," Carlisle mused, also looking at the clock.

"Have we decided how we're going to work this?" Jasper asked.

Carlisle nodded. "There really isn't much to work out. We merely need to keep ourselves in check and try to explain to the council that Bella is a part of our family willingly and not through force and that she and Alice are mates."

"Yeah, that's going to totally work," Alice grumbled sarcastically. "And what happens if they decide that we're too big a threat and try to kill us?"

"Alice, enough," Esme sighed. "Honey, you can't think that way. I know that this is going to be difficult for you, but you have to keep your head clear about this situation. If we think that they will attack us, then they likely will. But if we go there with a positive attitude about the situation, then things will turn out for the best."

"Yes mom," Alice replied, her shoulder slumping slightly.

"Good. Is everyone ready?" she asked, looking at each of us.

Everyone nodded in affirmative. If anything, we were as ready as we would ever be to go and deal with the Quileutes. I wasn't looking forward to it and I know the others weren't either, save for Emmett who was excited about the idea of a fight breaking out, which no one else wanted. I had a feeling that Emmett was secretly as concerned about the situation as the others were, but he didn't want to show it because he wanted to be strong for the whole family.

"Shall we go?" Carlisle asked, gesturing towards the door.

"Let's get this over with," Rosalie grunted.

Slowly everyone started to file out of the house. Esme walked out first, then Carlisle, Edward, Amara, Rosalie, Jasper and Emmett. Alice was the last one to exit, following behind me as I trudged behind my tallest brother. I initially believed that we would be driving to the reservation, since that would make us look more normal, despite the obvious lack of normality in the situation at hand with the wolves. But no one went to the garage.

That confused me. Were we running?

Alice giggled behind me and scooped me into her arms into a bridal position.

"Silly, we're all running there. It's much faster and easier for us than driving is," she explained.

"Oh. Okay then," I murmured, wrapping my arms around her and nuzzling into her neck.

She laid a soft kiss on the top of my head, along her nose to brush against my locks and sniffing several times. After letting out a content sigh, she pulled me closer to her and started walking at a relatively brisk pace with the others.

"Hold on tight, Bella," she murmured.

I nodded and clutched her tightly as she took off with the others in a full blown sprint through the woods at a speed only vampires could. I could barely make out the trees as they whipped past Alice, the feeling of moving so fast making me feel queasy. I clamped my eyes shut and buried my face into her neck, breathing her scent in to help calm me down a bit.

Several minutes later, Alice slowed her pace down to a normal walk. I felt her lips brush against my head once again and peered up from her shoulder to see her golden eyes gazing fondly at me.

"We're almost there, love. You can look now," she murmured, smiling.

I turned my head slightly and saw that we were in a clearing, the vague outlines of the large trees near La Push in the distance. It took about two more minutes for us to reach our destination, a thin line of trees that opened up to reveal the reservation. Alice and I were the first two to arrive since Alice was the fastest. She gently set me down and immediately pulled me behind her.

"Stay behind me, okay?" she asked, her eyes pleading with me.

"Won't they want to talk to me, though?" I pointed out.

Alice bit her lip. "They will, yes, but I want you behind me regardless."

I sighed. "Fine, Alice. I'll stay behind you. But if they need to talk to me, then I'll move forward a bit. I'll stay next to you at all times, though. Does that sound alright?"

"Deal," she replied. Her nose crinkled as she turned her gaze towards the reservation. "Damn it stinks here."

My nostrils were instantly assaulted by the foul odor from the past, back once again with a vengeance. I whimpered and pressed my nose into Alice's back, rubbing it furiously against her sweet smelling skin. Alice didn't budge or seem to mind in the least as the others appeared behind us, everyone moving to either side of her to form a protective line.

"How long until they get here?" I whispered to Alice, hugging her close to me.

"Now," she hissed.

I peered over her shoulder and saw all of the wolves in human form slowly moving towards us. I could make out a few figures behind them, including that of Billy Black being pushed in his wheelchair by Jacob, who had a scowl on his face. Raina was near him, but for once she didn't look overly pissed off. She had a surprisingly somber facial expression, even when she looked over and saw Alice, who she had been trying to kill the other day. What the hell?

The wolves spread out once they got a few feet away from us, seven going to the right side, seven to the left side, each of them with a different look on their face, much like they had the other day. That was when I noticed that there were seven people that I didn't recognize amongst them, who I assumed to be the remaining members of the Quileute council.

I could tell that the only woman that I didn't recognize was Sue Clearwater, the mother of Seth and Leah. She had a similar facial structure to Leah, only older and rounder in appearance, and looked to be around 5'7 height-wise. Plus, she was standing next to Seth and Leah, Leah about two inches taller, Seth standing two inches shorter. I avoided Leah's gaze, not feeling like looking at her at the moment. Things were a bit awkward given what happened last time.

Rather than look at the wolves, my eyes flickered over to the faces of the other six council members. They looked much older than Sue and even Billy. Their faces were wrinkled, their eyes dark and scrutinizing as they all stared directly at me. I felt uncomfortable under their gazes and hid more behind Alice, who did the best she could to keep their eyes off of me.

Jeez they were creepy looking. Was it me, or were these people ancient?

I noticed Edward's lips twitch slightly, probably at my thoughts, but quickly returned my attention forward when a throat was cleared on the other side.

Sam Uley stepped forward. "Cullens."

"Hello again wolf clan. Hello elders, it is a pleasure to see you all again," Carlisle greeted.

"Skip the pleasantries, Cullen," spat one of the men, the shortest one. "We did not come here for idle chit-chat; we came here to address that." He jabbed his thin finger in my direction. Alice tensed up and started to hiss, but a sharp look from Esme cut her off. She grimaced, but remained tense in front of me, not budging in the slightest.

"Be nice, Avery," Sue chided. "We didn't come here to be rude, either. We came to settle a minor dispute without violence and nothing more. It is our duty as the council to make an example for the wolves, and acting like this towards people who we have held a treaty with for ages, a treaty that you had broken, is not right."

The man known as Avery snorted while another one, with a slightly younger face and long hair, cleared his throat and spoke.

"Let us commence this meeting and be done with it," he grunted.

"Patience, Leon," sighed a third man. "Perhaps we should introduce ourselves first, since several of our…er, guests, do not know who we are." He glanced in my direction. "I am Jeremy Weaver and these are my brothers and sister of the council. The first man who spoke is Avery Blackwood, one of our eldest members. Next is Leon Dyer, Randolph Knox, Richard Hatch, Louis Dee, Sue Clearwater and Billy Black." He waved his hand lazily from person to person as he named them off; getting a few disdainful grunts from each person, save for Sue and Billy.

"It is a pleasure to meet you all," Carlisle replied, bowing. "I am certain that you all know most of our names already. However, I would like to introduce the newest member of our family and our reason for this meeting, Bella." He smiled proudly in my direction, which I returned, though my smile was a bit more sheepish as I remained behind Alice.

"Yes…" the man named Richard said, scowling. "We have heard of this new…family member."

"What is the meaning of this nonsense?" the one named Louis demanded. "Why did you adopt this girl into your family? She's a human!"

"Yes, we are aware of that," Esme stated. "She knows what we are and she is comfortable being with us, as we are comfortable being near her. Not only that, but she is the chosen mate of our daughter Alice-"

"_Mate_?" Billy asked, scowling. "I thought that that was a joke. A human cannot mate with a vampire, it is physically impossible."

"Why is it so hard to believe that we are in love?" Alice asked, irritated.

Billy narrowed his eyes. "You are a vampire, a creature that feeds on others and lives for eternity, she is a human, who cannot. How do you expect to call her a mate…unless…"

There was silence for a moment before Edward pitched in. "Yes, that is one of the reasons we wished to have this meeting. We want to discuss the idea of Bella being changed at some point in the future so that she can be with her mate forever."

"Certainly not! The treaty-"

"Was _broken_," Esme finished firmly. "Your wolves came onto our land without our consent, breaking the treaty that we had established with Ephraim Black years ago. You do realize that we could have killed the wolves, yes? Well, we chose not to, because we are not those kinds of vampires, and I hope that you can see that."

"She's right," Sue mused. "They did not kill the wolves. In fact, they didn't even attack them."

"Gentlemen, there is no reason for quarrel here," Carlisle urged. "All we wished to do was show to you that Bella became a part of our family willingly and then, if possible, discuss with you the option of her changing should she desire it."

Billy's scowl deepened as he stared at me. Sue coughed and spoke up.

"Perhaps if Bella would speak for herself, we would be more open to understanding?" she suggested, looking my way.

I nodded and stepped from behind Alice, moving so that I was standing next to her instead. Alice grimaced, but made no movements otherwise, standing both tall and tense at my side.

I started to speak, but was sharply cut off by Billy. "Bella, do you have any idea what you're doing by living with these people? Do you not see how dangerous that is? I realize that you've obviously been through a lot, but you have to understand-"

I was the one to cut him off this time. "Excuse me, Billy, but I do know what I'm doing. I've known for quite some time since I made the decision to be adopted by the Cullens. Yes, they're vampires, but I know without a shadow of a doubt that I'm safe with them. I don't like that you're trying to shove your bias down my throat like that when all my family wants is to live in peace with your people, nothing more."

Billy pursed his lips and sighed. "Perhaps. But what about your father, Charlie? Where does he fit into this equation?"

"Charlie Swan is no longer my father, Billy. He was never much of a father to me to begin with, truth be told, and I see no reason to consider him as one now. Carlisle is my father now, and Esme is my mother. This is my new family, plain and simple."

Most of the councilmen scowled at my words, clearly disdainful towards what I was saying. Sue, however, looked a bit more intrigued than anything, though she was a bit hard to read compared to the glares the others were shooting me.

"I still don't like it," grumbled Avery. "It just isn't right."

"Why not? What is so wrong about us being in love?" I asked pleadingly.

"Is there a reason for it, Avery?" Sue asked.

Avery grimaced, not knowing what to say. The only man to not speak yet, Randolph, let out a long sigh and shook his head.

"It is clear to me that you are intelligent enough to make your own decisions, Bella Cullen. You choose to live with vampires, yes?" I nodded. "Do you choose to be this girl's mate?" I nodded again, twining our fingers together. "And would you choose to become a vampire, to live the life that a vampire lives?" I nodded a third time. He inclined his head towards the others. "Do you see, brothers? This girl knows what she wants. There is no trickery afoot here, so why must we continue to spew out mindless statements?"

"Because it goes against our tradition, that's why!" Richard argued. "Have you forgotten the lives lost and the damage down by bloodsuckers in the past, Randolph? Do you not know how dangerous this girl would be were she to become a vampire? She would be an uncontrollable newborn that would likely prey on half of the town, if not everyone, including the people on the reservation, our friends and families!"

"That would not be a problem, actually," Carlisle interjected. "We would take care of Bella so that no accidents would occur. We would even willingly move away from Forks, should the need arise, to a secluded area where it would be easier to help her through her newborn phase."

Avery crossed his arms. "How do we know that? How do we know the moment you leave you won't let her run wild on other civilizations, hm?"

"Be sensible about this, Avery!" Sue snapped.

Esme hissed. "We would never do such a thing. We are not the monsters you believe us to be, nor have we ever been. We choose to live peaceful lives and to coexist with humans, to not feed on them and to instead feed on animals for sustenance. Does that not tell you anything?"

Alice shook her head. "You see? I told you they would be like this," she whispered in my ear.

"Don't you be whispering over there, leech," barked Leon. "Just because we can't hear you doesn't mean we can't see."

"I don't recall ever saying you could tell me what to do," Alice growled. "Unlike your dogs, I do not belong on a leash and I suggest you keep that in mind the next time you try ordering me or anyone else in my family around."

"Why you little…"

"Now, now, Leon," Randolph said gently.

"Randolph, stop trying to ease the situation. This isn't easy for any of us," Billy grunted. "We need to decide on what to do regarding this situation, first of all."

Carlisle cleared his throat. "If I may?" he asked. No one objected, so he continued. "My family and I would like to re-constitute a treaty with you, one that benefits both sides and helps alleviate any tension between our groups. I would also like to work in the idea of Bella's changing being allowed while we are in Forks, if at all possible."

Billy scrunched his face up. "And how do you propose…" He trailed off when Raina bent down and whispered something into his ear. He frowned even more so, looking like he'd just swallowed something sour. "Are you certain of that, Raina?"

She nodded. "Yes, I am."

Alice hissed. "No."

"Let her decide for herself first," Raina grunted.

I furrowed my brow. "What? What's going on?"

Raina's dark eyes met mine. "I would like to speak with you in private about a few matters, Bella, in order to get a better basis of your thoughts." She glanced at her father, who nodded after a moment of hesitation. "Also, if this were to meet my approval, then it would better your chances with getting the council's approval."

"Sam should be the one to talk with her. He is the Alpha," Avery sneered.

I didn't fail to notice the grimace on Sam's face and the way Raina twitched at his words.

"I agree," Louis snorted.

"As do I," Leon added.

Sue shook her head. "I disagree. If Raina wishes to speak with her, then why should we stop her from doing so?" She glanced at Billy. "Or have you forgotten that she is the rightful Alpha of the wolves?" she asked, her voice a low whisper that I barely heard.

Billy grimaced and a few of the council members scoffed quietly or glared at Sue for her words.

"I agree with Sue," Randolph stated.

"I don't care either way," Richard grumbled. "I just want this over with. Let her go if she wants."

"You may go, Raina," Billy said, resigning.

Raina bowed to her father and took a few steps forwards, her eyes meeting mine again.

"Bella, would you please come and speak with me?" she asked, inclining her head to the forest, away from everyone else. "I promise that I won't harm you in any way."

I thought about it for a moment, glancing at Carlisle and Esme, who both nodded. Then I looked at Alice, who was glaring at Raina with coal-black eyes. She squeezed my hand tightly, though not enough to cause me pain, and shook her head vigorously, not liking the idea of me going on my own with Raina without her.

"I'll go," I said at last. Alice looked at me pleadingly, begging me not to. "It'll be okay, Ali."

"I can't protect you, though…" she stated.

"I won't hurt her," Raina growled lightly. "I _vow_ to you that I won't."

Alice bit her lip and, seeing the resolve in my eyes, sighed and released my hand. She pecked my cheek briskly as I started walking forward, away from Alice and my family. Raina had a stern look on her face as she turned and headed into the forest, me a few steps behind her. I could feel many eyes following me as I trailed after Raina deep into the woods.

I wasn't sure how long I followed Raina for or how far into the woods we were. Suddenly she stopped and spun around to face me, her fists clenched tightly together. I grimaced and stepped back on instinct, fearful that she might attack.

But she didn't. Her lips were in a tight line as she stared down at the ground beneath my feet, thinking to herself about something for about two minutes. Then her body relaxed and she unclenched her fists, letting out a loud sigh. Raina took a step forward, her eyes meeting mine and in an instant she bowed down to me.

"I'm sorry," she murmured.

**A/N: Well then, I'm guessing that turned out how everyone thought it would. You know, with most of the council being jerks and whatnot. Yes, that was intentional on my part and yes there is a reason for it. You will find those out fairly soon, I dare say. **

**Anyways, the next chapter is going to be another "character-centric" chapter for Raina. I realize most of you don't like her at this point in time, but bear with me and see if you'll change your opinions around a bit once the next chapter closes. I won't spoil anything, though, since there would be no fun in that. I do believe that it will be posted sooner than this one was, but I can't be certain.**

**Reviews are welcome, as always. And thank you to those of you that wished me well with my health. That was sweet of you. It should be gone within the next week. Of course, then I'll have to go back to school. I can't win. Go figure.**


	56. Raina

**Disclaimer: I take no claim for any of Meyer's characters, only for the characters and ideas belonging to me. Amara, the glowing, the scent thing, Raina, etc. **

**Raina**

I stared at her blankly. "Say what?" I asked, confused. "You're sorry?"

Raina bit her lip and nodded roughly. "Yes, that's what I said. You aren't deaf, are you?"

"No," I deadpanned. "I'm just confused. What are you apologizing for, exactly?"

Raina ran a hand through her onyx locks and sighed, biting her lip again. She seemed to mull over her choice of words once again, then sat down on a nearby tree stump. She gestured for me to sit down as well, which I did on a smooth rock several feet away.

"I…I am sorry for the way I acted the other day," she replied at last, her voice strained. I furrowed my brow at her words, but held my tongue. "I am sorry for being so rash and rude to you and the…Cullens. I had a lot on my mind and a lot of strain that just fueled the fire when I had to deal with remembering my mother's death."

"You tried to kill her."

"Can you blame me?" Raina asked. "Put yourself in my shoes and see how you would feel if someone you loved dearly was killed just like that, by your own enemy no less."

My lips twitched. I thought on it for a moment, trying to see Raina's point of view. How would I have felt if I lost Esme? I cringed and felt like my heart had been torn at the very thought of losing the most loving woman on the planet. It was painful.

"I can see what you mean," I choked out, pushing the thoughts away. "But Alice didn't do it on purpose. She's not that type of person, you have to believe me. She would never willingly hurt anyone unless they were a danger to her family. I'm sorry for your loss, but I swear to you that it was an accident, Raina…"

Raina leaned back and stared up at the trees for a moment before responding. "I know it was."

"Then why…?"

"Do you honestly think that I can just forgive and forget?" she asked. "I would if I could, but I can't. I can't forget it no matter how hard I try, because every time I do it just gets brought up again by my father or one of the other council members. They're always using that as an example, among other things, as to why we can't trust the bloodsuckers and why we need to eliminate them so that we can live in peace."

"What?" I shouted, standing up. "That's bullshit! My family hasn't done _anything_ to you for fuck's sake! All they want to do is live in peace too!"

"I know they do," she murmured.

"Not to mention that…that…" I paused and stared at her again, surprised by her response. "Wait, what'd you say?"

"I said that I know the Cullens want to live in peace. I'm not stupid. I can plainly see for myself that they don't want to cause trouble and they actually like living the way they do," she replied.

I gaped at her and absorbed her words, feeling both confused and a little irritated.

"Then why the hell did you act the way you did the other day?" I demanded, glaring at her. "First you insult my family and say that Alice and I can't be together, not to mention calling me an idiot and now you're suddenly taking it all back? Fuck that! What the hell kind of game are you playing here, Raina? I don't understand."

For once, Raina looked to be at a loss for words. Her face was pained as she stared down at the ground, not meeting my eyes. I didn't feel guilty calling her out on her choice of words, especially because of how she'd acted the day before. Losing her mother, I could understand, but after all the shit she'd said to me and to my family, she couldn't just apologize for it out of the blue and expect me to think better of her.

"You're right," Raina murmured sheepishly. "It was wrong of me to say those things and act that way to you and to the Cullens, even if they are vampires. I shouldn't have blown up, but I was so damn stressed and angry, I couldn't control myself."

I took a few steps forward and sat down a bit closer to her. I could smell her rank odor, which caused me to whimper and cover my nose until the scent dissipated. That was definitely going to be a problem if I wanted to keep my change under-wraps. Raina didn't seem to notice, though, and continued to stare at the ground with a somber expression on her face.

I could tell that Raina was sincere about what she was saying. Her eyes smoldered with pain and sincerity at her own words, which caused the growing anger I'd felt to dissipate some. I still wasn't satisfied with her answer, though. She needed to make more sense.

Why had she been so upset that day? Surely my family hadn't done anything to upset her, right?

As if knowing what I was about to ask, Raina shook her head. "No, they did nothing to upset me or agitate me that day. My anger came from…elsewhere."

I frowned, still confused. "Oh. Well, uh, what happened?"

Raina grimaced. "I never asked for this life. I never asked to become a werewolf or to be born into the Black family. If I hadn't, things would have been much easier. Hell, I wouldn't care about being a wolf if I wasn't in the same damn family." She paused and noticed the confusion on my face, laughing quietly to herself. "Sorry. Sometimes I ramble when I'm by myself. It…helps for me to get my thoughts together."

"You don't like being a wolf," I stated, mildly surprised.

"Not really, no," she admitted. "I like being in the Black family even less, though."

"But…"

She rolled her eyes. "Don't get me wrong, it's not that I hate my father or Jacob. It's just that…being the firstborn _daughter_ of the chieftain isn't exactly a good thing."

"You're still not making sense, Raina," I pointed out. "What are you talking about?"

Raina ran a hand through her hair and shook her head, sighing.

"Okay, I get that you're confused. Nothing I'm saying makes sense enough to explain why I'm apologizing to you. So let me start at the beginning so that you can get a better idea of where my head is at, otherwise I'll keep rambling and we'll never get anywhere."

"That sounds fine to me," I muttered, shifting my position slightly.

Raina took in a deep breath, then started. "First and foremost, like I've said before, I apologize for acting like an ass the other day. I had a lot on my mind, most of which had to deal with our high and mighty council," she spat the last phrase out rather sarcastically. There was definitely a bit of bitterness behind them. "Being who I am is…stressful for me. It's stressful for Sam too, I'd imagine, but things are much worse for someone in my predicament."

"What predicament are you talking about?" I asked in a softer tone.

She appraised me with serious eyes. "You know that my family has always held the position of power among the Quileutes, right?" I nodded. "Good. Did you also know that, in our traditions, that the firstborn is typically always a male who will often end up inheriting the rank of chieftain when the previous chieftain passes away?"

"I figured as much," I replied. "Why?"

"Here's the thing. I'm the firstborn in the Black family, which means that not only am I entitled to be the chieftain, but I am also the rightful Alpha of the our pack, not Sam."

That surprised me. "So wait, you should be the one giving the orders?"

"Yes, I should be. But I'm not. I'm not the Alpha and I'm not going to be the chief when my father either relieves himself of his duties or passes away. Sam is the Alpha wolf for now, but in the end that right, as well as the title of chief, will go to my brother Jacob."

"Why, though?"

"Because the councilmen are a bunch of close-minded pricks that like to stuff their stinking traditions and views down our throats and force us to bend to their will all the damn time," she growled, shaking her head disdainfully.

"You're telling me that they didn't want you to be the Alpha?" I asked, wondering why they would do such a thing.

"Yes," she muttered darkly. "When I first phased into a wolf, they were caught off guard. It was rare for there to be female wolves in our pack since most of the time the Quileutes had been males, though there had been a few females here and there. The thing that bothered them was that they didn't like the idea of a woman leading the wolves because it "went against tradition" or some lame shit like that. I don't know, that was the excuse they gave me when they tried to talk me out of being the Alpha. At first I said no, but they persuaded me to change my mind."

"That stinks," I grumbled, feeling a bit sympathetic towards her. I also felt appalled that the council would act in such a way to prevent her from being the Alpha. They did it for what, some stupid traditions? That was garbage.

"Tell me about it," Raina groaned. "And it isn't just the fact that they don't want me to be Alpha or the fact that they don't want me to be the chief that pisses me off the most. Had I been told more about it and given the time to think, I might have made the same choices. Instead, though, they didn't give me that chance because they like to be in charge of everything that goes on. I think the worst part was how differently they treated me compared to how they treated Jacob."

"They treated you guys differently?"

"Much," she sighed. "You want to know why Jacob is such a pompous ass? It's because the council and practically everyone else has always treated him like a king. They spoiled him rotten as he got older, always told him that he would do great things and catered to his ego in practically every way imaginable. Yeah, I'll be honest that I was jealous of the attention he was getting compared to how little attention I ever got from people, even our own father."

Her face softened. "There was only one person who ever treated us as equals. That was my mother, Sarah. She always showed us equal amounts of love and kindness, even where others, including our own father, wasn't. She even tried to push the idea of me being allowed the right of chief when I came of age, since she felt that I was the rightful heir to the title. But…"

"Then she died. I remember that she had died shortly after I had phased. She found out about the wolves at that point in time and she had been okay with it. She had apparently met a few of the Cullens in the past and didn't think that we should treat them the way we did. Then the accident happened and things just went to hell. I was so angry that I had lost her, so bitter, that I willingly gave in to the council's desires. I thought that I could find some form of peace by getting revenge for her, but that didn't work out the way I wanted it to."

"It's funny, I remember the day I fought your, uh, mate. I saw the heartbreak in her eyes, the actual resentment for what she'd done. She pleaded with me that she didn't mean for it to happen, and though I still tried to kill her, I actually found myself believing her. After the fight, I found myself regretting what I'd tried to do. The problem is that the council found out and they got involved with my own business. Some of them liked what I'd tried to do and intended to use what had happened as an excuse to break the treaty. I tried to tell them not to, since what happened was an accident and that my mother wouldn't want that."

Raina stopped, a mixture of different emotions flickering in her eyes. Anger, pain, sorrow, regret.

"Raina…" I murmured, moving closer to the taller girl. I reached my hand out, feeling the need to try to comfort her, but she turned away from my hand.

"Don't, Bella," she choked out. "I don't deserve your sympathy. Besides, we're still enemies, remember? Though I guess that's pretty moot at this point, since if the council found out that I was telling you this, they'd be pissed off at me."

"Who cares what they want?" I asked, scowling. "They're a bunch of close-minded old fools if you ask me."

Raina let out a brief chuckle. "Ah, if only it were that simple. I wish I could just tell them to fuck off without there being any negative consequences, but alas, there's not. I must do what they order me to do, or else I'll be punished for disobeying orders or questioning them. It's happened before and I'm damn sure it'd happen again."

"W-wait, _punished_?" I stammered, my eyes widening.

Raina nodded. "They're incredibly strict and if you break certain rules, then they make an example of you. That's just how they are, or at least, how they used to be." She stood up then and lifted her shirt up a bit so reveal a long narrow scar running down the upper right side of her back, from her shoulder to about the length of her elbow.

I gasped. "Oh my God…was that…?"

"For consistently questioning the council and for trying to fight against them," she stated, pulling her shirt back down. Wait, did I see more scars on the other side? "This was how they punished me, what I earned for trying to do what my mother would have wanted. The council is too blinded by their fear and morals to care about anything other then what they want."

"But…even Billy?"

"I had to learn my place," she deadpanned. "Or so he said. He acted like he regretted it, yet he had the power to stop it from happening. But then again, my father is the shell of the man he used to be and he fears the reactions of the others more than anything else. He has to "live up to his father's standards" or some bull like that. I don't know, I stopped caring years ago."

"Didn't Sue at least try to help?" I inquired.

She shook her head. "Sue wasn't on the council at that point in time. Her husband Harry was. He actually did speak up against it, as did Randolph, the man you heard earlier that actually sounded sincere in attempting to help. You should have seen the look on the other's faces when Sue joined the council after Harry passed away. That certainly shook things up for them, since she was the first woman to ever hold a position on the council."

"You know, something that confuses me is that way back when, we didn't have this type of problem, especially when my great grandfather was chief. Our elders were respected for their knowledge and their intuition, not hated for their scrutiny and bias," Raina scoffed.

I furrowed my brow. "What happened to make them act the way they do now?"

Raina sighed and rubbed her neck. "I don't know, honestly. Time changes people, I suppose. I never really bothered to pay much attention to our legends when we were learning them in school, nor do I ever really pay attention to when the council gives us lectures. All I know is that I hate how they are now."

I soaked in her words in silence, finding myself forming a different opinion of Raina then what I had had not too long ago. I saw that she wasn't as close-minded and biased as I had thought, but rather that she was as much a victim in this situation as my family and I were. And I grew to hate the council members—most of them, anyways—even more.

"So when you said you were angrier about the council that day, what did you mean?" I asked.

She clasped her hands together and frowned. "When they found out that there was a human living with the Cullens, they were livid. They berated Sam and I for not finding out sooner and for letting you onto our lands and blah, blah, blah. It was all really stupid and the strain was heavy on both Sam and I. Then they went and reminded me of my mother's death, which pissed me off, and when I saw your mate again, I just exploded."

I sighed and bit my lip. "Do you think that the council will let this go? I mean, I really do love Alice and I love the others. They're a much better family then my old one was, that much I can say without a doubt. I don't care if Billy is friends with Charlie, Charlie was never there for me and it's much too late for that to change now, even if Charlie is sincere."

"I saw that," she noted. "I saw the way she protected you. As strange as it is to see and admit, I can tell that you two actually love each other. It's odd, but…well, I may have said a lot of crap about it before, but I can sort of understand it now."

"To answer your question, though, no, I don't think they ever will. They might agree to it for a while, but I don't think the council will ever fully understand your point of view. They hate vampires far too much to ever let them live in peace, even though the Cullens have never caused any harm and all problems in the past have either been other vampires or our own fault."

"But they still blame my family," I growled.

"They don't have anyone else to blame for their troubles," Raina explained. "They refuse to blame themselves, which is typical of them. I guess I shouldn't say a lot of bad about all of them, since Sue and Randolph are both trying to make the council better. There's just the two of them, though, against the six others, including the chief."

"How can you guys stand them?" I asked.

"We don't have a choice in the matter. We're forced to obey them whenever they give us certain commands and there's practically no way we can disobey them when that happens," she grumbled under her breath.

"Wait, why?" I urged.

She bit her lip. "It's hard to explain. Sam, he has what's called an "Alpha voice", where he can force someone to follow his orders. He doesn't like to use it because he dislikes taking someone's will away from them. The council, or rather my father, has a similar type of thing because he is the chieftain. He can make Sam and I do what he orders us and in turn, we give the orders to the other wolves and go from there."

"So can you use the Alpha voice, since you're supposed to be the actual Alpha?"

"I have a lesser variation of it, though it doesn't work on Sam and it doesn't have the same level of strength. It would were I to take control of the pack, but I don't want to because I know if I do there will be hell to pay. I just can't take that risk," she murmured.

"So…" I trailed off and stood up, dusting myself off. "There isn't any hope for there to be peace between our sides? What about for us to be friends again, like we were when we were kids?"

Raina looked at me sadly. "I wish there were, Bella, but I'm not so sure there ever will be. In time there may be a chance, but as of now, I'm not seeing it. As long as your family lives here in Forks and as long as the council remains the way they are, we will always be enemies." She too stood up, her eyes still locked on mine. "I wish we could still be friends, Bella. I remember when we were kids, playing with each other. You were the only real friend I had back then."

"I remember when you used to come over, I saw how your parents treated you. I saw the neglect and disinterest from your mother and how your father never seemed to care. I thought to myself that you and I would be great friends because I knew what that was like from the way everyone but my mother treated me. Then your parents divorced and you disappeared and now here you are all these years later. Now, though, we can't be friends, much as I'd like otherwise."

"And you'll never stop being my enemy until the council gets it through their heads that my family isn't evil," I grunted. She nodded sharply. "So what do we do, then? Continue to fight over stupid shit for years to come when there are much bigger things to deal with?"

Raina seemed to ponder that for a moment, weighing down whatever options we had.

"I think that you should get your family to move," Raina suggested. "If anything, it would throw the council off their rocker and it would mix things up a bit. They'd be foolish to try and chase down your family and they'd be forced to put their hate and bias elsewhere. All in all, though, it would be safer for you and the Cullens if you left and went somewhere else."

I thought about that for a moment and recalled that my family had moved countless times in the past and I doubted they would like the idea of moving once again. And if we did move, then we'd have to pack everything up and we'd all have to readjust to moving. I'd just gotten used to being here in Forks; I'd even made a few friends that didn't outright suck.

Then I thought about James, Sarah and Victoria. It didn't matter where we went, they would still follow us in order to get to me. I knew that my family could take them, but what if they got ideas and started making more newborns like Sarah? Then what? Having the wolves around, even if they hated us, would probably help since they would be more interested in killing the evil vampires and not my family, though it probably wouldn't last long.

Truthfully, I didn't think they would move. Carlisle might try to get the others to see the dangers of staying, but knowing how stubborn Alice, Rosalie, Amara and Emmett were, it wouldn't do much good in the end.

"I don't think so," I stated, shaking my head. "I don't think most of them would want to move, even with the fact that the wolves wouldn't always be on their side."

Raina furrowed her brow, but she seemed to understand. "Yeah, I figured as much. I'm not sure what to tell you about it, honestly. It's not looking good for a long time. I guess all either of us can do is wait and hope for the best."

We remained silent for a few minutes. I wondered how far out from the others we were and worried about how things were going with the others. Were they okay, I hope? I thought on and figured that if something were wrong, I'd likely feel it. All I felt right now was disdain towards the council and concern with what to do regarding them.

"Do you hate my family?" I inquired, appraising her.

Raina's lips twitched. "I have no love for the Cullens, but I don't despise them the way that the council does," she replied.

"What about the other wolves?"

"Most hate the Cullens because of how they were brought up. Sam feels similarly to me, though he's a bit more understanding about the whole situation. If you're looking for a wolf to be on friendly terms with, your best bets are Brandon and Serena. Seth too, I suppose, though he's just a kid compared to the rest of us."

I lifted an eyebrow. "What about Leah?"

Raina's eyes darkened intensely at the name. "Ha. You'd be better off staying clear of her. She's too much of a wild card to be friend-worthy."

"You guys don't like each other much, do you?"

She sneered. "If I had to choose one wolf that hated me as much as I hated, Leah would be the one without a doubt. We used to be best friends, but things changed once we phased and they were never the same afterwards. We have fought many times over the last few years and both of us came out of our fights with some scars." She gestured towards her back again for reference.

"Those other scars I saw?" I gaped.

"It's nothing to concern yourself with," Raina grunted. "Don't worry about it."

"Sorry," I murmured sheepishly. "I, uh, I didn't mean to overstep my boundaries."

She waved it off and shrugged. "Don't sweat it, kid."

"So, was there anything else that you wanted to tell me Raina? I mean, aside from the heads up about the council and apologizing for what happened before."

"Do you accept my apology?" she asked sincerely. "I know it might not seem like it later on, but I really am sorry for how I acted."

I considered it. "You should be apologizing more to Alice than to me, since she was the one you insulted most. Plus, you did try to kill her too. I know you were hurt by the accident, I would be too, but that was years ago and she did apologize for what happened. I know it hurts her, too, but she really didn't mean for it to happen," I reasoned.

Raina nodded and sighed quietly. "I…I suppose I should say…something to her, yes."

"Thank you, Raina," I murmured appreciatively, bowing my head to her. "I know that she might not react the right way, but really, it would mean a lot to her to hear that you don't blame her for what happened anymore, that you know it was an accident."

"Don't thank me, Bella," Raina replied softly. "Like I said, we can't really be friends until the council get their heads out of their asses. Sue and Randolph are trying, but Randolph isn't as young as he used to be and Sue is just one woman. Unless hell freezes over, things likely won't clear up for a good many years. I don't know how long we can persuade them to keep the peace with your family, even though your family has proven that they are trustworthy."

"I see," I mumbled. "So I take it if I was changed into a vampire, things wouldn't turn out well for us, would they?"

"Probably not," she deadpanned. "You would likely want to reconsider moving away before you allowed them to change you, Bella. We would be forced to kill you if you killed a human, purposeful or not. Not only that, but we know how dangerous and crazed newborn vampires are, so we would likely be ordered to kill you even if you didn't kill a human. It's dangerous for you to be changed here in Forks, I'll warn you now."

"I'll keep that in mind," I replied. Too bad I'm already changing into a vampire and there's nothing anyone can do to stop it, I felt like saying. But I didn't, because I was afraid of what might happen should I do so.

The fear of the wolves' reaction to me changing did loom in the back of my head as I thought more on it. If there was going to be a battle between our groups eventually, I hoped that I would at least be able to defend myself from harm rather than always being forced to rely on the others for protection, even if I didn't like the idea of fighting the wolves to begin with. Stinky and close-minded as they were, I couldn't blame them for being brainwashed by the council.

"We should head back," Raina stated, stretching her arms out. "If we remain gone for too long, I'm certain your mate will get suspicious and concerned and come running over here, likely ready to attack me. I know Sam trusts me enough to not worry, so there's no fear of that, but considering how protective vampires are, it would be best if we head back."

She started to trudge back in the direction we came in once she'd finished, so I followed closely in step with her, though not too close to avoid her smell. It was strange, now that I'd been near her for so long she didn't stink as much. And even then, the stench was brief and it didn't last for very long, maybe a few seconds at most.

"What will you tell the council?" I asked, curious.

Raina shrugged. "The truth. I see no point in not allowing you to stay with the Cullens since you truly seem to love them and they obviously care for you. My opinion might not amount to much, but I know that Sam will agree with me, which will give the council a bit more incentive to agree with what we say, though not a whole lot."

I sighed. "I hope this works out. I know the others don't want to have to deal with any more fighting after what we've been through in the past week."

She frowned as she appraised me. "What do you mean? Is this regarding those other vampires that I heard about from Serena?"

"Yeah," I replied.

"I can't believe there were other bloodsuckers here and we didn't know about it. Damn it, that stinks! We're usually always good on keeping tabs of Forks, even if it isn't our territory. How the hell did they get here without us knowing…" she grumbled, more to herself than to me.

"They weren't here for very long," I replied quietly, watching the ground as I walked behind her, avoiding tree roots and rocks. "One of them is a skilled tracker, so he would have known to avoid your area. The second one has a gift that lets her know how to survive things, so she would have likely been aware of your area too, hence why they would have avoided it at all costs."

Raina didn't respond, scowling to herself as we made our way back to where the others were. As we neared the area, I could make out voices, some loud, others quiet. I instantly heard a voice shout and both Raina and I picked our speed up to hurry over there.

Once we'd gotten through the forest and into the clearing, I caught sight of most of the wolves shaking violently, glaring scathingly at my family. Most of my family members looked relatively calm, but all of them were tense and ready for a fight, especially Emmett and Amara.

"YOU WILL NOT CHANGE HER!" Jacob roared, springing forward. Alice stepped forward and snarled back at him, her lips curled back to expose her gleaming, razor sharp teeth. They looked like they were about to rip each other into pieces. Then both Alice and Jacob lunged for another, and I wouldn't be there fast enough to help her.

Shit.

**A/N: Yes, I know, damn me and my cliffhangers, blah, blah, blah. I can't help it, I happen to enjoy writing cliffhangers, okay? And no, I don't just do it to annoy you. Okay, that's half the reason why I write them in. The other reason? I'm evil. :P**

**Anyways, maybe this chapter has changed your perception of Raina a bit? I kind of hope so, since there is more to her than just anger and vampire resentment. That was one of the reasons for it, aside from giving readers an idea of what's going on behind the scenes involving the council (who really should be blamed for the tension between the wolves and the vampires), why Raina isn't the Alpha of the pack and what Jacob's deal is. Oh, and teasing a bit between the Leah/Raina rivalry, too.**

**More of a random note, I wanted to let everyone know that the soundtrack for this story is nearly complete. Just in case you were curious about it. It will likely be posted within the next week, since there are a few more songs to add in. But when it's finished, the link and the list will be posted on my profile for all to see.**

**Oh, and one more thing. To all of you who are waiting for Bella and Alice to "get it on", you must remember what I've said on the subject in the past. I don't think that there will be any of that happening in this story. That doesn't mean I'm not above teasing you incessantly about it, though. :D**

**Last but not least, thank you for all the health wishes. It's getting better, which is good. But thank you.**


	57. Results

**Disclaimer: I own all OCs and ideas. And the plot, I suppose. But the rest of it belongs to Stephanie Meyer.**

**Results**

"Jacob, STOP!" Sam commanded. It was too late, however, and the large russet wolf collided with Alice, creating a shockwave powerful enough to knock the elders from their feet and to push back both the wolves and the vampires. I would have flown backwards myself had Raina's iron-like arm not shot out to hold me in place.

"Alice!" I shouted, watching as both her and Jacob rolled around, growling. Alice's head shot over to me the moment she'd heard my voice and in seconds she had her arms around me, pulling me into a vicious—yet still gentle—hug.

"MINE!" Alice snarled, pulling me away from Raina, who remained placid and stood still.

I instinctively wrapped my arms around her and pulled her close to me, rubbing her back in order to help calm her down. Her body was vibrating violently with a rumbling growl as she pressed herself against me, her coal black eyes glaring at Raina, then at Jacob. Jacob growled venomously and looked like he was about to pounce again, but Raina quickly grabbed him with her left hand by the neck and slammed his face into the dirt.

"Stop, Jacob. _Now_," Raina ordered, her voice low with authority.

Jacob glared at her and struggled under her grip, but to no avail. He remained pinned down to the ground despite the obvious difference in size and ultimately gave in, huffing loudly and slumping down, his dark eyes full of loathing and betrayal.

"Alice!" Esme called.

Alice remained frozen where she stood, hugging me protectively in her arms and growling at the brown furred wolf.

"Alice, it's okay," I cooed in her ear. "He's not going to hurt you now. It's okay."

My graceful pixie slowly quelled her growling, then looked at me, blinking several times. Her eyes were no longer black at that point, but her natural rich honey color. She frowned and pressed her nose to my left shoulder, sniffing it several times. Then she switched to my right shoulder, and before I knew it she was rapidly sniffing every inch of my upper body.

"A-Alice, what are you doing?" I asked, confused.

Alice stopped her sniffing and instantly pressed her lips to mine. I couldn't help sighing into the kiss, even after she pulled away.

"I was making sure she didn't hurt you," Alice murmured, staring into my eyes. "God, Bella, I was so worried. I wanted to go to you a minute after you'd left, but the others told me not to and then the mongrel started talking crap and, well, yeah."

"Are you okay?" I asked.

She stared blankly at me. "Am _I_ okay? I'm not the one who was alone in the forest with a wolf, Bella. Are you okay?" she asked, her eyes smoldering with concern. "I didn't smell any injuries on you, but that doesn't mean she didn't hurt you." She paused again. "You stink, though."

I rolled my eyes and kissed her forehead. "I'm fine, Alice. Really. Raina and I just talked a bit, that's all. There was no touching of any kind, I swear. We just talked a bit and…" I thought about how best to summarize what had happened. "I think we have a stronger understanding of each other. Would that be a good way of putting it, Raina?"

"Pretty much," Raina agreed.

Alice didn't seem to believe her, baring her teeth slightly. "I swear to you, if you laid one stinking finger on her…"

Raina snorted. "Why would I?" she asked. "I wanted to talk to her, not mangle her."

"I find that hard to believe," growled Alice.

"Tough," Raina grunted.

They glared at one another for another minute in silence. I sighed and glanced around to see the wolves helping the elders up their feet. Most of them looked none too pleased and shot glares at Alice, though a few of them, along with members of my family, were actually glaring at Jacob. Raina removed her hand from Jacob's back and crossed her arms, scowling at her younger brother who bared his teeth right back.

"Go phase back to your human form," she sighed, shaking her head. "And don't give me or Sam any crap about it either."

"Raina," Billy grunted, frowning at his daughter's tone.

Raina ignored her father and gave her brother a commanding glare. Jacob huffed and trotted off into the forest, reappearing shortly after wearing nothing but shorts. He had an irritated scowl on his face as he petulantly trudged over to his sister, giving her a very less-than-thrilled pout that Raina rolled her eyes at.

"She started it," he grumbled.

"Did not," Alice hissed.

"You wanted to change her!" Jacob snarled.

Alice pulled me closer to her. "Because she's my mate! We're meant to be with each other!"

Jacob clenched his fists together. "That's not-"

"Enough, Jacob," Sam ordered, stepping between him and Raina. "Cease your prattling so that we may finish our business with the Cullens."

"Thank you," Carlisle said. He glanced towards us. "Alice?"

Alice lifted me into her arms and walked over to where the others were before setting me back down, though she kept her arms around me. I didn't mind it too much, though I did notice the scrutinizing looks that the council members were giving us. Apparently they didn't like that my girlfriend was affectionate towards me. How typical.

"Must they do that?" I heard one of them, Avery I believe, grumble to another.

"It is a sign of affection," Esme stated. "There is nothing wrong with being affectionate towards someone you love in public."

He narrowed his eyes in agitation, but Sue shot him a glare before he could speak.

"Leave it be, Avery," she growled. Then she glanced at Raina. "Raina, do you have anything to add to this conversation?"

Raina met my eyes for a brief moment before nodding. "I have no reason to deny her request. If she wishes to stay with the Cullens, then that's her right. It's clear that they care for her and that she cares for them, so I say let them be. The Cullens have proven themselves in the past, so why should we deny them the right now? Besides, it wasn't like none of us ever expected them to not gain a new family member. If anything, there will be yet another one in the future."

Her eyes fell on Edward as she finished speaking and I knew that she was referring to when Edward found himself a mate. Edward remained stoic as she said this and nodded slightly at her words, nothing more. Several of the council members looked aghast at what Raina had said; Billy even glared at his daughter. Sue seemed satisfied, as did the man named Randolph.

"If Raina believes that there is no problem, then I agree with her," Sam stated firmly. "If this is what Bella wants with her life, then there is no point squabbling over it. It is her choice and her choice alone, not that of another."

"I agree," Brandon murmured from where he stood.

"Same here," added Serena.

"I don't care either way," yawned Crystal. "But I guess I'll agree to it or whatever."

"Whatever works," Quil sighed.

"Dude, do we get to see them make out now?" Colton asked Embry, grinning.

"Hot," crooned Embry. "I mean, one's a leech, but still."

Alice looked disgusted. "I would rather eat snake poison," she whispered to me.

Paul gnashed his teeth together, looking like he wanted to rip Alice's head off. Leah and Seth both remained silent, but neither seemed bothered. And Jacob…well, Jacob was even more infuriated with what was going on, glaring daggers at his sister as though she had stabbed him in the back. The councilmen had a mixed set of emotions playing on their faces from disgust, to irritation, to confusion to contentment.

"I see no problem with it," Sue stated calmly. "I think our business is concluded here."

"Just a moment," Louis grumbled. "Why should we listen to the wolves? We are the council, it is our decision to make what happens."

"Precisely," Randolph agreed. "That is why we are deciding to let bygones be bygones and allow Miss Bella to live with them as her family. They have already adopted her as their own, so there is no reason to quarrel over nothing. I will write up a new treaty and we will have it signed again by tomorrow, establishing a new peace between our groups."

"Thank you," Carlisle said, bowing slightly. "We appreciate your point of view and your choice to avoid any unnecessary conflict. I can promise you that Bella will be loved and looked after in our family as she has been for the past week, you have my word of that."

"Very good," Randolph replied. "Come now, brothers and sister, let us go now and leave all of this pointless bitterness behind us."

"No," Billy interjected. "There is still business to discuss here."

"Like what?" Rosalie growled. "What the hell more do you want from us?"

"Rose…" Jasper murmured. "Keep it calm."

"No!" Rosalie shouted. "Why the fuck should I calm down? These idiots have no right to keep us here, for God's sake! We have done nothing wrong! Nothing! So why do they persist in trying to control us all the damn time?"

"We do so as a precaution," Billy snorted, mildly agitated by her tone. "Whether your family has done anything to us or not, you are still vampires and we still do not fully trust you."

"Total bullshit," Amara sneered. "You just don't like that you're losing this."

"You've got a giant-ass bunch of wolves surrounding you, that's the only reason you're acting so high and mighty!" Emmett growled. "If they weren't here, you'd be cowering five yards away and begging us not to hurt you!"

"It's true," Alice grunted in agreement.

Billy pursed his lips. "I-"

"Stupid leeches," grumbled Richard.

"They're right, though," mused Sue.

"Like hell they are!" barked Avery.

"Can we just be done with this already?" Leon asked.

"Fine!" Billy exclaimed, shaking his head. "We will leave in a moment, but first I have a question for the Cullens. Answer me this: what became of the other vampires that were in this area that we've heard about? Did you kill them?"

"We fought them to a standstill, but they escaped," replied Edward.

Billy narrowed his eyes. "I see."

"Do not blame us for not killing them," Edward sighed. "We did what we could, but they managed to better us. That won't happen again, I can assure you of that, because we'll be better prepared should they return for another clash."

"_When _they return," I muttered.

"We'll _kill_ them next time," Alice growled menacingly. I knew she meant those words, too.

"And if you fail, then we will pick up the pieces," snorted Avery.

"Yes, though that is likely not to happen," Carlisle replied gently. "Now, if there is nothing else, perhaps we should conclude our business for this day? What do you say gentlemen, shall we call this a day and discuss a new treaty later on?"

"I agree with that," Randolph replied.

"As do I," Sue agreed. "There has been enough tension in the air for one day. Bella is allowed to live with the Cullens without any harm coming to her from us. We will trust you to look after her as though she were your own and nothing more. Be well Cullens."

"Thank you," Esme said.

The other council members looked relatively irritated, but none of them made any comments. I felt a strange wave of emotion brush passed me and saw Jasper concentrating, which made me realize that he was using his gift to get them to leave. All of the council members turned and began to return towards the reservation, most of the wolves following close behind them.

Jacob looked like he wanted to say something, but Raina grabbed him and threw him behind herself rather forcefully. He growled at her as he stood up, his body shaking wildly to the point where I thought he might explode into his wolf form and attack his own sister.

"Don't even try it, Jacob," Raina warned.

"Why are you agreeing with this?" he demanded. "Do you have any idea-"

"Shut the FUCK up!" Alice roared. "I am SICK of listening to you, mongrel! Bella is MY mate, she is in THIS family and there is not a goddamn thing YOU can do about it, so get the hell over it and leave her ALONE!"

"You know, for once I agree with the vampire," Raina grunted. "Let it go, Jacob. I know you're pissed off and upset because of this whole situation, but let it go. It's not for you to choose how Bella lives her life or what she does with it. If she wants to love a vampire, let her love a damn vampire. It is her choice, not yours, mine or anyone else's. I don't understand why you keep getting so agitated over this situation when it really doesn't concern you. I get that she was our friend in the past, but that was years ago. And for the love of God, she's gay, Jacob. There's no way in hell she'd ever consider being with you, especially after the way you've been acting."

I cringed in disgust at the idea of Jacob and I being together. That was about as likely as Edward and I being together, which, while Edward was a lot nicer and better in some ways, didn't sit right with me for a multitude of reasons.

Edward snorted near me. "Am I _that _bad?"

I smiled sheepishly at him. "No, you aren't _that_ bad, but I do think I'd get a little tired of your negativity after a while. And I don't think I could deal with the whole "I'm-a-monster" gig or you always reading my mind or…"

"Alright, alright, I get it," he groaned, stuffing his arms into his pockets petulantly.

"Sorry Edward, Alice will always be fifty times more awesome," I giggled.

I felt Alice relax as she hugged me closer into her, giving me the chance to lean into her embrace, which she allowed rather happily. I watched Jacob's face contort as his anger reduced and was replaced by sorrow and disdain. He looked like someone had kicked his dog—no pun intended—as he turned and trudged off with his head hung low. Raina watched after him, shaking her head in silence before looking my way. I remembered our earlier deal at that point.

_Edward, could you take the others and head on home?_ I asked mentally. He raised a questioning eyebrow at my thoughts. _Raina just wants to talk for a moment with Alice and I, that's all._

He seemed to debate my words for a minute or so before shrugging and nodding rather curtly.

"Let's head on home, everyone," he announced. He gestured towards Raina. "She wishes to speak with Bella and Alice privately. I'm fairly certain she won't do anything given how she reacted to her sibling moments ago. So, shall we go?"

"I believe that is fine," Carlisle murmured. He nodded to Raina. "We appreciate your help."

"Yes, we do," agreed Esme.

Raina seemed mildly surprised and nodded rather sheepishly. "Um, yeah, no problem."

Carlisle and Esme nodded to her, then to Alice and I and started walking away at a casual pace before vanishing into the woods. Edward was the next to go, shaking his head at his siblings' thoughts as he followed after Carlisle and Esme.

"Finally we get to leave," Rosalie groaned. "This whole place stinks too much."

"Race ya, blondie," Amara offered with a grin.

"Which blonde are you referring to?" Jasper asked, quirking an eyebrow.

"Both of you," she replied.

"Hey! What about me?" Emmett asked.

Amara rolled her eyes. "You too, monkey man. So, what do you guys say?"

"You're on," Rosalie replied.

The four of them paused for a moment, then took off at a blinding speed into the forest, leaving Alice, myself and Raina alone. I couldn't help giggling as I watched them run off, but it only lasted until I couldn't see them anymore. Then I turned my attention to Raina, who was staring at Alice. Alice let out a rumbling growl, glaring at the female wolf warily.

"Alice, it's okay," I soothed. "She just wants to talk with you."

"_Talk_?" Alice asked, disbelief written on her face. "She tried to _kill_ me not too long ago, so why in the hell would she want to talk with me now?"

I sighed. "I know, babe, but she wants to apologize for it." I glanced at Raina. "Right, Raina?"

Raina sighed. "Yeah, I guess…" I lifted an eyebrow at her tone and she sighed. "Look, lee-"

"_Alice_," I corrected, knowing what she was going to say.

"…Alice, I…I want to apologize for what I said and did the other day. I was really upset about a bunch of other things and it was wrong of me to let my anger control me. I shouldn't have lashed out at you or Bella and I shouldn't have said the things I said. I know I'm nothing more than a wolf to you, but I still wanted to apologize for my actions."

Alice stared at her, still not fully believing what she was saying. She held me firmly in her arms as she processed Raina's words and tried to decide on whether or not Raina truly meant them. I could see that Raina was struggling with giving Alice an apology, but I also saw that she really was trying to be sincere with what she was saying.

"How do I know you won't try to do it again?" Alice asked. "Your council clearly has it out for my family and I. I know that this won't be the end of this issue, no matter what anyone says. I don't know how I feel about your apology, wolf. I won't turn it away, but I won't accept it either, since you did seem to try and help our cause. Just know that, no matter what happens between our groups, Bella is mine and I will not allow _anyone _to take her from me."

"I believe that," Raina replied. "And I'm sure you're right, much as I wouldn't mind not having to try and attack your group over some stupid hate."

Alice bit her lip. "I…I also want to…" She trailed off and looked rather sheepishly at Raina.

"You don't have to say anything on it," Raina sighed. "What's in the past is in the past. My mother would not want my brother and I to keep our grudge over something that happened so long ago because of an accident. I accept your condolences and offer mine for any form of anguish it might have caused you, though."

Alice seemed surprised at her words, her golden eyes widening in shock momentarily.

"Um, thanks," Alice murmured at last, looking down at the ground. "Is there anything else that you wanted to say?"

Raina pursed her lips. "Keep in mind that if you want to change her, you'd best do it somewhere far away from Forks. I can't promise that we won't be ordered to attack you should she be changed here, and with the council's level of control over us, it isn't likely that we'll stop. Some of us might try to fight it, but a good number of wolves will obey rather happily."

"I know the risks," Alice stated bluntly. "We'll be prepared for whatever happens."

"If that's how you see it, then so be it," Raina grunted. "I can't force you to do anything and I sure as hell don't intend to try it. Just be aware of what will happen, that's all I'm saying."

"We will be," Alice replied. "Is there anything else?"

"No," Raina replied. "I had best be going now, anyways. I assume that my father will not be overly pleased with me and I'm guessing I'll have an angry brother to deal with when I return, so I should get going now in order to deal with all of that."

"What's Jacob's deal, anyway?" I asked, frowning.

"It's a long story," Raina replied. "Maybe I'll tell you some other time. Later."

With that, she turned around and jogged off back toward La Push. I didn't get a chance to watch for very long because Alice scooped me into her arms in a bridal style and took off into the forest at a relatively normal pace. It was still a bit fast for a normal human, but not fast enough to cause me any discomfort, which I was eternally thankful for.

"That was weird," Alice mused quietly as she ran. "I didn't expect her to apologize to me."

"I kinda asked her to," I admitted as I looped my arms around her neck.

Alice came to a complete stop and gave me the strangest look. "You asked her to apologize to me and she actually did?" I nodded. "How the hell did you manage to do that?"

I furrowed my brow. "I, uh, asked her? Is that so weird?"

"Bella, she's a _werewolf_. You know, the natural enemy to me, a vampire? Hello? There is, under no circumstance whatsoever, a way in hell that she should have even bothered to do that. I can't for the life of me understand why she did or how you managed to convince her," she exclaimed.

I rolled my eyes. "Alice, just shut up and take it for what it's worth. I don't think that all of the wolves are that bad. Raina and I…we talked a bit and I think we have a better understanding of each other. We're not friends, I wouldn't say that, but she did apologize to me for how she acted the other day, so I think she's trying."

"Maybe," Alice murmured. "I still don't trust them."

"I don't trust the council," I said. "They're definitely the ones behind all of the hatred that the wolves have towards us, even though your family has always been good."

Alice nodded in agreement. "They won't keep the peace for long. We'll have to do something about them eventually, though I don't know what."

"Raina suggested that we move somewhere else," I said softly. "I told her that I doubted most of you would like that plan very much, so we would likely be staying."

Alice snorted. "If we moved, we'd be giving them the victory. I could just imagine those stinking mutts celebrating our departure, all merry and cheerful that they'd driven us away or some stupid crap like that. Not only that, but I doubt that some of those pups would just idly let us leave their territory without trying to chase us down. I don't think it will end unless we eliminate them."

"Alice!" I gasped. "You know that isn't something either Esme or Carlisle would want to hear coming from you."

"Can you blame me, Bella?" Alice asked, a serious look on her face. "The wolves have never been our friends and I sincerely doubt that they ever will be. They hate us as much as we hate them and I'm pretty sure that, unless hell freezes over, there's nothing anyone can do about it."

"I don't think that's true," I disagreed as Alice started moving again, though she was moving at a much slower pace. "I think that they just need better guidance. And I think that we could be the ones to help guide them, if they'd only give us the chance to do so."

"If only," Alice muttered.

I sighed. "Sorry, Ali. I'll drop it."

"Don't apologize for speaking your opinion," Alice murmured, kissing my cheek. "I'm not sure how I feel on the subject of that, truthfully. But let's drop it for now and focus on other things, okay? Preferably less stinky things, if you know what I mean." She wiggled her nose to emphasize her point, then sniffed both me and herself. "Yuck! We both need showers, now."

"I have a feeling that Rosalie is going to hog it for a while," I giggled.

She crinkled her nose and smiled. "That's true, knowing her. I guess we'll both have to stink for a little while, then. Oh well." She paused and considered something for a moment, a large, twisted grin forming on her angelic face. "Say Bella…"

"Yes?" I asked, noticing that we were near the house now.

Alice licked her lips. "Would you, perhaps, like to join me in the shower at some point?" she asked, lifting an eyebrow and smirking wider.

I blushed and gulped. Did I want to take a shower with Alice? Hell yes! I would like that very much so, but would I be able to handle it without getting too embarrassed? I sincerely doubted that, especially knowing that I would never hear the end of it from my siblings since they would all know about it thanks to Edward and Jasper's gift. Would it really be so bad, though?

Aw fuck it.

"Y-y-yes," I replied, staring up at her smirk.

"Yes what?" Alice asked, cocking her head to the side.

"Yes I w-would like to take a shower with you…?" I replied, my voice a whisper at the very end as I nearly stumbled over my words. My face heated up instantly as the words started coming from my mouth and I had to turn away to avoid looking like an idiot. Not that that helped at all.

Alice started laughing melodiously and lifted me up so that our foreheads were pressing together, forcing me to look her in the eyes. She smiled warmly at me and kissed me sweetly, breaking through the embarrassment that I'd felt. I moaned into her mouth as she deepened the kiss and allowed for me to re-situate my arms around her upper back. We stayed that way for about five minutes before breaking apart, Alice gently laying me on the soft grass and crawling on top of me, grinning ear to ear.

"So you'll let me take a shower with you?" she asked. I nodded sheepishly. "Good! It's about damn time. I have to tell you, I was beginning to get sick of having to watch you shower in my visions all the time. It's nowhere near as satisfying as the real thing."

"Y-you're still watching me?" I sputtered.

Alice's face fell and she bit her lip, looking a little ashamed. "Yeah, sorry…I, uh, was going to mention it earlier, but we got sidetracked with the wolves and all. I'm sorry if it makes you uncomfortable, but it's hard for me not to look. You're so damn sexy; I can't stop fantasizing about you all the time. Edward's been getting a migraine from all of my thoughts, which is one of the reasons why he isn't around much when we're together."

"Oh," I murmured. I wasn't really sure what to make of it. Then again, the idea of Alice watching me was a little…enticing.

"I'm sorry," Alice said, hanging her head slightly. "I hope I haven't offended you."

I stared at her blankly. "You're a pervert."

"I promise I won't…" She paused and frowned at me. "What did you just-I am_ not_ a pervert!"

"Are too," I replied, smiling at her. "You already admitted to it, remember?"

Alice pouted. "Damn it," she grumbled. "I walked into that one." She leaned down and kissed me again, looking at me rather tentatively. "You're not mad at me, are you?"

I shook my head. "No, I'm not mad at you. I do think you need to stop apologizing all the damn time, you sound too much like Edward otherwise. I like my cocky Alice, not the overly-cautious Alice, okay? I don't mind you being you, I would just prefer that you would, you know, ask me about stuff like this ahead of time. Or at least tell me so that I'm aware."

She giggled and nodded. "Okay, I promise you I'll let you know." Alice smirked again. "So does that mean that you'll let me watch you shower from now on?"

"Um, no," I deadpanned.

"What? Why not?" she whined.

I licked my lips. "Because a certain pixie has yet to return the favor for the last several times."

Alice's eyes widened in shock at my words as I blushed and bit my lip. It took her a good minute to actually register what I'd said to her and respond to it. She cocked her head to the side and sneered at me, rolling her eyes and laughing.

"And you call _me_ a pervert," she chuckled. "Oh Bella, you never cease to amaze me."

"Well it's true," I muttered as she stood up, scooping me back into her arms. "Um, Alice? We're only a few feet away from the house."

"And?" she asked. "You should know by now that it's pointless to try and get out of me carrying you around, Bella. If we were in public, I'd reconsider it, yes, but we aren't, so you can damn well get used to it. And no, I don't do this because I'm impatient or because I think you're weak, I do it because I happen to enjoy it."

I shrugged my shoulders as she walked us towards the house, waiting before we were through the door to finally set me down again. I dusted myself off for dramatic effect and looked around to see that Emmett and Edward were sitting on the couch. The others were nowhere to be seen, though I could hear shower water running and figured Rosalie was up there.

"She is," Edward snorted. "She's been in there since we got home."

"Where did the others run off to?" Alice asked, wrapping an arm around me and walking with me to sit down. She sniffed the air and stuck out her tongue. "God, it _stinks_ in here! How is it that the wolf stench could possibly linger for so long despite how far away from them we were? Guh, it's so damn disgusting!"

"Tell me about it," Emmett groaned. "You think that they can do the same thing we can with their scents?"

"Ew. I hope not," I grumbled.

Edward chuckled. "Really guys, it isn't that bad. It's not the worst odor we've had to deal with in the past and I sincerely doubt it will be the last. And to answer your earlier question, Esme and Carlisle and Amara and Jasper all went elsewhere to bathe since Rosalie has the shower to herself. Oh, and Esme ordered that the shower be yours once Rosalie finishes in there."

Alice and I both looked at each other with big, perverted smiles. We both knew what that meant.

"What's so funny?" Emmett asked, noticing our smiles. "What'd I miss?"

"Nothing you need to worry about, Em," Alice replied, winking at me.

Edward started laughing at our thoughts as Alice and I walked upstairs with each other, the sound of our brother's laughter ringing through the entire house. Emmett moaned and groaned because he wanted to know what was so funny, but thankfully Edward never told him. If anything, Alice threatened him not to, which I was glad for.

Alice skipped merrily with me to our room and shut the door once I'd entered, jumping on bed alongside me, giggling like a schoolgirl. We cuddled with each other in silence, enjoying one another's presence as we waited for our overly vain sister to finish bathing.

"You don't think Rose is gonna use up all the water, do you?" I asked.

Alice laughed. "No, we have a pretty large supply of it. And she usually doesn't take too long in the shower, it's just after her shower that she takes forever in order to make sure her hair is in order and her face and all that rot. I swear, if she put as much time into being friendlier to people as she did her appearance, she'd feel a lot better most of the time."

We both laughed at that and I swore I heard Rosalie growl from the bathroom. Once we'd quieted down, I snuggled into Alice, curling my arms around her. Thoughts of all that had happened with the wolves, including what I'd found out about the council from Raina, lingered in the back of my mind. The fact that there was some form of peace today meant nothing when it could be just as easily shattered tomorrow.

"Are you okay?" she asked softly, pecking my forehead.

"I'm fine," I replied. "I'm just thinking about all the stuff that's happened."

Alice sighed. "Bella, stop thinking so much about all of that." She leaned in and kissed me. "I want you to focus on me, you hear me? I want you to focus solely on me. Don't think about anything else, not the wolves or the family or school or whatever, just focus on me." She cupped my cheeks and made me look her in the eyes as she spoke, those glowing honey orbs smoldering.

"Okay," I replied, leaning forward to capture her lips.

**A/N: Remember how I said that I would totally tease you? Huh? Yeah, I can be so evil sometimes. It's quite fun, actually. :D**

**Alright, I have two announcements regarding this story. First off, the next few chapters will likely be filler/fluff chapters. It's been nothing but action and seriousness for a good few chapters now, so I think it's time that things toned down. I'm a sucker for sappiness and fluffiness, as most of you should know by now, so expect a lot of tender fluff in upcoming chapters. There won't be anything too extreme and it will return to the story eventually, don't worry. I just want to ease it down a bit. I think Bella and Alice would appreciate a break from the supernatural drama for a while, eh?**

**The second announcement is one that none of you will be happy with. I am going to take a bit of a break for a while. *cue crying and sad-faced readers* I know, I know. Hear me out first. I have been writing these chapters non-stop since I started, staying up late and all that in order to get further into this story. I did it mostly for me and because I love doing it. I need a bit of time just to rest up from it all, you know? That's not to say that I won't NOT be writing, but I won't be updating for at least a week and a half. It depends on a couple of factors.**

**Rest assured, I am NOT dropping this story or any nonsense like that. Be patient and you will be rewarded the next time I update. I promise. **

**So, until next time. **

**Oh. One last thing. If you're going to pm me something, please make sure that you have your messaging turned on. I got a pm from someone two times in a row and they had their messaging turned off, so I couldn't respond to them. Common sense would point out the error there. :P**


	58. Tease

**Disclaimer: Twilight and all related characters are owned by Stephanie Meyer. I own all original characters and ideas.**

**Tease**

"Bella? Hello, earth to Bella? Hey, wake up lazy!"

"Wha-?" I asked sleepily.

I heard Alice giggle. "Wake up, silly human. Don't you fall asleep on me now."

I snapped to attention and realized that I'd been falling asleep. It took me a moment to figure out where I was, which was fairly easy given the cold, hard body that I was laying next to. I glanced up to see Alice looking at me with an amused grin on her face, her amber eyes alight with love and affection. I smiled sheepishly at her and connected our lips together in a brief, but meaningful kiss. I snuggled into her properly once we broke apart, which wasn't hard to do given the previous position that we'd been laying in.

"Sorry about that," I murmured sheepishly, resting my head under her chin.

"You mean falling asleep while we were kissing?" she inquired, lifting an eyebrow.

I blushed and hung my head slightly. "Sorry."

Alice rolled her eyes and planted a kiss on my forehead. "Oh stop, you know I'm only teasing you, silly girl. It didn't bother me in the slightest. Besides, I thought it was actually kind of cute how you fell asleep on me, honestly."

"That's good," I replied, burying into the crook of her neck and pulling her as close to me as I could. Alice giggled and slowly started running the fingers of her left hand through my hair, gently massaging my scalp. I closed my eyes in order to better focus on the sensations coursing through me at her touch and let out a content sigh, though it came out relatively muffled.

"What was that?" she giggled. "It sounded like a demented kitten."

I snorted and pulled my face out a bit. "You're one to talk," I teased, breathing her rich chocolaty scent in. "That feels really good, by the way."

Her body vibrated with another brief laugh. "Well duh, I wouldn't be doing it otherwise."

I didn't respond and merely rested my eyes, enjoying the scalp massage she was giving me. It didn't take long for Alice to start purring happily, which furthered the soothing peace that had settled between us. If there was one thing I knew, it was that whenever Alice and I relaxed with one another, it was always incredibly peaceful around us. I could imagine the sound of running water or some sort of light music playing in the background, even if there were none.

"Did Rose finish her shower yet?" I asked curiously.

Alice rubbed her nose into my hair. "Nope, she's still in there."

"Jeez, how long a shower does that girl take?" I groaned.

"Eager to see me naked?" Alice asked, sounding overly amused, yet serious at the same time.

I blushed and instantly shushed her. "Quiet, Alice!" I whisper-yelled. "Emmett can hear you!"

Alice's eyes bulged. "Oh fuck," she cursed, smacking her head.

"DUDE! That's HOT!" Emmett boomed from downstairs. Alice and I both groaned as both he and Edward started laughing raucously, nearly causing the whole house to shake.

"DAMN IT, EMMETT!" Rosalie snarled from the shower, silencing Emmett's laughter.

"Well it is…" Emmett grumbled under his breath.

Edward snickered. "Forget it, Em. Alice would rip your head off before you got the chance."

Alice let out a low growl. "You'd better not even try it, Emmett, or I WILL kill you."

There was silence downstairs as the shower water finally came to a complete stop. I heard the shower door open and about a minute—not even that—later, the hair dryer was turned on. I groaned again and kissed Alice's neck. I loved Rosalie, but damn was that girl vain. She was a vampire for crying out loud, why would she need to dry her hair when it was naturally cold?

"Do you want to go downstairs?" I asked, looking at Alice's face.

Alice bit her lip. "And deal with Emmett's teasing?"

"Oh yeah, good point," I muttered. "Won't he tease us anyways?"

"True, he will. Would you like to go downstairs?" she asked, sitting upright. I followed suit.

I shrugged and re-laid my head on her granite shoulder. "Unless you want to be the one kick Rosalie out of the bathroom so that we can take our showers. No offense, but we both really stink and I'm not sure how much more of it I can handle."

Alice giggled and kissed my cheek. "That, my dear, is also quite true. Perhaps we should chase Rosalie out of the bathroom so that we may embark on our little "adventure", hm?" She smiled rather seductively at me before kissing my other cheek and dancing off of the bed.

I flushed violently, but managed to get off my ass and follow her, only to stop at the doorway where Emmett was standing, a giant grin plastered onto his childish face.

"So, you guys are gonna take a shower together, huh?" he asked.

"Um…yes?" I replied.

His face lit up even more and for a moment I worried that it might crack in half from the size of the goofy grin he had. Knowing Emmett, he was likely misinterpreting the purpose of the shower together as something other than showering. Then again, deep down I knew that's what I was hoping for, though I would never say it openly to Alice.

"Dude, can I videotape it?" he asked, looking at me as innocently as he could manage.

My jaw dropped. "What? Absolutely not!" I shouted.

He pouted. "Aw, why not?" he whined. "I promise I'll just leave the camera in there…"

"EMMETT!" Alice roared, blurring directly in front of me and smacking him in the back of the head much like Rosalie would have. Speaking of Rosalie, she trotted out of the bathroom wearing a long robe and a towel wrapped in her hair and did the same thing on the other side.

"Ow!" he grumbled, rubbing the back of his head with both hands.

"You know better than that, Em," Rosalie chided. "The only naked woman you are allowed to see is me, do you understand? No trying to watch Bella and Alice go about their business, whatever and whenever that may be and certainly no videotaping it. You must respect a woman's privacy, Emmett dear. That is one of our sacred codes; privacy."

"You get to see each other naked all the time," Emmett groaned, crossing his arms.

Rosalie shrugged. "Yes, but that's because it's okay for women to see women naked."

"Don't forget the groping and the kissing," Alice giggled. "We _always_ have fun with that."

Emmett's jaw dropped, Rosalie smirked, I blushed and Edward, who was still downstairs watching television, snickered. Alice just grinned and bounced on the balls of her feet like she was a perfect little angel, completely void of a dirty mind. Yeah, right. The day I believed Alice wasn't a pervert was the day that I believed Emmett wasn't a pervert. And that wasn't going to happen any time soon, I was certain of that.

"Seriously?" Emmett asked.

"Yup," Rosalie replied, gently patting her husband's head. "Now be a good boy and go play with Eddie while I go and get dressed since _someone_ kicked me out of the bathroom." She shot a playful glare at Alice, who grinned broadly right back at her. Rosalie sniffed the air and crinkled her nose, shaking her head. "I can see why. Both you and Bella stink." She paused and scowled at her mate. "You stink too, Em. You'd better go find yourself a tub and some soap, because I'm not going to kiss someone that reeks of dog stink."

Emmett hung his head and grumbled under his breath as he trudged down the stairs and out the front door. Rosalie blurred into her room and reappeared several seconds later wearing normal clothes, her blonde locks whipping in the air.

"By the way, I suggest you make your showers quick, because I can tell Emmett will likely be back to try and videotape you two together. Or you could just not shower together at all," Rosalie said, shrugging. "I know I said that you need to get it on, but doing so while you stink is a terrible idea, let me just say." Alice and I both looked at each other with similar puzzled expressions before looking back at Rosalie.

"Um, thanks, Rose?" I offered.

"No problem," she replied. "Now then, I am going to go out for a drive. If I come back and this house still stinks of dog, I swear there will be hell to pay. That includes you, Edward. You'd better jump in a lake with Emmett if you don't want my wrath." I stifled a giggle when I heard Edward groan and shut the television off, the door slamming loudly moments later.

"Controlling, aren't you?" Alice asked, lifting an eyebrow.

Rosalie shrugged. "When I feel like it."

With that said, she turned and started walking down the stairs, waving to us briefly before exiting the house. That left Alice and I. Alone. I gulped and turned to look at Alice, who was staring back rather intently at me. She smiled and extended her hand to me, inkling her head towards the bathroom door. My face heated up as I took her hand and together we walked in silence together.

"Bella, relax," Alice cooed, gently squeezing my hand. "Your heart is beating insanely fast."

Was it? I hadn't even noticed the thundering of my heart in my chest as we walked into the bathroom, which smelled of…Rosalie. It was a sweet scent and I couldn't resist breathing it in, smiling at how good Rosalie's natural scent was. Alice giggled next to me and pulled me into a cool, loving kiss, cupping my cheeks to hold me in place.

"A-Alice," I stuttered. "I-"

She silenced me with her lips, holding them in place until I gave up with talking and focused on kissing her back. This time it was Alice who moaned into my mouth as we kissed, my arms snaking around her waist and pulling her as close to me as possible. I honestly didn't care about how bad either of us smelled or whether or not Emmett was planning to come back. All I wanted to focus on was my beautiful girlfriend, which was very easy to do.

"You see?" she murmured against my lips, breaking apart from them. "You don't have to worry about anything, love. Take a deep breath, gather your senses and relax."

"Alright," I breathed, doing exactly what she'd told me. I took in a deep breath and release it, calming my rapidly beating heart and relaxing into her arms. Alice kissed each cheek and hugged me tighter to her, smiling once I'd reopened my eyes.

"We don't have to do this if you aren't comfortable with it," Alice whispered, stroking my cheeks. "We can always do something like it in the future when you're up to it, Bella. There's no rush, regardless of what the others might say. So please, tell me if you're uncomfortable with it or not and I'll let you take a shower first."

I bit my lip. I'd been shy about it at first, but the more I thought on it, the more I realized I wanted it, even if it was something as small as showering with her. She was my mate, my girlfriend for crying out loud. I think I had the right to be a little perverse with her every once and a while, especially considering the others and their relationships.

"I want this," I replied, my voice firmer then I thought it would be.

Alice smirked. "Well then, my dear, I do believe that you should go first."

My face heated up. "W-w-what?" I choked out. "Why me?"

"Because I want to see that sexy body of yours," she replied, giggling.

I scowled. "You've seen me naked in the past, pixie feet. But _I_ haven't seen _you_ yet, so I think it's only fair that you be the one to strip down in front of me, don't you agree?" I asked, lightly tapping her shoulder. I knew if I actually poked it I'd probably end up hurting myself and Alice would burst into giggles.

Alice started giggling anyways. "Wow, Bella. I never knew how forward you could be about something like this. Where did all of this come from, all of a sudden? I knew there was an inner pervert in you, but I never realized she was this open."

I retracted my finger and bit my lip in embarrassment. "Am I being too forward? I, oh God, I'm sorry Alice, I just thought-" Again she silenced me, this time with a finger to my lips. She rolled her eyes and laughed as she removed her finger and replaced it with a brief kiss.

"I swear Bella, you apologize for the silliest things sometimes," she sighed. "If there is one thing that you never have to apologize about, it's for being yourself. I know that you're shy and that you aren't used to this type of thing, but in all seriousness, you don't have to worry about being who you really are around me. I love you for you, so it doesn't matter if you're a little perverse from time to time, because let's face it. I am too."

I couldn't stop myself from smiling at that, since it was true. "That is true. You're quite a pervy little vampire, you know that?"

Alice giggled and kissed me once more. "Yup and I happen to enjoy it," she replied.

I sighed and felt my face heat up. "Alright fine, I'll go first."

Her lips curled into a smirk, that trademark "I-always-win" smirk of hers. I rolled my eyes at that and removed my shoes and socks first. I noticed Alice looking at my feet and recalled what Amara had told me about her _interest_. Out of curiosity, I moved my toes around and watched her eyes follow the movement. It wasn't creepy in the slightest, more so amusing and rather cute. Of course, practically everything she did was cute, so go figure.

"You really do like feet, don't you?" I asked quietly.

Alice blinked and looked at me sheepishly. "Kinda," she admitted. She glanced back down. "I think yours are incredibly cute, if you don't mind me saying so."

"Thank you," I murmured. "M-maybe some time we could, um…"

She giggled, knowing what I was going to suggest and pressed her lips to my forehead.

"I would like that, yes. And yes, Bella, you would get free reign too. We'll have to set something up when the others aren't around to make fun of us. Knowing how Emmett and Amara are, Rosalie too, we'd never hear the end of it," she grumbled, scowling. "Come to think of it, it's not like our interests are the weirdest in this house. Especially knowing Em and Rose…"

"What do they like?" I inquired.

Alice smirked. "Shed another layer and I might just tell you."

I rolled my eyes and looked down at my attire. "Um, why don't you do one yourself?"

"Fine, fine," she snickered. "So shy, Bella."

"Shut up," I whined, crossing my arms.

Alice removed her shoes first, setting them neatly aside next to mind. She then shrugged out of her jacket, sniffing it idly before she did. Her nose crinkled in disgust and she tossed the jacket near the doorway, not wanting to have to smell that anymore. I still couldn't believe how strong the scent was despite how far they'd been from the wolves. Then again, Alice did get in close to Jacob and I was sitting close by to Raina. I guess that made a bit more sense. Still stunk, though.

"There," Alice announced, putting her hands on her hips. "I have foregone my stinky jacket and I've removed my shoes and socks. That's three articles of clothing to your two, so I do believe that you have a bit of catching up to do."

I twiddled with my fingers. "Um, okay."

I didn't really know why this was so hard. I'd done it a few times before. Of course, I regretted each of those times. Plus, this was Alice. She was so…perfect in every way. I knew that her body would be as angelic and that I would feel utterly inferior in front of her, hence one of the reasons why this was so damn hard to do. Being easily embarrassed around her didn't help either.

I grabbed onto my shirt and slowly started lifting it up. I stopped thinking about it and just did away with the shirt, tossing it to the ground. Alice stepped forward and cupped my cheeks, laying a gentle kiss on my lips. Alice smiled warmly at me and grabbed onto her shirt, pulling it off of her majestic body in a matter of seconds. I couldn't help gaping at her flawless form.

"W-wow," I breathed. Everything from her perfect curves, her toned stomach, her cute bellybutton and her chest was…

"Bella," Alice giggled, lifting my chin up. "My face is right here." She pointed to her face as a reference, smiling ear to ear. My face heated up instantly and I tried hard to suppress it. That didn't work, of course, and Alice let out a brief, lighthearted laugh.

"Damn it," I grumbled.

"You can touch me, if you'd like," Alice murmured, her giggling halting abruptly. "If you'd like to, that is."

"W-w-what?" I asked, gaping at her.

She stepped closer to me, her eyes gentle. "It's okay if you want to, Bella. I'm fine with it."

I gulped and glanced down at her body. "Um…" I took in a deep breath. "Sure."

Alice smiled softly and extended her arms outwards dramatically, winking at me as she did. I slowly started to extend my left hand forwards and touched her shoulder first. It was as ice cold as I'd expected it to be, but incredibly soft. I ran my fingers down the length of her extended arm, mimicking the action with the other side. Alice sighed contently and pulled me closer.

"Is this okay?" I asked.

She rolled her eyes. "Of course. You don't have to avoid my chest and stomach, sweets. I know that's where you want to go anyways," she teased, licking her lips.

I could feel my heart pounding in my chest as I glanced downwards and slowly started moving my hand. I couldn't believe I was actually doing this, here and now of all places and times, but a part of me had wanted to experience this for a while. My fingertips inched closer to her smooth flesh as I swallowed hard. Alice closed her eyes, holding me gently in place.

"It's okay, Bella. It's okay," Alice cooed softly.

I gulped one last time as my finger brushed against the fabric of her bra. Then-

"BOO!"

The door flew open and I yelped, flying into Alice's arms. Emmett was standing in the doorway with wide eyes before he burst into a fit of booming laughter. My face was likely as red as a ripened tomato and then some as Alice let out a guttural snarl that tore through the entire house, even causing Emmett to pause in his laughter. Alice moved me aside, glaring daggers—more like fiery swords than daggers—at our bigger brother.

"I am going to FUCKING KILL YOU!" she roared.

Emmett gulped and booked it, blurring from the doorway and down the stairs in about a split second. Alice grabbed her shirt and slipped it back on before stepping towards the doorway, her hands balled into very tight fists.

"Sorry, love," Alice ground out. "Another time. Have to kill brother."

"O-okay," I murmured.

She turned and looked at me sympathetically, then raced after Emmett, slamming the door behind her. I stared at the door for a good minute or two, trying to tell myself that that had not just happened, but to no avail. Realizing that it did happen, I pushed it out of my mind and stripped down fully before stepping into the shower. The warm water started flowing on me seconds later and I closed my eyes, enjoying the feeling of the warmth.

"What a day," I mumbled to myself. "I wonder if things will finally loosen up a bit." I paused and shook my head, my chest rumbling with brief, silent laughter. "I can't believe I'm actually talking to myself now. Great, I think I've gone insane."

I clamped my mouth shut and started washing my body at that point, starting with my hair and moving gradually downwards as I went. I paused to look at the bracelet on my left wrist, the symbol that I was a member of the Cullen family and considered to be a daughter to Esme and Carlisle, despite the fact that I wasn't a full vampire. I touched the smooth bracelet, then moved my fingers to my necklace, which I hadn't taken off since Alice had first given it to me.

Even though I'd had a lot of ups and downs in my life, I felt like I was the luckiest girl in the world for having Alice in my life. She was everything that I could ask for, even more than that, and I loved her insanely so. Sometimes I felt like even I didn't realize how much I truly loved her, despite how little I knew about her. It was strange, but I accepted it.

As I continued to wash, I noticed something…odd.

My right arm, specifically where the bite marks were located, looked oddly paler than my left arm did. I checked each arm several times over, trying to make sure that I really wasn't going insane, then saw that my eyes weren't playing tricks on me. How strange. I wondered if the rest of my skin would pale the way my arm was starting to eventually. It was so weird because of how pale my skin already was. Seeing it paler made me look like a damn ghost.

I shrugged and continued washing until I was done, at which point I dried off and, with a towel wrapped around my body, started walking towards my room. I noticed a pair of clean clothes waiting on the bed for me and smiled at that as I quickly put them on. Once I'd done that, I went back into the bathroom and grabbed mine and Alice's dirty clothes. I had to keep them held out in front of to avoid breathing in the wolf stench emanating from them, of course.

No sooner had I walked downstairs were the clothes whisked from my hands, much to my surprise. I had to blink several times before I realized it was Esme, who tsk-ed and merrily danced into the laundry room with all the dirty laundry.

"Hello to you, Esme," I chuckled, moving to sit down at the couch.

"Hello Bella," Esme sang, blurring out from the laundry room to hug me. "Did you have a nice shower, sweetheart?"

"Yes, it was nice," I replied. "Alice didn't get a chance, though."

Esme chuckled. "I had a feeling as much. I saw her chasing after Emmett a moment ago. She looked very upset, to say the least. What happened, pray tell?" she asked, clearly sounding both curious and a bit concerned.

"He barged in on us in the bathroom…" I replied, biting my bottom lip.

Esme shook her head and sighed. "That boy…"

"What were you two doing in the bathroom together anyways?" Amara asked as she walked through the door, Jasper trailing behind her.

Damn it. It figures Amara would pick up on that. I swear that girl was like a female Emmett.

"Talking," I replied.

"Liar," snickered Jasper.

"Ooh, you two having some sexy time in there?" Amara asked, grinning.

"No, we weren't," I growled petulantly, crossing my arms. "Where were _you_ two at?"

Amara shrugged. "We were making good use of the lake outside our house to bathe. It's not as nice as a shower, but I wasn't about to wait for the beauty queen to finish her long-ass run in it to get my chance. Besides, the stench wasn't too bad once we were away from them."

"If you say so," I replied, lifting an eyebrow curiously.

"I do. Speaking of beauty queen, where did Rosalie run off to? I saw Alice chasing Emmett down a moment ago, I'm surprised I didn't see Rosalie chasing after her," Amara mused.

"Beats me," I shrugged.

Amara and Jasper both smirked at each other and together the two of them walked upstairs, Amara pausing to lay a brief kiss on my forehead before following with her mate. I watched after them and sighed, wondering where Alice was and whether or not she had successfully captured Emmett, who I imagined was either dead or in very bad condition at this point in time.

Just as I thought this, the door swung open and in walked both Alice and Emmett, each of them completely drenched in water. Alice looked irritated beyond belief while Emmett was pouting like someone had just taken his favorite toy from him and smashed to pieces while he watched.

Alice caught sight of me and blurred over to where I was, kissing my forehead. I felt her wet nose brush against my hair and breathe in several times, causing her body to visibly relax. She turned and growled at Emmett, who padded over to me and bowed his head slightly, an apologetic look his usually goofy face.

"Sorry about earlier," he mumbled.

"It's okay, Em," I sighed. "It was just you being you."

Alice snorted. "More like you being an ass. You knew we were having a moment and you went and spoiled it. That is _not_ okay, Emmett. I don't spoil it when you and Rosalie are having a tender moment, regardless of how rare those are."

Emmett scowled, looking slightly insulted. "We have tender moments."

"Yeah, but you're usually having sex," Alice grunted.

A smirk formed on his lips as he shrugged. "That is true," he chuckled. "But it's not like we can't have both at the same time, right?" His laughter stopped the moment Alice let out another angry growl, her entire body vibrating from the loud noise.

"Don't do it again, Emmett."

"I won't," he promised, bowing his head. "Scout's honor I won't."

"Good," Alice replied.

In one brisk movement Alice drove her knee into Emmett's crotch, bringing our bear of a brother to the floor instantly. He clutched his stomach and groaned loudly in pain. I gaped at the display while Alice smirked and kissed my cheek. She danced up the stairs while Emmett remained where he was, taking in deep breaths to ease the pain. I shrugged and remained on the couch until Alice danced back down fully dried and in new clothes. She had her old ones in her arms and blurred into the laundry room to dump them before twirling over to sit next to me.

She wrapped her arms around me and instantly pulled me into her lap, which I relaxed into. I giggled when she buried her nose into my hair and sniffed it again, letting out another content sigh. By that point in time, Emmett had finally managed to wobble to his feet, whimpering and shooting Alice a glare as he did. I felt Alice's body vibrate with laughter.

"Don't get all pissy at me, Em. You shouldn't have barged in on us," Alice chuckled.

"He did what now?" Rosalie walked in through the door, sniffing the air out of curiosity. "The house doesn't stink anymore, at least." She smirked at that before looking at Emmett with a scowl and a lifted eyebrow. "What did you do this time, Emmett? And why are you dripping wet and lying on the floor in pain? Alice?"

Alice kissed the back of my neck. "Emmett barged in on us while we were undressing in the bathroom, so I chased him down. He thought it'd be funny to throw me into the lake in order to clean me off, so I grabbed him and returned the favor. Then I proceeded to beat him around for doing what he did, and I finished the job just a moment ago."

Rosalie lifted an eyebrow at her mate. "Is that so, Emmett?"

Emmett bit his lip sheepishly. "Y-yes?"

Rosalie sighed and swatted his shoulder. "I told you not to do that, fool. You're damn lucky Alice wasn't in super protective mode, otherwise you'd be missing a few _pieces_ right about now." She looked downwards, which caused Emmett to cover his crotch up and gape at Alice, his eyes bulging in fear.

"I thought about it," Alice snickered.

"Now, now, Alice, there's no need for that," I giggled, stroking her cheek. "Besides, I doubt Rosalie would appreciate it if you did that to poor Emmett and I'm certain Carlisle and Esme wouldn't be too pleased with you either."

Alice shrugged nonchalantly, a glint of mirth in her eyes. Emmett, on the other hand, did not look very happy and quickly scurried up the stairs. Rosalie snickered in amusement before following after him, leaving Alice and I alone once again. That is, until Carlisle walked through the door, looking rather refreshed. Esme appeared then from who knows where and kissed him on the cheek, smiling warmly at him, then at us.

"Hello girls," greeted Carlisle, also smiling at us.

"Hi Carlisle," we greeted in unison. We both looked at each other and started giggling again.

Carlisle and Esme both chuckled together at us and walked into the kitchen together. I smiled at Alice, who smiled back at me. She leaned in to capture my lips, lifting me and pressing my back into the couch as she did. I wrapped my arms around her and pulled her close to me as we kissed tenderly for about three minutes before she pulled away to give me the chance to breathe. She pressed her forehead to mine and smiled down at me, which I returned.

"We will have to take care of our unfinished business in the future," she mused quietly. "But I think we should better plan it so that there are no distractions and that both of us are prepared for it the next time around. I think we'd be better off at that point, don't you agree?"

"I do," I replied, kissing her nose.

"Good," she giggled. "Now then, where were we?"

She leaned down and pecked my lips, but froze when her eyes glazed over. I scowled, cursing the timing of her visions in my head. She remained frozen in her vision state for about a minute or so before snapping out of it, scowling herself. I noticed her eyes were darker now as she sat up, pulling me up with her.

"What's wrong?" I asked. She turned her head towards the doorway where Edward appeared, frowning at something outside. "Alice?"

"Edward, how long until they're here?" she asked.

"Two minutes," he replied, sighing. "They aren't here to fight, though. Apparently they're bringing the treaty for us to sign and act as spokesmen for their tribe."

I blinked. "The wolves are coming again?"

The others were all standing near the stairway moments later. Carlisle and Esme both looked relatively placid, not much emotion playing on their faces. Amara, Rosalie and Emmett were all scowling like Alice was while Jasper was doing what he could to ease their emotions.

"How many are coming here?" Carlisle inquired.

"Three," Edward replied. "Two females and one male." His eyes flickered to mine for a few seconds, then returned to the doorway. "They're here."

Out of curiosity, I stood up and walked towards the doorway as Edward stepped aside. Both Carlisle and Esme walked outside, me following after Esme. I was surprised to find that the three wolves standing in front of us weren't the ones I'd expected. I would have figured that they would send Sam, Raina and maybe someone close to rank, but instead it was Leah, Serena and Brandon, three of the wolves that seemed like they were genuinely on our side.

Leah stood in the center of them, an emotionless look on her face until she caught my eye. Our eyes met and there was an odd silence between us, her eyes trying to speak words for her, but it was like our communication wasn't quite working. She was holding onto something in her left hand, a scroll of some sort. Serena stood at her left, Brandon at her right. The others all filtered outside, though most of them loomed near the doorway. Only Alice stood by me, to my side rather than in front of me like she usually would.

I was glad. She was getting more used to letting me stand on my own, though I was thankful that she was near me. I always felt safer with her near me.

"Hello again, Cullens," greeted Serena cheerily. "We're here with the treaty."

**A/N: ****So...**

**Yes, I totally ruined your dreams of the shower scene. Wait, no, Emmett did. You want someone to blame, blame him. Because I had NOTHING to do with it. I swear.**

**Anyways, I am posting this to appease those of you who were wanting more (and probably pissing a good number of you off, haha). However, I regret to inform you that I am still taking a much needed break. Being sick for a week and a half has caused a bit of a problem with school, so I need to catch up with that. I also have personal stuff going on right now, one of which might be a good thing for you readers (not telling what). When will I be back in full, you ask? I can't say for certain. It will likely be about two weeks tops before I'm back on my normal schedule. Sorry girls and guys, that's just how it is.**

**Thank you to those of you wishing me well in health and in saying that I deserve a break. I appreciate it from the people who understand. **

**And to those of you wanting to know what that "surprise" I alluded to was...just wait and see. **


	59. Rivalry

**Disclaimer: I take no claim to the Twilight series. I only claim what belongs to me, including all original characters and my own ideas. Zing.**

**Rivalry**

Leah sighed and held out the hand that was holding the treaty. Carlisle stepped forward slightly and gently took it from her before stepping back.

"Thank you," Carlisle said, smiling.

Leah nodded quietly while Serena smiled. Brandon remained passive with his hands in his pockets, surveying the area out of curiosity it seemed. Leah's eyes flickered to mine for a moment, staring back at me with an emotion I couldn't register. Alice tensed up next to me and let out a brief, quiet hiss, at which point Leah turned her eyes to Carlisle as he opened the treaty.

Carlisle scanned it over for a moment, as did Esme who stood next to him. They read in silence for a good few minutes while the rest of us waited, though I could tell Rosalie and Amara were disgruntled by the wolf stench and Emmett wanted to know what it said. Jasper remained stoic, his eyes switching from the wolves to the rest of us, Edward was frowning as he listened in to the minds around him and Alice…well, Alice was giving Leah the stink-eye.

"We're sorry about what happened before," Serena said, breaking the silence. "The others aren't as keen on the idea of peace between us, but really, it's not fully their faults."

Brandon sighed. "If only our parents agreed with those of us who see the benefits of peace."

"Ain't gonna happen," Leah snorted, crossing her arms.

"That's not true, Lee," Serena disagreed. "Your mom believes in it, doesn't she?"

"It seems unlikely given what most of your council members were thinking," Edward interjected politely. "Only two of them wished for peace. The others did not agree and they were all thinking along the lines of starting a pointless battle with us."

"I wouldn't be surprised if my father felt that way," Brandon grunted, shaking his head.

Edward nodded. "I'm afraid so."

Brandon grimaced slightly. "I thought as much. He's always been against the idea of allowing vampires to live here in Forks. His hate comes from the hate passed down to him by his parents and their parents as well. My brother and I are the first wolves to ever come from our family and my father seems hell-bent on trying to use us against you. I want nothing to do with it, and while Colton might brag and boast, I know he doesn't either."

"What do the other wolves think?" Jasper inquired. "I can tell that the three of you are sincere in your feelings, for the most part. What of the others."

"It's mixed," Serena replied. "Most of them are going by what the council tells them because that's how they were raised. I know Leah's little brother Seth is a firm believer in keeping the peace between our groups. Sam and Raina are both neutral on the subject, though I'm certain they're leaning more towards the pro side than anything."

"Paul, Quil, Embry, Kim, Jared, Crystal and Jacob are all against it. Part of it comes from what their parents say, Jacob especially, and part of it comes from their past experiences involving vampires and what it did to their families," Brandon commented.

"So you're torn in half on it," I noted. "Is that right?"

Leah turned to appraise me and nodded. "Just about, though I wouldn't hold my breath on Raina remaining completely loyal to it."

"Lee…" Serena sighed, lightly smacking the girl's shoulder. "Just because the two of you don't get along anymore doesn't mean that you have to say that. She's sincere about her beliefs, I know she is. More than what can be said about that brother of hers."

Alice let out a low, throaty growl. "That bastard had best stay away from Bella."

"Good luck with that," Leah snorted. "He's pretty dead-set on proving that you're manipulating her into staying. The fool's obsessed, and not in the good way."

"He needs to be taught a lesson," Amara growled. "I'm beginning to grow tired of his constant bantering and his petty accusations against us. Bella stays here because she is family, not because with have our teeth against her throat to do it."

"He won't listen," Brandon murmured. "He's too stubborn."

"Not to mention arrogant," Leah added.

"Don't forget dense," Serena threw out.

"And stinky," Alice added last, crossing her arms petulantly.

Leah scoffed. "You don't exactly smell like fresh roses yourself, little leech. I'm having a hard time not gagging on your stink, thank you very much. And will you stop giving me that glare? I haven't done anything to you other than stating my opinion."

Serena placed a hand on her shoulder. "Cool down, Lee."

"_Please_!" Alice groaned. "You stink like rotten garbage!"

"Oh yeah? Well _you_ stink like rotten ass!" Leah shouted back.

Alice bared her teeth. "Well you stink like-"

A loud throat clearing caused her to stop mid-sentence. We both turned to see Esme frowning at her daughter with her hands on her hips. Alice grimaced and buried her face into my shoulder, wrapping her arms around me. I quietly giggled and hugged her closer to me. I'd been enjoying listening to her and Leah's shouting match. It was funny.

I glanced around to see the other's reactions and saw the most everyone, save Rosalie who remained disgusted and Carlisle and Esme who both seemed lost in thought, looked amused. I saw that even Serena was trying hard not to laugh. Leah shot her a glare that caused her to stop, though it didn't last long. Leah huffed quietly and stuffed her hands in her pockets, displeased.

At last Carlisle sighed quietly, rubbing his temples as Esme took the treaty from him.

"I see," he murmured quietly, looking at the three wolves. "It would appear that your council cannot decide on what to do regarding the previous treaty breach."

Brandon frowned. "They wish to try and blow that aside."

"It's typical of them. They won't admit that they fucked up and they'll likely end up blaming us for it, even with Sue and Randolph arguing against it," Leah spat.

"What if we told them that we didn't care, so long as they didn't take any unnecessary actions against you and your pack?" Esme asked. "Surely if that were the case, they would forget that the treaty was ever broken and could perhaps consider this just a renewal?"

"Doubtful," Serena replied.

"Look, can we just get on with this?" Rosalie complained. "I just took a damn shower…"

"Rosalie!" Esme chided. "Mind your manners, young lady."

Amara nudged her in the ribs. "I know it stinks, but deal with it, sis."

Rosalie harrumphed. "Whatever."

"Edward, would you fetch me a pen?" Carlisle asked, turning to look at Edward. Edward nodded tersely and blurred into the house, reappearing moments later with a pen in his hand. Carlisle gave him a nod and took the pen before clicking it and writing down his name on the treaty. He then gave it to Esme, who did the same beneath his name. Upon finishing, she handed the treaty over to Leah and stuffed the pen in her pocket.

"There you are. The treaty has been signed and peace, however temporary it may be, has been established between our groups once more. Let us hope that this petty rivalry ceases soon so that the peace can be permanent. I know that my family and I grow tired of our squabbles, regardless of our differences," Esme said softly.

"If it comes down to anything too extreme, then we will do what we can to avoid setting off a pointless war," Carlisle added.

"Will moving really end it, though?" Edward asked.

"What? You want us to move again?" Rosalie asked, appalled.

"If it comes down to it, then yes," Esme replied, apparently thinking the same as Carlisle.

"I'm not certain that it would solve anything," Jasper mused.

I bit my lip, remembering what Raina had said to me in the forest. "It might. The council would be completely thrown off by our decision and it would take them some time to decide on what to do next. Since you said that you have friends in Alaska, we could move there and stay with them for the time being. If anything, your scents would dissipate quickly because of the rain and wind, and they would ultimately be unable to track us since they don't know the exact location."

Everyone stared at me with the same blank expression, even Alice, who peered up at me from my shoulder, her golden eyes wide. I looked between everybody, feeling my face heat up in embarrassment at being the center of attention and from the way they were all looking at me.

"Why are you guys looking at me like that?" I asked, clutching Alice out of habit.

Alice blinked and kissed my cheek. "That's the smartest thing you've ever said."

"When the fuck did you grow a brain?" Amara asked, bewildered.

I ground my teeth together. "Shut up! I can't help if I'm not that smart, okay? I'm not some ancient-ass vampire who can memorize every single stinking detail either." Amara seemed amused by my response, which only irritated me more. Okay, so I wasn't that smart, but I wasn't stupid either, damn it. I huffed and buried my face into Alice's neck, who giggled as she wrapped her arms around me in comfort.

Emmett started guffawing only to earn a smack from Rosalie. "Ow!" he whined. "What was that for? It's funny!"

"Considering the fact that she's proven herself to be more intelligent than you, I wouldn't be laughing," Rosalie replied nonchalantly. "Besides, I'm still upset at you for doing what I told you _not_ to do earlier on, remember?"

Emmett grumbled under his breath while Edward and Alice snickered at him. I sighed, removing my face from Alice's neck, though I still kept her close. The wolves were watching on, Serena mildly amused and intrigued, Brandon…well, he looked like he always did, the same neutral face like he had beforehand, and Leah looked like she was curious and bored in the same.

Leah's brown eyes moved to meet mine, a frown on her face as her lips twitched in thought.

"Bella, can I talk with you for a quick moment?" she asked.

Alice's snickering turned into a low growl as she spun around to glare at the female wolf. Leah didn't even seem to notice, keeping her eyes locked with mine. I wondered what she could possibly want to talk about, but shrugged. If Leah was willing to be friends, then I was glad for that. I liked her, she reminded me a lot of Rosalie. She was just as mouthy and bitchy, yet there was softer side to her and more tenderness than one would normally think.

"Sure," I replied, lightly touching Alice's shoulders. "It's okay, Ali."

Alice didn't respond, though she did continue to glare at Leah. I was surprised that she wasn't arguing with me to stay with her. I knew that her overprotective instincts were still there, but perhaps she was starting to be more trusting of my viewpoint. Or maybe she was just too busy trying to keep herself from lunging for Leah's throat. Either way, I moved past her and followed Leah a few feet away into the nearby forest.

We didn't go too far away since I could still see the house, but I guessed that we were far enough to where the others wouldn't be able to hear our conversation. Leah turned slowly to face me, a mixture of emotions playing on her face.

"What's wrong, Leah?" I asked.

Leah let out a heavy sigh. "Loads of things," she replied. "There's so much shit going on. It's insane, really, and we're pretty much caught in the middle of it."

"Tell me about it," I agreed.

"What did you and Raina talk about in the forest?" Leah inquired.

I twiddled with my thumbs. "She didn't tell you?"

Leah snorted. "No. I'm guessing she mentioned me, didn't she?"

"Yeah, kinda," I admitted. "Why do you two hate each other so much? I know that she said you got into some kind of fight, but what over?"

She closed her eyes and took in a deep breath. "It's a long story, Bella. Maybe I'll tell you some other time…"

"Leah, at this rate there won't be another time," I pointed out. "Look, I'm not trying to get into your personal life or anything, but Raina seemed sincere in trying to keep the peace. And I can see that you are too. I'm just wondering what it is that made you two hate each other so much when you used to be best friends."

Leah cringed, reopening her eyes. "Did she tell you that?" I nodded quietly. "Feh, I'm guessing she talked a lot more crap about me too, didn't she?"

I bit my lip tentatively. "Only a little bit."

Leah ground her teeth together and rammed her fist into a nearby tree, leaving a hole in the trunk from the impact. I stared at her bloody knuckles which instantly began to heal up, much to my surprise, and in an instant her hand was back to normal again as she placed it near her side. She muttered several obscenities under her breath in agitation before stopping and calming herself down, at which point she looked back at me. I gulped and took an involuntary step back.

"I'm sorry about that," Leah murmured, hanging her head. "It's really hard to control your temper when you're a werewolf. It stinks because any little thing can set you off, especially if you were naturally hot-tempered before we first phased. Only a couple wolves, like Serena, Brandon and my brother, have super control over themselves."

"I see," I commented. I didn't really know what else to say.

"I can't say a whole lot to you know," Leah sighed. "But I will say that Raina and I have had our share of differences in the past. We have fought a lot and we walked out with our own scars, both physical and mental. Whatever bond we used to have has long been broken and I'm not sure if it will ever recover. I'm not sure if either of us will ever want it to."

"Was what happened really that bad?" I asked.

Leah grimaced, not responding once I'd asked. Her face looked pained again as she stared down at the ground in silence, trying to gather her thoughts. I rubbed my neck quietly, kicking myself for trying to push the subject.

"I'm sorry Leah," I murmured apologetically. "I'll drop it."

Leah took in a deep breath. "It's mostly my fault," she said at last. "It was my fault for letting things get out of hand the way they did. I was the one who kept pushing it even after they'd been dealt with. I was bitter and pissed off and being a damn werewolf wasn't helping." She paused and looked at me seriously. "Do you really want to know what happened between us?"

"Only if you want to tell me," I replied.

"It's a bit complicated, but I'll give you the short version of it. Yeah, we used to be best friends a few years ago. We did everything together. We were like sisters, yet at the same time, there was something more between us, or so I thought…" She hesitated before continuing, looking at me intently. That was when I understood.

"You liked her," I murmured.

"Yes," Leah admitted, running her fingers through her hair. "She was my first crush. And my first kiss, believe it or not. We were fifteen at the time, spending time together near the cliffs where we go cliff diving off of. It all started when we began discussing boys, which ironically turned into us wrestling with each other, than the kiss. It was weird, because she didn't pull away and neither did I. It was…nice."

I blinked in surprise. "What happened?"

"Her father happened," she growled. "He found out. My father found out. Things didn't go too well after that. Our friendship was strained because of it and we rarely saw much of one another for a little while. She said that she didn't feel the same towards me, but I knew she was lying. I couldn't do anything about it, though, so I went on with my life, boring as it was. And then Sam came into the picture and things were never the same."

"I think I heard about that, but I'm not sure," I murmured.

"I started dating Sam," she stated. "He was nice and I thought that, since having a relationship with a girl didn't work, I'd try one with a guy. At first, it was nice. He wasn't pushy or chauvinistic or manipulative or anything like that, which I liked, and we got along well. But then he started acting weird and he wasn't around as much."

"Is that when he first phased?"

"Yes," she replied. "He disappeared for a few weeks. Apparently he didn't have anyone to go to when he phased into a wolf, so he had to figure it all out on his own. And then when he came back, he broke things off with me, refusing to tell me what it was about. I was hurt because it was the second time someone I'd cared for had done that, though I never really loved him the same way I did Raina. I did love him, though."

She paused and clenched her fists, taking in a shaky breath.

"And then Raina tried to rekindle our relationship. She was all sincere about it and we even kissed again. But then what does she do? She dumps me a week later and she starts going out with Sam, apparently saying that they were in love. She apologized to me, so did Sam, but I didn't want any of it. It was _bullshit_ that they did that to me"

I noticed tears starting to well up in her eyes, which she fought off as best she could.

"It hurt…God, it fucking hurt. I don't know how long and hard I cried for that day. It was…painful…that the two people I thought cared for me would reject me just like that. And then my father had a heart attack, which only made things worse." She gritted her teeth together and took in another shaky breath. "Then I got pissed. Extremely pissed. I went and confronted them on it to get some answers, feeling empowered by my rage."

"That's when you phased," I mused.

Leah sneered. "Yeah, I did. Nearly took off Raina's head when I did, too."

I furrowed my brow. "You almost sound proud of that."

"I wasn't at first, but then I found out that they'd fucking imprinted on each other, so you can guess that things changed a lot after that."

"Imprinted?" I cocked my head to the side in confusion. "What's that?"

"It's something that we werewolves can do, apparently. It's basically finding our one true soulmate when we make eye contact with them or some shit like that. I don't know, I don't understand it myself because it hasn't happened to me," she replied.

"I see. Did Sam tell you?" I asked, keeping my tone gentle.

She snorted. "No. I wish I had though, it might have been easier for me."

That confused me. "Then how…?"

"Through their minds," she replied, staring back at me. "When we're in our wolf forms, we have what's called pack telepathy. I hear every thought that every wolf thinks, see everything they see, smell everything they smell. That was how I found out about Sam imprinting on Raina, how they fought it at first, but then they gave in and went with it. I was forced to listen to them constantly thinking about one another and all the shit they did with one another."

"Leah…" I tried to reach a hand out to her, but she pulled away from it, shaking her head.

"I tried to kill Raina," she muttered, not meeting my eyes. "I was so angry and bitter, I couldn't control myself and I ended up phasing while we had been arguing about it. We fought for hours, Raina ordering everyone off so that we could settle our problems. I don't remember how long we fought for, but I do know that it was nighttime when our fight had finished."

I nodded silently, choosing to let her continue without interruption.

"She won," Leah ground out. "She was bigger, faster, and stronger and had a hell of a lot more control over being a wolf than I did. She kicked my ass, plain and simple." Leah stopped and turned to pull her shirt of slightly. There were three long, jagged scars running diagonally down her back, staring at her left shoulder and ending near her right hip. "These are what I have to show for that fight, scars that didn't heal because of how deep they were. She has some too."

"I saw them," I said, staring at the scars as Leah pulled her shirt back down. "I'm so sorry for all that's happened to you, Leah. I can't imagine what it must've been like. I'm sorry."

Leah's lips twitched. "There's no reason that you should apologize, Bella. It was a long time ago and there's not much that can be done about it now. I was bitter about it for a long time. I fought with Raina constantly over it, I even fought with Sam a few times. I couldn't get it out of my mind no matter how hard I tried because every time I did, I'd have to hear it all over again. I even tried fighting Raina for position as the Alpha female a few times, hoping that that would be enough to rid myself of those memories. But every time I tried, I failed. She was too strong."

"It still hurts you, though," I murmured, taking a step forward. "I can tell that it does. I think what hurts you the most is that, deep down, you still care for Raina and Sam. You still feel strongly for Raina, too. You just can't act on those feelings because you're absorbed in your anger and bitterness towards them for something that happened a few years ago."

"That's easy for you to say," Leah growled. "You've never experienced anything like this before; you just got lucky and found that damn bloodsucker and everything just got instantly better for you because of it!"

I flinched at her words, but I didn't back down. "That's not true, Leah. It wasn't easy at first, despite what was inevitable. I struggled with what I was feeling because it didn't make sense to me that she could be my soulmate. Yet the more I struggled and fought with it, the more it became blatantly obvious. So I eventually accepted it and that's how we ended up being together the way we are. It wasn't easy for either of us, Leah."

Leah shook her head. "That doesn't mean it's anything like my situation, Bella. You've never had your heart broken before, have you?"

"I have," I replied. "I had it broken by my parents when they abandoned me."

Leah cringed. "I…oh. I, uh, I didn't know that. I'm sorry."

I took another step, now standing directly in front of her. She stood a few inches taller than I was, at least four or five, but that didn't matter to me. Neither did the brief wave of the wolf stench that emanated from her. I pursed my lips, ignored the smell and wrapped my arms around her waist, pressing myself into her as I hugged her tightly. Her body was incredibly warm, a complete contrast to the vampire's icy bodies.

Leah was tense at first. "What are you doing?" she asked.

"Giving you a hug," I replied, surprisingly enjoying the warmth.

"I stink to your bloodsucker...I mean, uh, _family_, though," she protested.

"I don't care if you stink. You're my friend, Leah," I stated softly.

She remained tense for a few seconds more, then sighed and relaxed, wrapping her warm arms around me and pulling me closer to her. She rested her forehead on my left shoulder as we hugged, allowing the silence to wash over us and ease the earlier tension. I felt her lay a gentle kiss on my shoulder as her body trembled slightly, squeezing me a tiny bit.

"That little vampire is lucky," she whispered. It was so quiet, I almost didn't hear it.

I looked up at her and saw that her eyes were closed, a pained look on her face again. I wondered what she meant by that. Wait. Did she mean me? I knew she was referring to Alice, so there really wasn't much else that Alice would be lucky for—in Leah's opinion—aside from having me. I frowned, but I didn't respond to it, instead remaining quiet as I allowed her to hug me.

In the back of my head, my mind was telling me that a) she stunk and b) Alice would flip the hell out when she found out about this. I'd have to warn Leah and try to ease Alice; otherwise her jealousy would make her go ballistic. And I didn't want that. I loved Alice dearly, and I cared for Leah, despite not knowing her super well. I wanted to know her. She'd helped Alice out and she'd been nice to me. I wanted us to be closer friends, truth be told.

After a few minutes, we broke apart from each other. We stared into one another's eyes for a few silent minutes, soaking in the emotions between us. Leah looked a lot better than she had been not too long ago, much less stressed and hurt. She looked content now, and I know that I was content too. Leah extended her left hand forward and lightly tousled my hair.

"Did you know that you stink?" Leah asked, cocking her head to the side and smirking. "I think being around vampires is starting to rub off on you. And I don't mean that in a good way, let me just say. I'm amazed I haven't gagged yet."

I snorted. "You're one to talk, Leah. I'll have to take another shower to wash all off the wolf smell off of me; otherwise it'll drive my family insane."

"Why wouldn't you want to drive them insane?" Leah asked.

"Cuz then Rosalie will eat my head off or something like that," I replied, shuddering at the look on Rosalie's face if I didn't bathe right away. "I don't really think I want to chance it with her, Leah, or _any_ of them for that matter. Besides…" I paused and sniffed myself. "You really stink."

"Gee, thanks," she deadpanned.

"Well you do…" I sighed. "Maybe we should head back now. I don't want Alice to worry too much about me. Oh, she'll be fuming when she finds out that we hugged, by the way, so I would keep your distance from her. I'll try to calm her down a bit, though. I don't want her trying to kill you over a hug, but she gets jealous real easily."

"I noticed that," Leah snickered, clearly amused. I shot her a look and she sobered up. "Fine, I'll be _nice_ about it, I promise." I lifted an eyebrow at her."I will, jeez. Let's go."

She didn't give me the chance to protest her tone and instead walked off, smirking as she did. I groaned and followed after her, rolling my eyes at the smug grin on her face. When we arrived back, Brandon and Serena were still there, talking with Carlisle and Esme. The others had either departed or were watching on, vague interest on their faces. Alice's eyes shot to me the moment I'd stepped out of the forest and she hurriedly blurred over to where I was, crinkling her nose.

"You stink," she groaned, sniffing my shoulder. Her eyes darkened and she glared at Leah.

Leah scowled. "What? That look again?"

"You _touched_ her, you filthy mongrel," Alice snarled. "I can _smell_ it on her body."

I touched her shoulders. "Alice, relax. I was the one who did it, not her. It's okay, love. Please, don't be jealous, it was just a hug. There was nothing else aside from that, I promise," I reasoned, rubbing her shoulders tenderly.

Alice growled for a moment longer, then relaxed and sighed. "Sorry," she breathed. "I still don't like it, though."

"I know, I know," I murmured, kissing her cheek.

She scowled. "You really stink, love. I'm sorry, but you do," she grumbled.

I rolled my eyes. "I'll go take another shower in a moment, I promise."

"Fine," she replied, sounding satisfied.

Alice lightly grasped my hand and tugged me back towards the others, glaring at Leah all the way. Leah looked thoroughly amused, but thankfully kept quiet along the way. Carlisle and Esme both smiled at me, neither of them phased by the wolf stench, and went back to their discussion with Serena and Brandon. Edward was the only one aside from Alice that was still outside. I could hear the television inside, so I figured the others were in there.

"Yuck," Edward groaned, frowning at me.

"I know, I know!" I huffed. "I'll take another shower when they leave."

"Damn right you will!" Rosalie shouted from the house.

I grumbled and rested my head on Alice's shoulder. Alice giggled quietly.

"Don't worry, Bells. I love you even if you do stink," she murmured, rubbing my head.

"Do we really stink that badly?" Serena asked, finished with her conversation.

"Yes," Alice deadpanned. "Like wet, dirty dog mixed with five week old garbage."

Serena scrunched up her nose. "Yeesh, no wonder," she commented. "Maybe we should start using some kind of herbal shampoo or something like that…"

"It wouldn't work," Brandon murmured.

"Does it matter? They don't exactly smell good to us either," Leah pointed out. "It's like a five year old corpse with a massive amount of supremely sweet perfume added on. Blech. If anything, we should be the ones complaining, not you."

Alice growled. "Ha! As if _we _stink more than you do, mutt."

"Alice, enough," Esme chided. "We've come to an agreement on all of the terms the council has arranged in order to keep the peace, so please don't try to incite a battle of who smells worse to the other, alright? Besides, these three wolves have been very understanding and we should appreciate the fact that they are unbiased towards us."

"That is true," Carlisle agreed.

I looked at Serena and Brandon curiously. I had a good idea why Leah felt the way she did, but I didn't know why they did. Was there more to their reasoning aside from just being nice?

"If you don't mind my asking, why are you two on our side and not the council's?" I asked.

Serena and Brandon looked at each other for a moment before Serena spoke up in response.

"We know what it's like to be biased against," she replied. There was definitely a hidden meaning to her words, but I couldn't grasp what. "We've both been ridiculed and teased by others because of our differences. You of all people would know what it's like."

Then I realized it. "You're gay?" I asked.

Serena nodded curtly. "Yes. It's what makes us different from the others, and one of the reasons why we both wish to be unbiased." Her face lightened up, then. "Besides, I think vampires are kinda cool, whether they stink or not. So there's no real reason to treat them badly, especially since they're supernatural creatures like us."

"I see," I murmured, hugging Alice closer to me.

"Thank you for seeing it that way," Esme said.

The wolves nodded. "I believe it is time for us to go. We have the treaty signed and the elders will likely be upset if we keep them waiting for too long," Brandon grunted, turning around.

"Yes, that's true," Serena sighed. "Pleasure speaking with you Cullens. Be well."

"You as well," Carlisle replied.

Leah remained silent, looking once more at me before turning and walking off with Serena and Brandon into the forest. We watched after them until we could see them no longer, at which point the silence was broken by a snort from the doorway. I turned to see Rosalie standing with her hands on her hips and a scowl on her face, eyeing me disdainfully.

"Shower. Now," she commanded, scrunching up her nose.

Alice giggled while Esme, Carlisle and Edward chuckled. I groaned again and hung my head as I speedily trudged into the house and up the stairs, ignoring the jests from my other siblings. I swear, sometimes I felt like I was living with a bunch of toddlers, save for Esme and Carlisle, when it came to the whole scent thing. It was seriously annoying. I grumbled a few times and, as I had earlier, washed myself thoroughly, spending a good fifteen minutes washing. I didn't want to listen to Rosalie complaining anymore, after all.

I sighed. At least now there would be a bit of peace. I only wondered how long it would last.

**A/N: I'm starting to run out of clever things to say. Oh noes!**

**Oh, wait. Brain freeze. Ha ha. I actually have two things to say, both off topic. And then one on topic thing.**

**Off topic item number one, the Blood Solstice soundtrack is now COMPLETE. I know, it's not very relevant, but Ale and I spent a helluva lot of time working on that damn thing. And personally, I think it's a pretty cool soundtrack. It has rock, pop, alternative and even a bit of metal. The link to the Youtube channel containing all of the songs is located on my profile, which is also where the track listings are. Feel free to subscribe to us and post comments. **

**Off topic item number two, I have posted a second story (which is the surprise that I mentioned in the previous chapter's notes) called Broken Aurora. Another Bellice story with a bunch of things changed around. If you'd like, go on and give it a read.**

**And lastly, the on topic item, expect a lot of fun, fluff chapters to come. No unnecessary angst or violence, more lighthearted stuff. So for those of you that like that stuff, I hope you enjoy, to those of you who prefer consistent plot, take a break, etc., etc. Peace. **

**P.S., thanks for all the support and the health wishes. I'm much better now, though things are still a bit slow writing-wise. Never fear, I won't stop until it's done. :D**


	60. Preparation

**Disclaimer: I don't own Twilight, though if I did, this would probably be what you would be reading. Or at least I would make something similar (hint hint). I own OCs. Yup.**

**Preparation**

Sunday went by relatively fast. I didn't really do much that day aside from watch a bit of TV and cuddle with Alice. Okay, so I spent the entire day cuddling with Alice, but there was no way I could break away from her. I loved cuddling with her and she loved it to. The only times that we weren't cuddling was when she went to hunt and when I had to deal with my human problems.

Other than that, the day was uneventful. I dreaded having to go back to school, especially since I'd missed a week of it. I doubted that would put me in good standings with my teachers, that much I was almost certain of. Alice assured me that the teachers would be more understanding since I was a Cullen and I found out that she even did all the homework I'd missed for me. I wasn't the happiest about it, but she merely dismissed it when I tried to confront her about it.

Sunday night, I spent a bit of time talking with Carlisle about my changes. We decided that Alice and the others would help keep an eye on me throughout the day to make sure that there would be no confrontations and that, should someone bleed, they would get me out of there as fast as they could. Blood was not something any of us needed to be around, especially me. I shuddered at the thought of losing control again and what I could do.

Carlisle offered to run a few tests on my control level before I went to bed, but Alice vehemently denied his request. I didn't disagree with her because I knew that arguing with Alice when her protectiveness kicked in was a waste of time. I didn't blame her, though and I certainly didn't mind that she was protective of me. It was endearing, truthfully, though at times when she was a bit overprotective it got a bit on my nerves.

Eventually I went to bed, snuggling with my girlfriend once again. I heard a few of the others joking about how attached Alice and I were to each other, but neither of us paid them any mind as I fell asleep. I was surprised that I didn't wake up until the very morning, since I usually woke up at least once to take care of my human moments. I didn't this time, though. How odd.

"Good morning, my sweet Bella," Alice purred, lightly kissing my cheek and smiling at me.

I yawned and smiled lazily at her. "Morning, pixie feet," I replied.

She giggled. "I wondered when you'd call me that again. I've actually grown rather fond of that nickname. I only like it when _you_ call me that, though."

"I'll keep that in mind," I said, stretching. "Do we really have to go to school today?"

Alice chuckled and lifted me up into my arms. "Of course you do, silly girl. Esme wouldn't be very pleased if you didn't. Besides, you do want to finish your first year of high school, no?" I wrapped my arms around her and nuzzled into the crook of her neck. Alice sighed and kissed my shoulder, each of us breathing in the other's scent.

"Does it matter, though? When I become a vampire, won't I be forced to retake high school again and again anyways?" I asked.

"That is true, but the experience won't be the same since you're still a human now," Alice replied, smiling against my shoulder. "Well, I wouldn't call you a human anymore, at least not technically. I think you're more of a, shall we say, half human."

I rolled my eyes. "Ha, ha, very funny."

"I thought so too," she giggled, kissing my cheek. "Now get up and go get ready, otherwise Amara's going to pour some ice cream into your belly button until you do." She smirked at the end and licked her lips playfully, which made several not-so-clean ideas flow through my head. I heard Edward snort from downstairs, but I ignored him.

I cocked my head to the side, unable to resist asking. "Would you lick it out if she did?"

Alice's lips twitched. "I'd prefer without, remember?" she asked, smiling slyly at me.

My cheeks heated up. "Yeah, I do," I replied. "I'll, uh, I'll go get ready, then."

I heard Amara go "aw" downstairs, followed by the insidious laughter of all three of my brothers and Rosalie. I huffed quietly as Alice giggled and kissed my cheek and removed her arms from me, allowing me to go and take my shower. I made it a quick shower, since really, I couldn't stink as bad as I had on Saturday after dealing with the wolves. Besides, I'd been hugging Alice practically all day yesterday, so I probably smelled pretty good.

Once I'd finished showering, drying and dressing, I met Alice at the bathroom door. She was leaning against the wall, whistling to herself with her hands in her pockets, trying to look as innocent as possible. Yeah, right. Nice try, babe.

"And what were you doing?" I asked, as if I didn't know already.

Alice looked at me innocently. "Why, I've been here whistling to myself."

"Uh huh, liar," I grunted, putting my hands on my hips. "You were watching me shower again, weren't you?"

Alice pouted. "I was not."

"Were too," I snickered. "It's so obvious, Alice."

She huffed and crossed her arms petulantly. "Fine, be that way. Let's see how you like not getting any hugs or kisses for the rest of the day, shall we?" I could tell that she was trying to be serious, but both Alice and I knew there was no way in hell we could go even five minutes without hugging, cuddling or touching in some way. I was starting to think that Amara's comment about us being whipped in the past was true. Which meant…

I sniffled and puffed out my bottom lip, giving Alice the infamous puppy dog pout that she always gave me. Alice's eyes immediately diverted away from me as she stuck her nose in the air and harrumphed dramatically, trying not to look my way. I sniffled again, for added effect. I watched as Alice's resolve slowly shattered into nothingness, her eyes turning to look at me despite her attempt not to.

At last she caved and flung her arms around me, pulling me tightly into her body. I smiled at beating her at her own game again and nuzzled into her happily as she let out a sigh.

"I can't believe you sometimes," she grumbled. "Beating me with my own technique. Stinker."

I grinned. "Do you honestly think either of us could go even a minute without touching?" I asked.

Alice considered that for a moment, then shook her head. "I don't think so. It'd kill me if I wasn't able to hug you or hold your hand for anything more than maybe a few minutes, but even that's cutting it too close for comfort. I love you too damn much."

"I love you too," I murmured, leaning in to kiss her. She smiled against my lips and kissed me back in full, cupping my cheeks to pull me as close to her as possible.

"Hey! Quit making out up there!" Amara shouted downstairs.

"Get a damn room!" Rosalie added.

"With a video camera installed!" Emmett threw in.

Alice and I both groaned at that as we broke apart. "Bastards," Alice muttered under her breath, looping her arm around mine. "Come on; let's go get you some of that stinky human food so that we can get to school already."

I snorted. "My food doesn't stink, thank you very much, it smells quite good to me. In fact, saying that's basically saying that Esme's cooking stinks and I don't think that she appreciates that one bit." Esme grunted in agreement downstairs, which made me smile smugly at my shorter girlfriend, who merely rolled her eyes in response.

"Yes, yes, whatever," Alice groaned. "Now quit yapping and get down them stairs, missy!"

I lifted an eyebrow at her humorously, then shrugged and trotted downstairs, Alice in step behind me. The others were already downstairs bickering amongst themselves, save for Esme who was in the kitchen cooking me breakfast. I sniffed the air and smiled at the smell of eggs and bacon and happily skipped into the kitchen where my food awaited me.

"Morning Esme," I greeted.

Esme smiled and danced over to me and kissed my forehead while wrapping me into her trademark hug, which I gladly accepted.

"Good morning, Bella," she returned. She frowned when Alice walked into the kitchen and put her hands on her hips. "I don't appreciate the insults to my cooking, young lady. Just because _you_ think it stinks doesn't mean that humans do."

Alice bowed her head. "Sorry, mom," she murmured.

I giggled while Esme smirked. "You're forgiven, my dear Alice." She turned to me. "I hope you enjoy your breakfast, Bella."

I smiled at her and sat down. I always did. I speedily seated myself and immediately dug into my meal, Alice sitting next to me and crinkling her nose in disgust at my food. I paid no mind to her faces as I ate and finished in minutes, faster than I normally I did. Once I was done, Esme flitted back into the kitchen and removed my plate, humming quietly to herself.

"That was delicious. Thanks Esme," I commented.

"Anytime, dear," Esme replied. "Are you ready for school?"

I made a face. "School. Yuck."

Esme tsk-ed and shook her head. "You know it's important, Bella. A healthy mind is very important for a healthy lifestyle."

"Hard to exercise what you don't have, Esme," Amara snickered.

I glared at her. "Then why are you and Emmett still going?"

Emmett looked torn between laughing and pouting while Edward, Jasper and Rosalie all started to laugh. Alice giggled next to me too. Amara merely snorted, choosing not to respond to my comment. I smiled inwardly, pleased by my victory, however minor it was. It didn't last long since Alice forced me up and pointed to the door. I sighed and went to grab my things.

School again, how fun. At least I'd get a chance to see a few of my old friends.

That reminded me. Holy crap, I'd completely forgotten about the ordeal with Angela—well, it wasn't really Angela, but it did involve her stuff—that had happened last week. I wondered how she was doing considering her car had been stolen and destroyed. Then again, she could have been killed, which would have really sucked. I was forced from my thoughts when I was suddenly flung over someone's shoulders. Alice.

"Hey!" I shouted. "Alice!"

Alice giggled. "You were taking too long, silly human."

The others laughed as everyone made their way outside. Rosalie and Edward went into the garage and pulled out with their cars shortly after. Alice plopped me down into the backset before buckling me in and blurring over to the other side. Edward drove off seconds later, leaving me to grumble quietly to myself as I shot my mate a scowl. She kissed me sweetly in response, which made the scowl vanish in an instant.

"Knock that off back there," Edward grunted.

Alice growled against my lips and kicked Edward's chair before pressing me into my seat and sitting on top of me, wrapping her arms around me to continue kissing. I moaned against her mouth as her movements picked up in speed and passion. I pulled her closer to me, running my fingers through her hair as I deepened our kiss. I heard Edward grumble something in front.

Our kissing was broken by a loud thump on my side of the car.

"Cut that out you two!"Rosalie shouted from outside the car.

Edward growled. "Rose, be careful with my car."

Alice broke apart from me and growled quietly at the interruption, glaring daggers at Rosalie, who looked surprised by the door. I noticed that her eyes were pitch black and glazed over with something more than just agitation. It almost looked like…lust.

"Alice, are you-"

I didn't get a chance to finish because Alice reattached her lips to mine rather hungrily to continue kissing me. I moaned again and re-wrapped my arms around her, not bothered in the slightest that she wanted to continue. Kissing Alice was _so_ much better than going to boring school any day of the week. So I didn't fight her off and pulled her close to me again as she continued to ravish my lips in a way she never had before.

I felt her hands clutch my shoulders firmly and press me into the seat as her tongue snaked into my mouth, eliciting a muffled groan of pleasure from me. What sounded like a growl broke through her lips, her whole body rumbling as her speed increased. I started to realize that my oxygen level was running low, but that Alice wasn't stopping any time soon. Memories of what had happened with Victoria flashed through the back of my head and I started to panic.

The car door flung open and two pairs of hands grabbed onto Alice, prying her away from me. I gasped for air as another pair of arms wrapped around me protectively. Through the haze in my mind, I recognized the arms as Amara's and instantly relaxed into them, easing my breathing as she rubbed my back tenderly.

"Easy girl, easy," Amara cooed. "You're okay now."

I let out a sigh once I'd calmed myself down. Sneaking a glance outside, I saw Alice being pinned in the arms of Jasper and Rosalie, both of whom were trying to calm her down.

"What's wrong with her?" I asked Amara, hugging her tightly.

Amara looked at me, then at Alice. "It's difficult to explain…" she murmured, biting her lip. "I guess, if anything, you would call it tension."

"Tension?" I asked, confused.

"Sexual tension," Amara reiterated.

"Oh. _Oh_," I replied, feeling my cheeks heat up. "But I don't…"

"Do you remember how I mentioned that sex was important to a vampire?" Amara asked. I nodded sheepishly. "Well, I wasn't kidding around when I said that. It _is_ important, and after a certain period of time, all vampires crave…release, if you will. Alice has been struggling with it for a few days now, you just haven't noticed because up until now, she's been in control of herself. And then she kissed you and that just sort of blew things out of proportion."

I was having a bit of trouble wrapping my head around it fully, but I understood most of what she was saying.

"Is she going to be alright?" I asked, growing more concerned. Alice had stopped struggling in her siblings arms and slumped into Rosalie's body. I also noticed that both Emmett and Edward were both shooting glares at any student who stopped to watch. Alice turned her eyes to me, smoldering with remorse for her previous actions.

"She should be fine," Amara replied. "I wouldn't worry about it too much. It's a normal thing for vampires to go through, especially when they're in their first years with their mate. In fact, I have a funny feeling that you'll start to feel a stronger physical pull toward her soon enough. If you need any help, just ask Esme, Rose or I. We'll help you calm it down, since I sincerely doubt that you and Alice are ready for things to be too _physical_."

She winked at me and helped me out of the car before standing herself. Alice walked over to me and stopped a few inches away, biting her lip.

"Bella, I-"

I cut her off and pulled her into my arms, lightly kissing her neck. "It's fine. No harm done."

Alice sighed and relaxed into my arms, nuzzling into the crook of my neck. "I guess I'll need to do a better job of keeping myself in check for a while, huh?" I could tell by the tone of her voice that she wasn't pleased with herself despite my reassurance. I didn't comment on it, since I knew she was far too stubborn to let it go.

"I didn't mind it too much," I admitted, ignoring the grin that Emmett shot me. "We should head to class, though. Don't dwell on it, Ali. I'm fine, you're fine, there's no reason to apologize or worry." I pushed her a bit toward the school because I suddenly found myself more interested in getting to class than standing out in the open where everyone could gawk and gossip. Alice, thankfully, seemed to understand and smiled in acknowledgement before lacing her fingers around mine and skipping merrily with me to our class.

We spent much of our first class doing little else aside from staring into each other's eyes and holding hands. We didn't say much other to each other than whispering "I love you" a few times and the one time Alice was called on in class to answer something, which she did without taking her eyes off of me. I ignored the muffled grunts and whispers and merely smiled back at her.

Then class ended and we were forced to part ways, but not before a quick kiss. Despite the fact that the staring still unnerved me, it didn't bother me as much as it had the first day here. I'd gotten used to it and didn't care as much. If anything, they were just jealous that I had the sexiest girl in school all to myself. Tch. Haters.

"Bella! You're back!" Eric greeted when I'd walked into class early.

"Hey Eric, long time no see," I replied.

"Yeah, it's been what, a week? Of course, seeing as how the Cullens are always gone when the sun is out, I figured you'd be gone, out camping and hiking with your family. Jeez you guys are lucky, my parents would never do that," Eric said, scowling.

I smiled politely, not mentioning the fact that my week was full of vengeance seeking vampires and temperamental werewolves. Yeah, best not to go into that.

"Oh hey, did you know that Angie's phone and car got stolen last week?" Eric asked.

I put on a face of mock surprise. "Really? That stinks!"

"Tell me about it," Eric grunted. "I'm jealous. Her new car is so much cooler, so is her phone."

I grinned. Too bad my car and phone were cooler. Wait, that's not good to think. Ugh. I think Alice's cockiness is starting to rub off on me. Ugh. Of course, I guess thinking something like that is better than openly saying it, unless I'm around Edward.

"Did I miss anything of interest?" I asked, though I didn't really care since I had all of my homework done, thanks mostly to Alice.

Eric rolled his eyes. "Nah, there wasn't much of interest. Other than the fact that everyone is stoked that school will be ending very soon. Plus Katie's pretty excited for prom and I'd be lying if I said I wasn't too."

"Prom?"

"Oh yeah, you weren't here when they announced it," Eric explained. "Prom is coming up pretty soon. Tickets are going on sale tomorrow, so you'd better reserve yours if you intend to go. Katie and I are going together and so are Ben and Angela. I figured you and Alice would be going too since this is your first year here and you're together and all."

I thought about that. Prom. I'd never been to a dance before. Well, mainly because I couldn't dance to save my life and since no one had ever asked me. Would Alice want to go to prom with me? She'd probably own the dance floor with how amazingly graceful she was. Plus she'd want to go prom dress shopping, which I wouldn't mind since it'd be hilarious watching her force Amara and Rosalie into dresses.

More students were starting to pile inside the class at that point. Eric tapped my shoulder.

"Hey, I just remembered. The others were wondering if you wanted to go a see a movie sometime this week after school. You could totally invite Alice and it'd be like some big super triple date." He paused and looked at me curiously. "Come to think of it, have you guys gone on a date yet? You've been together for a while, so…"

I stared blankly at him for a moment. Holy shit. Alice and I hadn't gone out on a _date_ yet. I mean, granted, we had been sort of busy trying to stay alive this past week, but there had been opportunities for us to go out and enjoy ourselves. That had to change. I needed to grow a pair and ask her out on a date of some kind. Maybe going to the movies wasn't such a bad idea.

"I, uh…I'll ask her about the movie, definitely. Do you have a day set?" I asked.

"Not yet, but I'll ask the others at lunch," he replied. "I think it'd be sweet if you went."

I snorted. "You're only saying that so that you can watch Alice and I make out."

Eric pouted. "Nuh uh, I wouldn't be the only one. Katie would be watching too, after all," he pointed out, grinning. "She might even join you…if you let her, and all…" He ran a hand through his hair shyly and I almost burst into laughter. Then again…

"I'd have to ask Alice about that," I stated, grinning at the pout he gave me. Then class began.

Class went by rather quickly. I was spared from having to answer any of the teacher's annoying questions and instead thought about doing something special with Alice. Going to the movies with friends was a nice idea, but I wanted to do something with just her. No siblings, no friends, no bimbos or werewolves or evil vampires. Just Alice and I, together. I hadn't realized that class was over until Eric nudged me because I'd been so focused on trying to think of something. I wondered if Alice was seeing this. Maybe she could think of some better ideas for us.

"We were thinking of going to see that new vampire movie," Eric mused as we walked to our next class together. I couldn't contain the snort that escaped me. God, a vampire movie. Alice would either be incredibly insulted or laugh her ass off at the thought of that. Knowing her, she'd probably do a little of both.

"It's not that really stupid one where the girl falls for that stupid emo vampire, is it?" I asked.

Eric snickered. "No, it's that awesome one with the lesbian vampire falls for a human that her family protects from evil vampires out to get her. Katie read the book and said it was really good, so now we're going to see the movie. I can't wait, personally."

Huh. Was it me, or did that sound a lot like what had happened to me? Granted, this was based off of a book, so it was probably written years ago. Plus, that was fantasy. This, everything that I'd been going through and would continue to go through, was reality.

"I think Alice might like that," I replied, unable to hide my smile.

We continued to chatter about the movie and about other ideas for a date for Alice and I, even after we got in class. Angela was there and greeted us, showing off her new phone to Eric, who remained jealous of it. Throughout our third class, I mostly listened to Angela and Eric talk about the movie and about other random things, including Angela's car being stolen.

"It's a good thing you weren't around when it happened," Eric commented.

"Yeah, I was with my parents at the time," she replied. I was beyond thankful for that, since I would've hated something happening to her. "It's weird, though. Why would someone want a car as old as mine when there were much nicer cars around my house, most of which their owners just leave out without a care?"

_Because the person who stole your car was doing so to lure me into an obvious trap that I fell for like a moron_, I thought to myself. I didn't comment on it, instead keeping my mouth shut, fearing that if I tried to get involved, I'd say something stupid. That was my specialty. Saying and doing stupid things. God I wish my brain worked right.

"Are you going to prom, Bella?" Angela asked.

"Er…I dunno," I murmured, rubbing the back of my neck. "I'll have to ask Alice."

Would she want to go? Especially considering this whole tension stuff going on with her, would it be a good idea for us to go? That, and the fact that I'd be falling all over the place, coupled with the staring and jeering of everyone around us.

"Oh, okay," Angela replied, dropping the subject.

She didn't ask me anymore throughout class, which I was thankful for. The rest of class went by relatively quickly and I was soon out the door, bolting to get to the lunchroom so that I could be in the arms of my Alice again. Running without paying attention was always a bad idea, since I quickly slipped and rammed into the ground roughly.

"Ow," I groaned. I heard a few chuckles and giggles, but ignored them as I stood up. Seconds later, that oh-so familiar pair of cool arms wrap around me and lift me upwards.

"Are you alright, Bella?" Alice asked softly, kissing both my cheeks. "Where are you hurt?"

"I'm fine," I replied, hugging her. "Honest."

Alice nodded curtly and together we walked—slowly—to the lunchroom over to our table. Alice glared at anyone and everyone that looked at us as we walked. I noticed that Jessica and Lauren had their backs turned and that their other friends who Rose and Amara had shaved were still absent. They likely would be for some time, I assumed.

We sat down together at our table, Alice on my right, acting as a shield from the other students, who she continued to glare at. Jasper sent her a wave of calm as I quietly started eating, tuning out of the squawking around me and focusing solely on Alice being next to me and the calmness that Jasper was casting on our table.

"You should ask her," Edward said, appraising me curiously.

I choked down the bite of food in my mouth and guzzled down some water to wash it easier.

"Huh?" I asked. Edward lifted an eyebrow and I suddenly realized what he meant. Prom.

"Yes, that's it," he chuckled.

I bit my lip and turned to look at Alice, who was having a vision. Once the vision had finished, Alice stared blankly at the table for a moment before turning and beaming at me, pressing a loving kiss to my lips.

"Yes, I would love to go with you to prom, Bella," Alice sang happily, kissing me again.

I smiled against her lips. "Really? You don't mind—"

"—that you stink at dancing? Not at all, because you'll be in my arms the whole time," she replied, grinning cheekily at me. I rolled my eyes at her.

"Well what about getting—"

"—dresses will be no sweat, so to speak," Alice giggled. "That just gives me an excuse to take you shopping with me and to drag Ama and Rose along for the ride."

Amara stopped her conversation and looked mortified. "Say what now?"

Alice grinned wickedly. "You heard me, big sister." Emmett, Edward and Jasper all laughed at Amara's horrorstruck face. Even Rosalie looked fearful of Alice's shopping madness. "I wouldn't laugh, boys. You would all need suits for prom, so you would all be going too." Jasper and Emmett stopped laughing. Edward, on the other hand, didn't.

"I don't have to worry because I'm not going," Edward snickered.

"Because you're a bitch," Amara growled.

"Ass," Rosalie added.

"Lucky," Emmett grumbled.

Jasper merely pinched the bridge of his nose and sighed. I leaned into Alice and pulled her into my arms, giggling to myself. Then I recalled the triple date idea and that Alice and I had yet to go on a date in general.

"Alice, would you—"

"—want to go on a triple date to the movies with you and your human friends? Of course, I'd love to," she replied. "And actually…I'm not against the idea of having a bit of fun with Katie, if you know what I mean." She gave me a playful wink, which surprised me. I would have thought that she would be against the idea of kissing another girl.

"But I thought that—"

"—I would be jealous? Not if we're both a part of it," Alice replied.

I furrowed my brow. "How many times—"

Alice smirked. "—am I going to interrupt you? Until it doesn't amuse me anymore, silly girl." I rolled my eyes and finished my lunch. Alice sighed and kissed my cheek. "Oh, stop that, you know I'm only playing around with you, Bella. I really would enjoy going to see a movie with your friends." She paused and cocked her head to the side. "It looks like they're planning for tomorrow after school. And the movie…is a vampire movie?"

I smiled sheepishly at her. "Er…yes?"

Alice looked at me queerly. "I see. It'd better not be that stupid romance movie that I heard about, it looks horrible. The portrayal of the characters, the main couple, the way that all the women look weak…ugh, I can't stand movies like that."

"No, it's the other one, that's new," I replied.

"With the hot ass lesbians?" Amara asked, grinning. "And the hot gay guys?"

I flushed. "I think so."

"Dude! I wanna see that one!" Emmett boomed.

Rosalie snorted. "We have plans already, remember Emmett?"

Emmett pouted. "Aw, man…"

"I have a feeling that the emotions are going to be all over the place," Jasper mused, eyeing Alice and I inquisitively. "Do you think you'll be able to keep yourself in check if you don't have us around to help you?"

Alice growled. "I can and will control my _urges_, Jasper."

"I'm just checking," Jasper chuckled. Edward and Amara both laughed too.

"Whatever," Alice huffed, looping her arm around me. "Bella, are you finished eating?"

I nodded. "Yeah, I am."

Alice sneered. "Good, let's ditch this hellhole. We can go somewhere nice and quiet." She leaned in to brush her lips against my earlobe. "And we can pick up where we left off earlier on, without the distractions or the loss of control. What do you say, my sexy Bella?"

I shuddered and nodded silently, ignoring the smirks and noises my siblings were making as Alice smirked and pulled me up with her. The two of us walked out of the lunchroom and out of the school, neither bothering to go to the nurse's for an excuse. I didn't care at that moment, because for the once, I didn't care.

We stopped by the cars, at which point Alice opened her arms, beckoning me into them. I happily accepted her offer and curled my arms around her. Alice laid a gentle kiss on my neck and pulled me in close, cradling me in her arms.

"Hold on and close your eyes," she commanded gently, which I did. Then, without another word, Alice bolted into the nearby forest at her vampire speed, whipping by trees like a gust of wind without a care in the world. I hugged her tightly despite knowing she would never drop me and buried my head into the crook of her neck, breathing in her sweet scent to ease my nerves.

I couldn't help smiling against her icy granite skin. I had a feeling I was in for a bit of fun, very soon.

**A/N: So...**

**Yes, I am a tease. :D**

**I honestly don't have a whole lot to say. I'll be having a lot of fun with the next few chapters and I certainly hope you will too. Who wouldn't have fun watching Amara and Rosalie squirm while Alice drags them shopping? The chapters might be a bit slower for a while since I need to get back into the rhythm of things. I do have school and I do have other side stuff going on. No, I am not writing a book. Well, I might be trying to...**

**Anyways, yeah. Have at it. By the way, at the behest of an intriguing review I received, Blood Solstice is now rated T (though I still think it should be OT) because of the lack of the sexual stuff. That way people don't get the wrong idea about the story, like some probably already have. **

**For those of you still unaware, I have posted the first two chapters of my second story, Broken Aurora.**

**Also, on my profile is the link to the "official" Youtube page for the Blood Solstice soundtrack (I've noted it before, but I'm noting it again :P). You can expect the soundtrack to grow with each new story. Feel free to subscribe if you'd like. Either way, music lovers should check it out, there's a little of (almost) everything. There will even be a trailer for Blood Solstice soon, courtesy of Kyraaah1992. **

**On a final note, I would like to shout out to ManaMila, the writer of a Bellice story called Fire's Angel. It's a great read and I suggest you swoop on over and check it out. She's very talented and I highly recommend the story. It's one of the stories that inspired me to write Blood Solstice, just so you know. ;)**


	61. Experiences

**Disclaimer: I taketh no claimeth for the characters owned by Meyer. I do taketh the claim for my own characters and ideas. **

**Experiences **

Alice whipped by at a speed that caused my hair to fly everywhere in the wind. I heard her giggle as various strands of it batted her icy face, but she didn't make any comments on it. I hugged her tightly with my face buried in her neck, tempted to kiss her there. So I did. I heard her body vibrate in a brief purr as she leaned down and kissed my cheek tenderly, even while running.

"Where are we going?" I asked, my voice muffled against her neck.

"You'll see," she replied with a giggle. "We'll be there soon."

I rolled my eyes at her playful tone. I knew she was just doing that to tease me. Still, I was glad that we'd be there soon, wherever there was. I was beginning to feel a little queasy from moving at this speed, even if my eyes were closed and I was curled into her body.

Another minute passed and her pace started to slow down a bit. Finally it came to a complete stop and Alice kissed the top of my head before setting me down on my feet. I blinked several times and looked around to see where we were. Aside from the trees, I noticed a familiar looking array of rocks and a waterfall. Oh. I knew this place.

"We've been here before," I mused, tapping my chin.

"This is where we first came to terms with our relationship," Alice replied.

"Oh!" I gasped. How could I have forgotten that?

Alice giggled and pecked my cheek. "Don't worry; we haven't been here for a good while."

I rested my head on her shoulder and pulled her close, hugging her tightly. She sighed and snuggled into me, gently pushing me down to the soft patch of grass beneath us. Funnily enough, we were beneath a tree now, almost like we had been not too long ago.

"So you're okay with going to see a vampire movie?" I asked as she positioned herself on top of me, her forehead pressed against mine.

Alice rolled her eyes. "I don't mind it, really. I think I'll enjoy making fun of the movie more than actually watching it, but if you wanted to watch it, I'd be quiet until it was done. Then again, if it's the lesbian one, I think I might enjoy watching a few scenes." She grinned sultrily at me and pressed her lips to mine. "If you know what I mean."

"I would have thought that you'd get jealous from that type of thing," I grunted.

"Why would I be jealous? It's not like it's someone trying to flirt with you or anything of that effect, silly Bella. Besides, if we're both involved in some way, like if it's a scene that we're watching or a picture we're looking at, I don't mind in the slightest. I would only get jealous if someone who was single was trying to flirt with you."

"Oh," I murmured. "So…would you be okay with, you know…?" I wasn't being serious about it, of course, since I knew that Alice would never really allow it. I was only a bit curious is all. We'd never really gotten to talk about stuff like that in private before.

She narrowed her eyes into slits. "Are you insinuating that you want to kiss another girl aside from me?"

"W-w-what? N-no, no, not at all," I stammered. "You know I would never che-" She cut me off with another, quicker kiss, giggling against my lips. I frowned, wondering what there was to be laughing about concerning cheating. "Why are you laughing?"

"I was only joking, Bella," she replied, pulling her lips away. "In all honesty, I know you would never openly cheat on me. You would be far too overcome with grief to ever consider it. And just so you're aware, a light kiss on the lips or a show of open friendliness with someone trustworthy isn't a bad thing. I've done it with Amara, Rose and Esme before and it never caused a problem, so I wouldn't be jealous if you did it with one of them."

"Er…"

"To be brutally honest, when Amara said that she and I had "experimented", she wasn't lying about it," Alice admitted, smiling sheepishly at me.

I suppose I shouldn't have been as surprised by that as I was. Not that it bothered me too much, since the idea of those two together was hot as hell.

"So you mean that you two…?"

"Had sex," she replied, nodding. "That doesn't upset you, does it? It was a long time ago, shortly after Amara had first joined the family and before I'd started having visions of you. We were both a little bi-curious at that point in time. I knew she and Jasper were meant to be together, but I couldn't help myself when she started flirting with me. In the end, we experienced it several times. I ended up confessing to Jasper, but he was humble about it and didn't care too much."

She bit her lip as if she weren't sure how I'd react to that. I stared blankly at her.

"Does it upset you?" she asked tentatively.

I rolled my eyes and pulled her closer to me. "Of course not, Alice. It didn't bother me when Amara teased it and it doesn't bother me now that you confirmed it. I don't blame you, for one thing, since Amara's, well, a _babe_. And I wasn't even alive back then, so it wasn't cheating or anything like that. So no, it doesn't bother me. I think it's pretty hot, truthfully."

Alice let out a musical laugh. "That's good to know. You're right, she is a babe. She's everything that any woman—and man, I suppose—would want. She's smart, she's tall, she's sexy and sultry, she's got an attitude and she's a total badass." She paused and snuggled into me, letting out a brisk sigh. "I'm kind of jealous of her, actually…"

I sputtered. "You're jealous of Amara? Why?"

Alice grimaced. "Because she's this amazingly badass person who's been through a lot of torment, yet it's made her stronger because of it. She doesn't whine or cry when she fucks up, though she does get upset with herself. Still, she's so much more…mature about things. Then there's me…"

"Stop that, Alice. You're an amazing person. You are just as badass as Amara, if not more so, in every way possible and nothing will ever change that," I stated, cupping her cheeks. Alice looked into my eyes for a moment before her usual smirk appeared and she kissed me lovingly a few times, purring against my body in delight.

"I know that," she giggled. "I was just curious as to what your response would be."

I rolled my eyes. "You're a stinker."

She grinned and rubbed our noses together. "Yup, but I'm_ your_ stinker."

"True."

We laid there beneath the shadow of the tree, cuddling for a long while, neither of us talking. The only noises aside from a few chirping birds and the wind was Alice's purring as we cuddled, nuzzling into one another for what seemed like hours. We didn't care, though because we were both more than comfortable just holding each other in silence. I sighed contently and buried my nose into her hair as she did the same to me. This was true bliss. Peace.

'This is nice," I breathed, brushing my lips against her silky locks.

"Mmhmm," Alice mumbled, nuzzling into me. Then she stopped and bit her lip. "Bella?"

I turned so that I was facing her. "Yes?"

"Are you sure you're alright with what happened earlier?" she asked tentatively.

"You mean the kissing?" She nodded. "Of course I am. I liked it, Alice. I was a little worried you were going to keep going without letting me breathe, but other than that, I liked it. I am curious, though…do you…do you think that this tension thing will affect me, too?"

Alice considered this for a moment. "I don't know, honestly. It's possible, since you are mated to me and since you're becoming a vampire. It might be more related to your maternal instincts than anything, so I'd say yes, you will feel…urges. If you do, you can talk to Esme about it. She would be more than willing to help, we both know that."

"Y-yeah, I know," I muttered.

"Don't be nervous about it, Bella. It's a normal thing for vampires," Alice said, pecking my cheek lovingly.

I nodded. Then a thought crossed my mind. "Hey Alice?"

"Yes?" she asked.

"Have you ever had any other experiences aside from Amara?" I asked.

Alice bit her lip. "I…yes. Two others," she admitted.

That surprised me. "Really?" I asked. She nodded, not quite looking at me. "How come you never mentioned that before?" I wasn't upset about it. I might be a little jealous, maybe, but there was no point in being upset since it was obviously before I came into her life. It might have even been before I was even born for that matter.

She sighed. "I didn't want to make you angry," she admitted. "I guess it is a little silly since it was before you were born. I just…I don't know. I try not to think about my past experiences because I want to think about us and us only."

"I understand," I said, kissing her cheek. "Do you mind me asking who?"

"One of them was a Denali sister. Her name is Kate. She's gay like we are," Alice replied, smiling a little. "She's a pretty fun girl, I must admit. We met shortly after I became a Cullen and we both became good friends. We had our experience a few months later and it was nice. We didn't quite click, though, so we decided to remain friends. I haven't seen her for a while now, which kinda stinks. I want to visit her soon, maybe after our junior year is over."

"That'd be cool. I'd like to meet her and her family."

"They're a good bunch," Alice giggled. "They call themselves our cousins because they're vegetarian vampires like us and because of how close they are to our family. The leader, Tanya, is amazingly beautiful and a close friend of Carlisle and Esme. I think you'd like them."

I smiled. She might be beautiful, but no matter how beautiful she was, she would never be able to hold a candle to my Alice.

"And the other person?" I inquired.

Alice's face fell slightly. "That was…much longer ago. It was before I became a Cullen, before I'd even met Jasper. It was a few years after I woke up alone and…" Her voice trailed off as she stared down at the ground, not looking at me. "My first experience was a mistake. I regret it whenever I happen to think about it. I can't take it back, though."

I cupped her cheeks. "Alice…"

"It can't be helped," she said. "I was manipulated and it cost me. But that's the past."

There was definitely a story there, but it was obvious that she didn't want to think about it. She'd never told me much about her time before joining the Cullens. I wonder what had happened to her around that time. I was curious, yet I was also afraid to push. I figured that, if anything, Alice would tell me more about her past life when she felt comfortable with enough.

"You're curious, aren't you?" she asked, looking into my eyes. "I can see that you're trying to decide whether to ask me about my past or not. You're hesitating and you keep changing your mind on it, however."

I grimaced. Of course she would see that. Dang it. "Well, yeah, I didn't want to bother you."

She rolled her eyes. "Bella, you know you can ask me anything you want to, personal or not."

I thought about it. I knew so little about her, and now I had the chance to get a bit more information. I considered it, but then I realized that I wanted something like that to be a special moment for us. So I smiled and shook my head, deciding against it for now.

"I want that to be during a time when we're alone without having to worry about school or life or sadistic vampires or any of that shit. Maybe we should go on vacation at some point, just you and me. What do you think?" I asked.

She beamed at me. "I like that idea a lot," she replied. "There are so many places we could go with each other. Ooh, like Africa! Or South America! Or Asia! Or-"

"Whoa there, slow down girl!" I chuckled. Alice was bouncing excitedly on top of me, which caused a serious of different sensations to jump across my brain at once. "A-Alice, s-s-stop please…" I said breathlessly, fighting down the swarm of urges. Alice noticed this and stopped instantly, rolling off of me so that she was lying on my side.

"Sorry," she murmured, giving me a sheepish grin. "I couldn't help myself."

"It's fine," I breathed. "I'm just…not used to that sort of thing."

Alice nodded in understanding and pulled me into her arms. I smiled and happily snuggled back into her, washing away any unnecessary thoughts. I rested my head beneath her chin as she rubbed the top of my head with her nose, sighing contently.

"May I ask you something?" Alice murmured against my skull.

"Of course," I replied, nuzzling into her.

"Have you ever had an experience before?" she asked.

My heart skipped a beat. Why hadn't I seen that one coming? Crap. I knew I'd have to bring this up eventually, but I was still a little uneasy about admitting that I had slept with someone else before. Well, two people. And I didn't want to think about the other. I shuddered at the memory and thrust it away immediately, not wanting to go back to that moment in my life. Alice, unfortunately, both heard and felt it.

"Bella? Love, you're shivering. Are you cold?" Alice asked.

"No," I replied, shaking my head furiously. "I'm just thinking to myself."

"Do you mind sharing?" she inquired, kissing my forehead.

I sighed and chewed on my bottom lip. "Yes," I replied.

"Yes what?"

"Yes, I've…slept with someone before," I admitted, my voice growing into a whisper. I cringed when Alice's body went rigid, fearing the worst for her reaction. Then she relaxed and started to run her fingers through my hair, gently massaging my scalp. I was surprised; since I figured she would be growling and demanding to know who it was.

"Who was it?" she asked.

"Her name was Vanessa Stewartson," I replied, not looking at her face. "It was back when I was still living in Arizona with my foster parents. It…it was stupid. I shouldn't have done what I did, but I was young and confused and…I thought that she cared for me, but I don't think she did. I don't know what was going through her head half the time, truthfully."

I felt Alice's head nod. "I see. You regret your experience with her."

"Yeah," I murmured. I dared to look up at her face, worried about what was going through her head right now. Alice was scowling, staring off at anything but me. She noticed that I was looking at her and sighed before pressing her lips to mine.

"I'm not mad at you, Bella," Alice said, smiling softly at me. "Though I will most likely kill this Vanessa girl should I ever meet her."

I gaped at her. "W-what? Alice!"

She pouted. "What? Can you blame me? She slept with my mate!"

"Alice, no, that's not okay. Look, I don't have any feelings for her anymore, but killing her for that reason is just stupid. Besides, what if I reacted that way and wanted to kill Amara?" I asked, lifting an eyebrow. Not that I would. I loved Amara to pieces.

As if she'd read my mind, she rolled her eyes. "You wouldn't kill Amara. You and I both know that you love her and that she loves you. She loves you a lot, actually, and I know that, had it been her in that other girl's place, I'd be much mellower about it. Because let's face it, Amara's sexy as hell. And I know and trust her. This other girl, I don't know, I don't trust and I sure as hell don't like, especially if she was attractive enough to get you to be with her."

"That was a long time ago, Alice! Besides, I don't even know if she's still alive. Last I saw her house had burned down and there was no sign of her. C'mon, Ali. You can't be serious about wanting to kill someone you've never met, can you?" I asked, puffing out my bottom lip.

Alice grimaced and stared at me for a moment before sighing and shaking her head.

"You're right, I wouldn't," she admitted. "You know how I am, Bells. I get jealous easily."

"You weren't particularly jealous when you mentioned me kissing another girl earlier," I pointed out, quirking an eyebrow at her.

She gave me a sheepish smile. "If I know and like that girl and I can watch, then no. But if I don't know and dislike her or if she says that I can't watch, then she can go to hell. That's just how I see it, of course."

I shook my head in exasperation. "You are a strange little vampire, you know that?"

"But I'm still awesome," Alice said matter-of-factly, grinning smugly at me.

I rolled my eyes at her, but I wasn't about to disagree. Not that she needed to know that, since she had a big enough ego as it was. Alice giggled and kissed me again, allowing her tongue to trace across my lips. I moaned and opened my mouth, beckoning her inside with my tongue, an invitation she gladly accepted, slipping her cool tongue into my mouth not even a second later.

We moaned in unison as our tongues battled each other for control of my mouth, which hers won fairly quickly. I didn't care, I was happy to let her be the one in control. Come to think of it, I really did like her being the one in control whenever we kissed. Sometimes I wanted to be the one in that position, but it felt weird considering the fact that I was the human in our relationship.

Alice kissed me sweetly and passionately for a few minutes before removing her tongue, giving me the chance to catch my breath. Her lips remained next to mine, smiling at me as we pressed our foreheads together.

Alice licked her lips and pressed a kiss to the tip of my nose. "So, tell me. Was there anyone else aside from this Vanessa girl?" she asked.

I gulped and tried to turn away from her, but she cupped my cheeks to keep my head in place.

"Bella…" Alice said, gently kissing my chin, then both cheeks. "You can tell me."

I gave her a pleading look. "I don't…I don't want to t-talk about that. I don't even want to think about it, Alice," I whispered. She started rubbing my cheeks tenderly, gently laying kisses everywhere on my face. She did this for a minute and a half before ending on my lips, letting her lips linger. I sighed. She wasn't going to like this one bit.

"You know you can tell me anything," Alice cooed.

"You'll be angry," I mumbled.

She furrowed her brow at me. "Who…?" Her eyes glazed over, likely being hit by a vision of me telling her. This wasn't going to be pretty. Alice's eyes went pitch black the second her vision stopped. They gazed back into me, emotion pulsing through them. I hugged myself in comfort as she jolted to her feet, curling back her upper lip in fury.

"No," she hissed. "No, no, NO."

I clamped my eyes shut and nodded briskly. "I-I'm s-s-sorry, Alice. I…I couldn't…"

"NO!" she roared, flailing her arms in the air. "Do NOT tell me it was HER!"

I flinched at her tone and squeezed myself as she let out a load, guttural snarl that echoed throughout the area. The birds flew away, squawking in terror and I could imagine every other creature nearby doing the same. I remained silent and in place, the only sound I could hear now aside from my heartbeat was the sound of Alice's ragged breathing.

I looked at her. She was standing several feet away, her body trembling and her hands curled into tight fists as she glared into the distance. Suddenly she whipped her left arm outwards and demolished the trunk of the tree next to her, causing it to crash to the ground. She then whipped her head around, coal black eyes boring into me. I shuddered, terrified of her for the first time in quite a while. Slowly she sauntered over to me, her gaze never once leaving.

Alice stopped a few inches from me, leaning downwards. "_Victoria_," she spat. I nodded, flinching back when I saw her hand raise. She noticed this and stopped, staring down at me confusedly for a moment. Slowly, recognition dawned on her. "You're…afraid of me…"

She stood up and closed her eyes, taking in several deep breaths. Three minutes or so of nothing but breathing later, she reopened her eyes. Her eyes were thankfully a dark butterscotch color and I was glad to see most of her body wasn't as tense as it had been. Alice sighed and laid down next to me, pulling me into her arms once again.

"I'm sorry," she murmured, kissing my cheek. "I don't mean to scare you, Bella. You know I would never, _ever _hurt you, but I understand why you would be fearful."

"I know you wouldn't hurt me," I mumbled, burying my face in her neck. "I didn't want to upset you, though. That's why I didn't want to talk about it."

She pursed her lips and nodded. "Okay, I won't bring it up again. Not until you're ready. And when I'm ready. I don't think I could take it right now, knowing it." She paused and gently kissed me. "I can, however, promise you that I will kill her. I will tear her limb from limb myself, no matter what it takes. I will make her suffer for what she's done to you, Bella. You have my honest to God word on that."

I gave her a small smile. "I believe you, Alice."

"Good," Alice said, kissing me again. She glanced up at the sky. "Hm, I think it would be best if we get home soon. Esme is starting to worry about us for a variety of different reasons, and we do have school tomorrow. And it would seem that Eric has asked Katie if she would be willing to have some sort of three-way with us, to which she asked if he had asked us first." She smirked and scooped me into her arms, nuzzling into the top of my head again.

"What time is it?" I asked, looking up. It was a bit darker out, but I couldn't tell where the sun was because of the clouds in the sky.

"It is…" She paused and cocked her head to the side. "Almost seven. Wow, we've been out here for a long time. I'm surprised."

"Time flies when you're cuddling you're awesome girlfriend," I pointed out, kissing her cheek.

Alice grinned at me as she started to trot in the direction we'd come from, jumping over the tree she'd knocked down.

"Not when you have no sense of time," she giggled, picking her pace up. "Close your eyes, sweetheart. It'll be a few before we're home." I did as she told me and clamped my eyes shut as I buried my face into the crook of her neck. Alice waited for me to do so before speeding off through the forest at a speed that made my stomach bounce around. Alice heard my grumble and laughed. "Don't worry love, you'll get used to this once you're a vampire."

"I hope so," I grumbled against her granite skin.

Give or take, it wasn't until about five minutes later that Alice slowed her pace down. When her pace became a normal walk, I peered up from her neck and saw the house directly in front of us, Esme standing in the doorway, beaming. I swear that woman was always happy whenever she saw us, even if we hadn't been gone that long. It was endearing, too.

"Hello girls!" Esme greeted, pulling us into her trademark Esme hug. Which was rather odd considering the fact that I was still being carried bridal style by Alice, but Esme didn't seem to mind too much.

"Carlisle is still at work?" Alice asked.

She nodded and released us, beckoning us inside. "Yes, he'll be home a bit later tonight. They needed him to replace a sick doctor."

"Ah," Alice replied, finally setting me down. I rolled my eyes at her as she grinned cheekily at me before pressing her lips to mine. There was a bit of snickering from the couch. The others, of course, were all sitting around doing their own thing.

"How come you never carry me like that?" Amara asked Jasper, giving him a frown.

Jasper merely grinned at her, not giving her a response. I noticed Emmett was snapping his fingers and dancing around to a song playing on a stereo that I didn't recognize to the side, bobbing around like he didn't have a care in the world. I had to say, seeing someone his size dancing like that was perhaps the most laughable sight in the world.

"I've seen worse," Edward snorted from the couch.

Emmett guffawed and turned the volume up so that the song was now blasting fairly loudly. I was able to recognize the artist as a band called Good Charlotte, but I didn't know the song. I walked with Alice to sit down on the couch as Emmett started dancing in the middle of the living room, striking poses and whatnot for added effect. Everyone laughed at the display, even Rosalie who was shaking her head at her mate's antics.

The lyrics to the song were strange.

_I rock a law suit when I'm going to court,_

_A white suit when I'm getting divorced,__  
__A black suit at the funeral home,__  
__And my birthday suit when I'm home alone…_

The second those words left the singer's mouth, Emmett grinned.

"Emmett, no!" Alice screamed.

I furrowed my brow in confusion when suddenly Emmett did the unthinkable. He tore his clothes off and tossed them to the ground. I felt the involuntary need to vomit at the sight and turned away in disgust, Alice doing the same. The others reacted differently, Amara, Rosalie and Jasper all guffawing while Edward groaned and Esme shouted at him.

"Put your clothes back on, young man!" Esme yelled.

"Carlisle needs to see this shit!" Amara laughed, blurring up the stairs. Seconds later she returned with a video camera and started _recording_ Emmett's dancing. "Atta boy, Em! Show em your best moves!"

I dared to turn, making sure to focus on his upper body. I did not need to see anything else. He was doing outrageously random dancing moves that didn't even fit the song that was playing, but apparently he didn't care much about that.

"Emmett, put your stinking clothes back on!" Alice whined. "Nobody wants to see that."

Rosalie laughed. "Speak for yourself, shortie."

Alice groaned and pulled me into her arms. Esme had given up on getting her deranged son to put his clothes back on and sat pinching the bridge of her nose, clearly trying not to burst into laughter at the sight. She was failing miserably at it, naturally. I grumbled to myself, wondering when this madness would end. Alice was obviously on the same wavelength as I was.

"Go! Go! Go!" Amara chanted, egging Emmett on as he sped his dancing up a bit. I could tell that Jasper was influencing Emmett with his gift, adding to the mood of the moment. Rosalie was laughing wildly at the sight while Edward looked away, a disgruntled look on his face. Emmett was laughing as he danced, doing some kind of demented ballerina spin.

"Careful Em, otherwise that iguana of yours might end up breaking the TV," Rosalie shouted.

I cupped my mouth as the horrible images started forming. "Oh God, I'm gonna be sick."

Alice nodded in agreement and scooped me into her arms before speeding up the stairs, the sounds of our family member's laughter ringing through the house. Alice growled and slammed the door to our room roughly, setting me gently down on our bed and curling into me. I stuck my tongue out in disgust at what was going on downstairs, which Alice giggled at.

"Here, let me kiss all those nasty Emmett thoughts away," Alice cooed, speedily pressing her lips to mine in a heated kiss. I wasn't about to complain, that was for sure. I smiled against her lips and started thrumming my fingers through her hair. She started to purr happily at the feeling and closed her eyes as my fingers and her lips synced together in rhythm. Kissing Alice was much better than being forced to watch Emmett dance while naked. Now if Rosalie had done it…

"She wouldn't have," Alice interjected. I frowned and looked at her curiously. She giggled and tapped her forehead. "I saw you asking about Rosalie dancing. She wouldn't have. She's too much of an uptight asshole to ever do that sort of thing unless you've been pouring alcohol into her system. Alcohol is probably the only human drink that can affect us, after all."

"Oh," I muttered, pouting. "Darn."

Alice laughed musically. "I know, I was hoping she'd join in, but apparently she's afraid that her naked body will give us some kind of super orgasm or something like that. I don't know, but it doesn't matter." She winked. "I'll get her eventually. I just have to plan it out."

I grinned at her. "So are we set on going to the movies tomorrow?"

"Of course," she replied, giving me another kiss. "I wish it was just the two of us, but I'm glad for the chance to spend some quality time with you without having to deal with our irritating brothers and sisters. Besides, we can always go on a proper date at some point, too. I would love to be able to treat you like I've been wanting to."

"You…you planned something out?" I asked.

"Well yes, silly. I've been planning things out for quite some time now," she giggled, winking at me. "I'm just waiting for the right opportunity to act out my plans. So far we've had to deal with school and the wolves and all this other drama. I think that once we're past school, we can finally get down to business. Don't worry, Bella. It's nothing too out of this world. And I know you'll just love what I have in store for you. I've seen it."

I shuddered with anticipation at whatever she had planned for me. School was almost over, which meant I'd have all the time I wanted to spend time with her. I could hardly wait. But first off, I had a movie date to look forward to. I just hoped that nothing bad would come of it.

**A/N: Weird little semi-fluffy chapter, don't you think? I have to admit, writing in ****Emmett's strip dancing was hilarious. I got the idea from a friend of mine, so kudos to her for giving me the entertaining idea. ;) Maybe it wasn't as funny as it could have been, but it definitely helped add a nice finish for the chapter. And it's a nice way to showcase that the following few chapters will be more lighthearted. **

**Well, the fluff chapters have begin. Expect a couple of them before we slip back into the story. I know some of you will be a bit disappointed by that, but hey, Bella and Alice need some R&R with each other without having to fight off smelly werewolves or psycho vampires, don't you agree?**

**As far as the next chapter goes...well...I don't know. We'll see.**

**Oh, side note. Whoo! This marks my sixtieth chapter! And look at the reviews. Wow. So much love. Thank you all so much. This story is beginning it's ascent towards it's final stages, but it won't be done with even after it's complete. I promise you that. ;) **

**And I am dreadfully sorry for such a late post. :( I hope I haven't lost too many of you because of that. Life has been hectic as of late. I will try to get back into the swing of things.**


	62. Movies

**Disclaimer: I don't claim anything belonging to Twilight, I'm merely borrowing Meyer's characters. I do own my own characters and original ideas. **

**Movies**

"So are you sure that you want to see this movie?" Alice asked.

We were sitting in the cafeteria, holding hands at our usual table with the others, sans Edward who had elected to go home because he was "sick", which was just an excuse for him to leave and hunt. Amara and Jasper were the only ones sitting at our table since both Rosalie and Emmett had gone off to Lord knows where, likely for some private time. I mentally cringed at the thought of whatever it was those two were really doing. Probably in some broom closet. Ew.

"Why not?" I asked, giving her a quizzical look and laying my head on her right shoulder. She laid her head upon mine, amber eyes smoldering as always.

"I'm just making sure. There are other movies playing tonight that we can go see, but if this is the one that you want to watch, I'll gladly watch it," Alice replied, kissing the top of my head.

I smiled, glad that she was okay with it. I'd talked with Eric and the others earlier today, both in class and before it, about the time, location and how much money to bring. We agreed that we would all meet up outside the theater at four twenty, which would give us all time to buy the tickets, get snacks—except Alice, who wouldn't eat—and find good seats. I couldn't lie, I was extremely excited. This was my first outing with friends and Alice alone.

"You'd better make sure she doesn't cheat and use her visions to watch the movie ahead of time, Bella," Amara snickered, twirling her fork around in her uneaten mashed potatoes. "It's a bitch when she does that and decides to be cute and call out random scenes. Annoying, too."

Alice scoffed. "That was one time and one time only, Amara."

"I seem to recall it being quite a few times," Jasper chuckled.

"Shut up!" Alice whined. "I won't look ahead to see what happens this time, I promise."

"Uh huh," the both snickered together, causing Alice to growl at them.

"Assholes," she grumbled under her breath. "You believe me, don't you Bella?"

I giggled and kissed her nose. "Of course I do, because if you ruin the movie, I'll shave those little silky locks of yours off." Alice's eyes widened with mortification. I rolled my eyes. "You know I'd never do that to you, Alice. I love your hair too much."

"Don't joke about that," she grunted. "You're giving Amara ideas." I glanced at Amara, who sneered joyously, winking at me in thanks. I couldn't resist giggling.

"If she does, you'll see it coming and you can just drag her shopping as payback," I pointed out, wiping the sneer clean off of Amara's flawless face. Jasper started guffawing as Amara shrank back into her seat and Alice's lips curled into a devilish grin.

"She has to go shopping with me anyways before prom," Alice stated, giggling evilly. "And so are you and Rose. I know that you don't mind it and I have no intention of tormenting you, but Rosalie won't be too lucky, nor will you Amara. And let's not forget that Jasper and Emmett have to go too to get some good tuxedos. Can't have you looking like bums, now can we?"

Jasper's lips twitched. "I suppose not, no."

"I don't need a stinking dress," Amara groaned. "They don't make any that suit my size, anyways. And they _never_ let my belly button show, which sucks royally. So really, I can't think of anything appealing about dresses. They're nothing but tight, easily dirtied rags."

"Which you wore on your wedding night," Alice pointed out. "And if I recall correctly, your belly button showed _and_ you actually enjoyed wearing it. We can find a dress that fits your style, Ama; you just have to be willing to try a few out." Her eyes twinkled as she smiled. "A few hundred or so, that is. You're in need of some non-dress clothes, my sweet sister."

Amara crinkled her nose in disgust and stuck her tongue out petulantly at Alice before standing and storming off in a huff. Jasper chuckled for a moment before bowing and taking their plates and walking off after her, leaving just Alice and I. The two of us just cracked up about the whole thing for a good few minutes, slowly easing off and going back to our cuddling.

"I'm a little excited for tonight," I commented.

Alice giggled. "I'll say. I saw you bouncing in your seat during your classes."

"Yeah, that was a little embarrassing," I mumbled. The teacher had caught me and got the wrong idea about why I was so excited. Thankfully Angela and Eric came to my rescue; otherwise I would have been made the spectacle of the class.

"Don't worry, I would have come to your rescue," Alice cooed, kissing my cheek. "No mean old teacher will make fun of my sweet Bella."

"That's good to know," I murmured, nuzzling into her. "The bell's going to ring soon, isn't it?"

"Yup," she replied. Her lips curled into a grin. "Unless you'd rather ditch with me."

I bit my lip. "Isn't it a bad thing to keep ditching school, Alice? I mean, I know Esme and Carlisle wouldn't care much, but won't the teachers get all pissy since this is my first year here and I keep ditching and whatnot?"

Alice rolled her eyes. "Please, the teachers won't care. They're used to us randomly ditching at random points during the school year. Our grades are more than enough of a reason for them not to care, especially since their school overall increased once we got here. I'd say they owe us a couple ditches from now and again, wouldn't you?"

"I guess so."

"Well I know so. And I happen to be awesome, so there, problem solved," she said with a grin.

I laughed quietly as we both stood up and grabbed our stuff. I glanced at the table where the others were and smiled at them when they looked my way. Angela smiled back while the other three gave us curt waves. Then Alice and I walked out of the cafeteria holding hands to the parking lot, where Rosalie, Emmett, Amara and Jasper were all chatting amongst themselves.

"Going somewhere?" Rosalie asked when we'd walked up to them.

"The same place as you," Alice replied with a smile.

"Great minds think alike," Emmett chuckled.

"Or in your case, stupid minds latch on to great minds and their ideas," Amara snorted.

Emmett rolled his eyes. "Shut up, fire-crotch, I'm a lot smarter than you think."

"I find that hard to believe," snickered Edward. "I can hear your thoughts, Emmett. I know where your head is at whenever I'm around you. Most of the time, I'm fairly certain Rosalie would be thoroughly displeased with you. But I won't say anything on it."

Rosalie whipped her head around to glare at Emmett while he shot a glare at Edward, who laughed and got into Amara's car. Amara and Jasper snickered in unison as they both entered as well. Amara flipped Emmett and Rosalie off and blew both Alice and I a kiss before speeding off toward the house, kicking up a bit of dust in her wake.

"I love that girl," Alice giggled. She looped her fingers around mine and walked me over to Emmett's jeep, opening the door for me. "Your carriage awaits, my dear."

I laughed. "Some carriage this is."

We both got in and waited Emmett and Rosalie to do so. Rosalie was giving Emmett the "you'd better fess up or you're fucked" glare while he sheepishly rubbed his neck and speedily jumped into the driver's seat. Rosalie stood there, glowering with her hands on her hips, then sighed and got in silently, not even bothering to look at Emmett as he started his jeep and drove us home.

Alice and I both covered our mouths to prevent us from bursting into laughter at the comical look on Emmett's face as he drove. He tried to get Rosalie to look at him, but she refused and kept her attention out the window. I could see a smirk forming on her lips, though she kept it well hidden. It was hard not to laugh, especially with Emmett in the same vehicle.

It didn't take us long to reach home. Esme was outside, planting some trees. She smiled at us as we exited Emmett's jeep, tsk-ing quietly at our early departure from school. Alice and I both walked up to our room and plopped down on our bed to cuddle. We had a few hours before we needed to worry about getting ready, which wouldn't take long anyways. So we spent the next few hours cuddling and kissing, only breaking apart for me to deal with my human moment and for me to eat a sandwich that Esme made for me.

At about three forty, Alice and I both started getting ready. For once Alice was planning on wearing casual clothes rather than the designer attires she normally wore. Myself, I was merely wearing what I was used to. Ten minutes later we were fully dressed and ready to go, Alice bouncing up and down excitedly. Even I was bouncing around. We were both excited.

"I can't wait," I exclaimed. "My first date with the girl of my dreams."

Alice giggled and pulled me into her arms. "You're still as corny as ever, Belly-Bear." She pressed her lips to mine, not even giving me the chance to question her new nickname. I didn't care, though. She could call me whatever she wanted to.

"Are you ready?" I asked.

"Yes ma'am," she replied, giving me another kiss before leading me downstairs.

"Do you two think you could keep your minds clean for a few minutes?" Edward asked, grimacing as we passed him by. He was sitting at his piano, silently playing away until we entered the room.

Alice laughed mockingly. "What's wrong, big brother? Not liking what I have planned for my mate at some point in the future?"

Edward's grimace deepened. "Stop that, seriously. I may be single and a male, but that doesn't mean I want to see that, unlike Emmett."

"Uh huh, sure you don't," Alice giggled. "Liar."

"What thoughts is he talking about?" I asked, giving her a curious look. Alice merely winked and kissed my cheek. I crossed my arms and scowled. "Fine, be that way. Then_ I_ won't spoil what I have planned for you once school finishes up."

Alice's smug smile faltered and she furrowed her brow, obviously trying to see for herself. The thing was, I hadn't decided on anything yet, so therefore there was nothing to see. I hadn't even decided on trying to decide. Man, that shit was confusing sometimes. After a few minutes, Alice gave up, scowling petulantly at the fact that she couldn't see anything.

"I'm still not telling you," Alice grumbled under her breath.

"Whatever," I shrugged. "Are we ready?"

She nodded curtly. "Yeah, we're ready." She paused for a moment. "The others are getting ready, too. They'll likely be there soon, so we should get going."

It didn't take long for her to go back to being hyper and cheerful, bouncing on the balls of her feet as we said our brief goodbyes to our other family members. Once we'd done that, Alice ran out to bring my car out of the garage, taking me by surprise. Normally we'd be taking her car, so did that mean she was going to let me drive?

Alice laughed as she hopped out of the driver's seat. "Silly Bella, of course that means you can drive. It is your car, after all."

I let out a brief squeal of delight, though I quickly clamped my mouth shut and hurriedly got in the car. Alice giggled and was inside in a flash, smiling at me as I grinned and turned my baby on, reveling in the way it purred to life. It reminded me of my Alice. We were soon barreling out of the driveway toward our destination. Ironically, I didn't know where that was.

"Er, Alice?" I started, giving her a tentative glance.

Alice shook her head amusedly. "Take your third left, then your second right and keep going straight, then another left and we'll be there," she replied.

"Thanks," I sighed.

"What would you ever do without me, my dear Bella?" Alice chuckled.

I gulped, thinking of a myriad of different things, none of them good. I remained silent about it, though, because I knew those things could never happen. There was no reason to worry. Besides, she was only joking anyways. Once I'd pushed those thoughts out of my head, the brief bit of anxiety that I'd felt dissolved into nothingness as we neared our destination.

Once I'd pulled in and parked, Alice giddily led me to where the others were talking. Angela was the first to notice us and waved us over to join with the others.

"Hi Bella, Alice," Angela greeted.

"Glad you girls could make it," Ben said, grinning.

"Are you to ready to see some hot ass lesbian action?" Katie asked, lifting an eyebrow.

Alice and I both grinned. We didn't need to see a movie for that. The others caught on to that real quickly. Angela giggled while Katie smirked. Both Ben and Eric looked like they wanted a sample of it for themselves, but we weren't about to give them that anytime soon. If anything, they needed to work for it.

"Aw, c'mon, just one smooch?" Eric asked. We shook our heads, still smiling. He pouted, then looked to Katie, almost begging for her to jump in. Katie snickered and shrugged nonchalantly, winking at both Alice and I, which only further dismayed poor Eric.

"Sorry boys, maybe some other time," Alice crooned, her eyes swimming with mirth.

I chuckled as we all started walking toward the movie theater, Katie happily leading the way with Ben and Eric chattering in the back. Katie and Angela bought our tickets while Eric and Ben decided to go and grab the snacks. Alice, of course, didn't want anything to eat and I helped by saying that she had ate before we arrived. They didn't seem to believe us, but no one argued.

It wasn't until about thirty minutes later—it would have taken less time, but Ben wanted to play some of the arcade games, so he started playing. Angela soon joined in and eventually all of us were playing. I had forgotten how fun and addicting those games were, so it was easy for us to lose track of time for a good half an hour—we were in the theater where the movie was playing bickering over where to sit.

"The closer it is, the better!" Katie argued.

"I want to sit further away. Being too close hurts my eyes," Angela interjected softly.

"Sorry Katie, but I'm with Angela on this one," I said.

"Same here," Alice sang.

"Gotta go with my girl," Ben said, shrugging.

Katie huffed. "You guys stink!"

Alice and I giggled, but chose not to comment as we all chose our seats. In the end we decided to sit in the very back. Alice sat nearest to the exit, followed by myself, Katie, Angela, Ben and then Eric, who had his legs resting on the seat in front of him. We were all by ourselves in the theater since the movie didn't start for a good forty five minutes, so everyone started talking, save for Alice and I who just held each other's hands in silence.

I suddenly felt a very strange feeling in my lower body, a pain of some sort. A part of my brain screamed at me that it was my time of the month, but then I realized that it would be a different pain if it were. No, this was…different. It was weird and uncomfortable, so I decided to go to the bathroom, thinking that was likely the problem.

"I'll be right back guys," I said, standing up. Alice looked at me worriedly and silently asked if I wanted her to go with me. I shook my head and kissed her cheek. "I'll be fine, Ali."

"Oh, hang on Bella, I'll go with you," Katie said, standing up.

I smiled and nodded and walked off with Katie, trying to ignore the glare that Alice was shooting at the bouncy redhead for tagging along with me. I hoped she wouldn't do anything too drastic. I knew Katie would never do anything to me. She was too nice for that.

Once we were in the bathroom, I went into one of the stalls and took care of business. The odd feelings were gone now and I sighed to myself as I exited and washed my hands. Katie was looking at her reflection in the mirror, applying a shiny red lip gloss. I stared at her for a moment before she paused and smiled at me.

"You act like you've never seen a girl applying lip gloss before," she chuckled.

I blushed. "Sorry about that, I don't mean to stare."

"Don't sweat it, Bella. It's kind of flattering, actually," Katie admitted, continuing with her lip gloss. "You know, this is actually Eric's favorite lip gloss, mine too for that matter. It's dark red in color, but the flavor is actually chocolate, with a slight hint of strawberry. It's weird, but badass in the same, I think."

"Chocolate flavored, huh?" I asked. That reminded me of Alice. Out of curiosity, I closed my eyes and took a whiff of the air. I could kind of smell the scent of her lip gloss, which did in fact smell the way she'd described it. It almost smelled as good as Alice. Almost, but not quite. There really wasn't anything that could compare to how breathtakingly good Alice smelled.

"Yup," she chortled, finishing up. She blew herself a kiss in the mirror and turned to me, smiling.

I sniffed the air again and smiled. That lip gloss of hers smelled really good. And…was it my imagination or did Katie smell good too? I frowned and shook my head, feeling a little lightheaded all of a sudden. Weird.

"Are you okay?" Katie asked.

"I'm fine," I replied.

Katie nodded and lightly fluffed her hair. "Well, I guess we'd best get back. If we're gone for too long, Eric will start to think that we've gone off with each other without him around to watch. I'm guessing Alice wouldn't like that. She seems like the jealous type, which there's nothing wrong with. I know if I had someone as hot as you, I'd be the same way."

"Er…thanks," I said, blushing. My lips twitched as I appraised her and I felt those strange feelings again in the pit of my stomach. I winced and started feeling urges that I'd never felt before as I stared at Katie, who looked at me oddly.

"Are you sure—"

She wasn't able to finish because I flung myself forward and placed my hand around her mouth to silence her. My mind was swimming, but I paid no attention to thoughts that were screaming at me as I pressed my nose to the side of her head. I sniffed her hair, moaning at how amazingly good it smelled. Very, very good. These urges. So strange, so…powerful. Need. I must…

I breathed in again. Sweet. Rich. _Intoxicating_. Like flowers. No, _better_. Not mate. Not even close, but still good. Mm. I brushed my nose against her red locks. My tongue darted out once, tasting them. Tasted good, but not the same as scent. No.

My hand dropped. She gasped. Not out of fear. Surprise? I didn't know. I looked at her, into her green eyes. They smoldered. I could see…lust? My nostrils flared. A new scent. I didn't recognize it. It was…sweeter, yet different. It smelled good. Faint, but good. Was it…could that be? Arousal? I didn't know. I liked it. I stared into her eyes hungrily. She bit her lip. Her eyes darted to the door and back. She was fighting with herself.

Mate? Would she care? No, she said she didn't. This isn't cheating. Is it? Don't care. The need is too strong. It hurts. Can't fight…I can't….

"B-Bella, what are you…?" Katie's words stopped. No talking. I grabbed her shoulders. Gently, of course. No hurting Katie. She's a friend. I pushed her back to the wall. She gaped at me. Still no fear or anger. Just surprise with a hint of lust. That sweet scent, stronger. Good.

Those lips. Shiny. The scent, like chocolate. Mm. Mate. They smell like Alice. Have to taste. I leaned in, allowing my tongue to brush against her lips. So good, almost like Alice. I traced her bottom lip, then her top lip, then both. She moaned, closing her eyes. She liked this. I did too.

Everything was blurry. Hazed. My brain was in haze. Didn't care. I liked it. No worries. No care.

I licked my lips. Urges overpowering. Need strong. _Need_. I pressed my lips against hers. I kissed her, forgetting where I was. I forget who I was kissing. Alice. Tasted like Alice. Must be her. She tasted good. I wrapped my arms around her body. She was warmer than I remembered. No matter. I moved my lips ravenously. Moans. Lots of moans from both of us.

Time passed. My kissing slowed in rhythm. I felt a hand running through my hair. That felt really nice. My brain. The thoughts were slowing. The urges subsiding. I was starting to see clearer, to think clearer. Everything was blurry and hazy. My heart was pounding. Sweat. I was sweating. I could smell more, though. Wait. Alice can't sweat. This isn't Alice.

I blinked several times as the haze dissipated completely. I stared into the glazed over green eyes in front of me and immediately released the shoulders I'd been holding. This wasn't my girlfriend, this was my friend. Oh God. What have I done?

"Oh God…" I whispered, my mouth agape. "K-Katie…I'm…I'm so s-sorry…"

She stared at me for a few minutes with her jaw open. Then she closed it and shook her head, breathing in deep several times.

"Wow," she breathed. "Just…fuck." She was silent for a moment before walking up to me and hugging me. "I'm not gonna lie, Bella. That was _awesome_."

I gaped at her in surprise. "You're not mad?"

She shook her head. "Are you kidding me? After being kissed like that? Hell no. I don't…"

Katie stopped midsentence as her eyes bulged. She was staring behind me looking mortified. I had a very bad feeling I knew what that look meant. Slowly I turned and, as luck would have it, there was Alice, standing near the doorway with an emotionless face. Her eyes were black as she just stared emptily at the scene before her. Katie immediately released me and stepped back. I gulped as my body started to tremble. I was in for it now.

Alice closed the distance between us in a matter of seconds, her gaze piercing mine. I swallowed hard as she stood in front of me, her eyes gazing into mine with emotions I couldn't register.

"Alice," I croaked out.

She didn't respond. I felt sweat drop down my forehead to the floor.

"Alice," I tried again. "I…I didn't—"

She reached out and touched my lips with her finger. "Don't," she said. "It's okay."

"I'm sorry, Alice. I didn't mean to…wait, what?" I asked. Did she just say what I think she said?

Alice took in a deep breath. "It's okay. I'm not mad at you." She pressed her lips to mine. "I'm merely upset that you started without me."

"Huh?"

Alice's lips curled into a smile as she turned to look at Katie, who looked confused, but relieved.

"Did you enjoy that, Katie?" she asked, tilting her head to the side.

Katie nodded dumbly. "Yes. She's a very good kisser. You're lucky."

Alice beamed. "I know I am. Now…" She turned to look at me, smirking devilishly. "Would the two of you do me a big favor?" We both nodded in silence, neither of us able to believe how completely calm Alice was. "Kiss each other again, please?"

The bathroom was silent. Neither Katie nor I said anything. What the fuck?

"Are you serious?" I asked, unable to keep the disbelief out of my voice.

"Yes," she replied. "I want to watch. Just for a little while. Please?" She gave me a soft, yet tentative smile. I furrowed my brow, still confused and wanting to know what the deal was. Shouldn't she be trying to rip Katie into shreds right about now? Wasn't that what she would normally do? Then I recalled what I'd heard before about her urges. That's when it made sense.

I licked my lips and turned to Katie. "Are you okay with this?"

"Hell yeah," she replied. "Eric won't mind, though he'll be upset that he missed the action."

I nodded in understanding and shot a look at Alice, whose eyes were jet black, full of hunger. I didn't need any more justification and stepped up to Katie, who wrapped her arms around me, staring down at my lips. Her eyes flickered to mine and we both hesitated, silently making sure that the other was in fact okay with this. Seeing no reason not to, we crashed our lips together.

We kissed each other heatedly and passionately, Alice watching on as we did. It was strange, but knowing that Alice was okay with it allowed me to enjoy it more. Katie was a pretty damn good kisser, I'd give her that. It was a different feeling to kiss warm lips compared to the soft, icy lips of Alice. They didn't hold a candle to her lips, no offense toward Katie.

Eventually the pleasure was starting to override my senses and Katie and I ended up breaking apart, gasping for air and panting, our skin soaked in sweat. Alice was in front of me instantly, pressing her lips to mine with more passion than I'd ever felt before. It didn't last long, but she was smiling ear to ear when she broke away from me.

"Thank you," she purred. "That was delicious in _many_ ways."

I gave her a cheeky grin and glanced at Katie. "Thanks for that. You're pretty good."

Katie, for once, blushed. "You're pretty damn good yourself." She breathed in and out several times, running her fingers through her hair. "Man, I'm glad I didn't wear any makeup, otherwise I would've sweated the stuff off. Whoo."

"Sorry about that," I mumbled. Alice pressed her nose to my neck and breathed in several times, moaning quietly. I felt her tongue dart out several times to lap up a few beads of sweat, but thankfully Katie didn't notice that.

"No worries," Katie said. "It was worth it. I can't wait to see the look on Eric's face."

I gulped. "You sure he won't be mad?"

"Of course not," she chuckled. "He'll just be jealous that he missed out on the action. I mean, damn, who wouldn't want to see that?" She paused and gave Alice a sheepish smile. "Then again, seeing you two make out would've been much hotter. I'm just saying."

"We should probably get going," I murmured.

Alice kissed my neck several times before pulling away and smiling.

"You two go ahead. I'll be right with you," she said, rather timidly.

I furrowed my brow in confusion, but Katie gently tugged at my shoulder before I had the chance to speak. She seemed to have a knowing look in her eyes as she pulled me toward the door and out of the bathroom. Eric was there, waiting with his hands in his pockets, his eyes widening when he saw the two of us.

"There you two are! What kept you? And why are you all wet?" he asked, frowning.

Katie smirked at me. "Oh, nothing much. We were just having a little…practice."

I blushed and bit my lip as she wrapped her arm around me and pulled me closer to her. Eric just looked between us, completely lost. Katie grinned and gave me a quick kiss on the lips, which I found myself returning abruptly. Eric's jaw dropped.

"Dude!" he practically shouted. "Aw, c'mon! You two were making out without me?"

Katie shrugged innocently at him. "Alice watched."

"But I wanted to watch…" he whined. "That's not fair."

"Sorry babe," Katie snickered. "Don't worry; I'll make it up to you. We still have roleplay night this weekend, remember?"

That seemed to cheer him up immensely, though I could tell he still wasn't thrilled that he had missed all the fun. The bathroom door opened up and out walked Alice, grinning cheerfully as she danced over to me and planted a gentle kiss to my lips. I noticed the shine in her eyes was back and wondered what she'd been doing…in…there…

Oh. _OH_. Oh my God, how did I _not_ see that? Damn, I really was an idiot. Shit.

I was speechless. Alice, of course, smiled lazily at me and tapped my nose. "I didn't want to embarrass you, so I didn't say anything about it," she giggled.

"I, uh, I see," I whispered, not really sure what to think.

She gave me an apologetic look before hugging me. Eric and Katie both hugged too, kissing each other briefly as I pulled Alice closer to me.

"Alright guys, we need to get back to our seats. The movie's gonna start soon," Eric said.

"We'll be there in a moment," I said, kissing Alice's cheek. "I want to talk with Alice about something real quick."

"Okay, see ya there," Katie said, grabbing Eric and winking at us. The two speedily walked back to the theater, leaving Alice and I alone.

"Bella, I'm not mad at you," Alice said, cupping my cheeks. "I knew what was going to happen and I let it. I'll admit I wasn't pleased with it at first, but when I saw the look in your eye I realized that you were experiencing the same urges that I was. Honestly, it was better that you take care of them with Katie rather than me, since things would have gotten much more intense, had it been us. I knew you would never take it that far with someone else, so I let it happen."

I nodded in understanding and pressed my forehead to hers. "Then why did you…?"

"Do you have any idea how hot it was to watch?" Alice asked breathlessly. "I had to get in on it some way, Bella. Call it perverseness, but _damn_. I needed to be there, so that I could—" Her voice trailed off as her eyes glazed over. Then she curled back her lip and let out a loud, angry snarl as she her head whipped in the direction of the doorway.

"Alice? What's wrong?" I asked, tensing up. Now what? What was it that was ruining our day?

It didn't take long for the door to open and my eyes to narrow. Great. The bimbo brigade.

**A/N: ...**

**For precautions sake, I am going to go and hide behind a well fortified barrier. Just know that there was an intended reason for doing that. And that was for me to experiment around with the whole "vampire urges" deal. I wanted to try it out for myself, so I did. Low and behold, it was actually fairly entertaining to write out. I like playing around with the whole vampire instincts bit. I hope that those of you who get angry will forgive me in time. There won't be any cheating or anything of that nature happening. I'm not that way.**

**Anyways, for those interested, I happen to have three tumblr accounts. One if my own personal tumblr (located on my profile) where I am opening up an OC business (if you can call it that) for those of you who would like OCs made for you for a Twilight story. I have examples there and I will post more as time goes on. There are also tumblrs for Blood Solstice and Broken Aurora, the links of which are on my profile, where the character bios (still in the works) and whatnot will be posted there. Feel free to follow should you choose to and post comments on stuff that you'd like to see on there.**

**And lastly, I want to thank all of you who have been loyal to my story and helped give it 2000 reviews. I know my story isn't perfect and it's had it's share of ups and downs, but I have enjoyed writing this and I have enjoyed your love for it. Thank you from the bottom of my (slightly insane) heart. **


	63. Differences

**Disclaimer: This is a fanmade story. The existing characters and themes of Twilight belong to Stephanie Meyer. The original characters and themes belong to me.**

**Differences**

Great. Just fucking great. The last people on the planet that I wanted to see again—second to last, I mean—and they had to show up and ruin what was supposed to be a good night. And now they were here. Terrific. Lauren, Jessica, Mike and Tyler were all in the doorway. Mike was the first to spot me and, as if she had a gay detector installed, Lauren quickly followed suit, then Tyler and lastly Jessica, who's eyes bulged in shock and terror.

Alice tensed up next to me, clutching my hand tightly in hers. I could tell that she wanted nothing more than to stand in front of me like she usually did, but she was keeping herself from doing so in order to give me my space.

"Oh my God…" Lauren breathed. "Again?"

"God's messing with us," Mike grunted.

"Seriously," agreed Tyler.

Jessica didn't say anything. She just stood there, gaping.

Alice's lips twitched. "I'm going to go have a word with them."

"Alice…" I started, but she was already walking toward them before I could finish. Damn that girl was fast sometimes.

The four idiots all froze when they saw Alice storming towards them. Jessica looked like she wanted to go run and hide in a corner, Mike looked like he wet himself and both Tyler and Lauren looked like they were about to do the same. I followed after Alice, since I didn't want a bloodbath to happen at the movies. Maybe behind the movie theater, but not in them.

Alice stopped several inches away from the cowering humans. I stopped right next to her, standing a bit behind her. I knew that if I was behind her, she'd be a bit less tense. I didn't mind since I was beyond flattered by her desire to protect me, even if we both knew I could take the four of them without much trouble at all.

"You," Alice hissed, glaring daggers at Lauren. "Come here, _now_."

Lauren gulped and did as she was told, robotically walking toward us. She stopped right in front of Alice, looking paler than a ghost and more afraid than a mouse despite the difference between the two of them in height.

"Did I not warn you not to fuck with my girlfriend anymore?" Alice asked in a threatening voice, lifting an eyebrow. "And yet what did you do, you went and fucked with her anyways, not to mention you talked shit about me and my family."

Lauren narrowed her eyes, trying to fight the fear. "I…I didn't—"

"_Bullshit_," Alice snarled. "My sister was there. She overheard you. And my Bella doesn't lie."

"O-okay, I did," Lauren stammered. She pointed a shaky finger at me. "S-she got me back for it, don't you see?" She pointed to her face next, and I noticed that there was a faint black eye around her right eye from where I'd punched her. I felt like smirking, but I held it in. Alice, on the other hand, smiled cruelly at her.

"Good. You got what you deserved. Now I believe that you owe her an apology."

Lauren looked surprised and irritated. Her previous fear was slightly swallowed up by her irritation as she clenched her fists to her side.

"She punched me," she ground out.

Alice sneered at her. "Because you were being a bitch to her."

"But—"

"Shut up, Lauren!" Jessica squealed, slapping her across the face from out of nowhere. Alice and I gaped. Mike and Tyler gaped. Lauren…Lauren's eyes were the size of soccer balls as she felt her now red cheek. Jessica seemed startled as well; staring at the hand that she'd used to strike the person that I thought was her idol. No one spoke for a few minutes.

"Whoa," Tyler and Mike whispered.

Jessica bit her lip when Lauren turned to face her, but she didn't run away for once.

"Look, Lauren. We've been bitches to Bella since she came to Forks. And…well, I've been giving it a lot of thought and I don't think we should treat her that way or Alice or any of the Cullens just because they're a little different. So what if they're gay? That doesn't matter." She glanced at the two of us and took a step forward, bowing her head slightly. "I'm sorry for the things I've said to you both and the way I've treated you. It was wrong of me. I'm sorry."

Alice and I continued to stare at her in surprise. We both glanced at one another, our eyes mirroring one another's shock and confusion by the change in attitude by the girl we once thought hated our guts, yet here she was apologizing. And this wasn't just a fear induced apology; Jessica was actually sincere about it. I could tell by her eyes. Holy crap.

"Um…thank you?" I said, not sure what to say.

Jessica sighed. "I know you can't forgive me right off the bat, but I really am sorry. I'll do what I can to make it up to you, I swear."

"What changed your mind?" Alice asked, not sounding fully convinced.

"I…I woke up to reality," she replied after debating it over for a moment.

We both blinked and nodded silently, neither saying anything. What was there to say to that? I saw Tyler nudge Mike and together the two boys stepped towards us, sheepish expressions on their faces, Mike especially. Mike didn't even look at either Alice or I. He was still scared.

"Er, Bella? Alice? We wanted to apologize too," Tyler said. "We're sorry for saying or doing anything that might have offended you." Mike nodded dumbly until Tyler punched him in the shoulder, earning a groan from the blonde. Jessica smacked him on the back of the head and glared at him, which got him to get on his knees.

"I'm sorry for the way I've been acting towards you both," Mike murmured, sounding at least partially sincere. He bowed his head in shame. "I promise I'll leave you both alone and I won't stare at you or anything like that ever again, I swear."

I was so incredibly lost. Where did all of this come from, anyways?

"Er…okay," I replied, looking to Alice for help. She was just as confused as me.

Mike stood up and sighed. "I'm gonna go grab some popcorn," he mumbled, not even bothering to look at Alice or I as he stuffed his hands in his pockets and begrudgingly plodded off. Tyler silently followed after him, leaving a sheepish looking Jessica and a stunned Lauren. She had yet to recover from being slapped, it seemed.

"So…what movie are you guys seeing?" Jessica asked hesitantly.

"The vampire one," I replied. She would know what one I meant.

"Oh. Cool," she said. "We're going to see that new scary film."

"Nice."

"Yeah."

There was an awkward silence between us for a minute or so. Alice frowned and wrapped an arm around me, pulling me closer to her. Lauren finally seemed to snap out of her daze, whipping her head around to glare at the shorter girl next to her. Her eyes burned with betrayal and she looked like she was about to try and tear Jessica's face off.

"What the hell was that all about?" she snarled, pointing to her face. "Why'd you slap me?"

Jessica grimaced, but she surprisingly held her ground for once. "I'm sorry Lauren, but you kinda deserved it. Besides, I didn't hit you that hard, just enough to try and knock some sense into you, okay?"

"No, it is not okay," Lauren growled.

"Why do you have to be such a bitch, Lauren? I'm just trying to make peace with people that we've been douchebags too and you're complicating it. Both Tyler and Mike apologized for the crap they've said and most of the Cullens don't even know about the rest. And I've apologized because I felt like shit for the way I've treated them. Don't you feel bad?"

"I…what does…" Lauren sputtered, unable to form a coherent sentence as Jessica cornered her with her words. It was strange to see Lauren in this position, since she was always so confident in the way she acted and talked. Now she was at a loss for words and her emotions looked torn between anger, confusion and uncertainty.

I sighed. This wasn't going anywhere and I really wanted to get away from them to go be with my actual friends. Plus, I could tell that Alice was getting agitated and, from the look in her eye, wanted to throw her through the nearest window. Despite a part of me strongly liking that idea, I pushed it aside and squeezed her hand to try and calm her down a bit.

"Lauren, you've said a lot of hurtful things to us. I don't know why you hate us so much or what you have against people that are gay. We're not serial killers or anything like that, so what's the big deal? What do you have against us?" I asked.

Lauren turned to face me, a pained look on her face. She was silent and for a moment she appeared to be debating with herself over something. Then she let out a deep breath, sighing.

"My mom is a lesbian," she said, staring at the floor. "She came out a few years after I was born and got a divorce from my father. He was devastated by it and he started to drink. A lot. One thing led to another and he…he…" She paused and made a sound that sounded like a sob? "He started to beat me when he got drunk…"

Her voice cracked and she stopped talking. Alice relaxed next to me, though her face was still hard as she watched Lauren. Jessica looked like she didn't know what to do; she was just standing there kind of awkwardly, trying to decide on how to be helpful. Lauren glanced up at Alice and I, looking for some form of judgment. She found none.

"Go on," I urged gently, squeezing Alice's hand.

She swallowed. "My mother was never there for me. She was always out with her damn girlfriend or whatever the fuck you want to call her. I started hating her because she didn't even bother calling me anymore…but…" Lauren paused and ran a hand through her hair nervously, her face becoming sheepish. "I found out a few days ago that my father had actually blocked her number. Not only that, but I found an entire chest with letters sent to me from her."

"So she didn't abandon you," Alice said. "Do you still hate her?"

"Yes…no…I don't know," Lauren grunted, shaking her head. "I didn't believe it at first, but when I asked my father—"

"Wait, you still live with him?" I asked, surprised. "Why the hell would you want to live with someone that physically abused you, Lauren?"

Lauren grimaced. "What else can I do? Every time I think of trying to get the police involved, I get scared. It's not easy living with that man. He's so controlling and frightening. There's nothing I can do about it…I feel so helpless." She bit her lip, tears forming in her eyes. "I'm sorry, Bella. I'm sorry, Alice. I'm sorry for acting the way I've been, I'm sorry for insulting you and hurting you and being a bitch to you both and your family."

"Lauren…" Jessica breathed, facing her friend.

"No," Lauren said, holding her hand up. "I'm not done yet, Jess." She wiped her eyes and took in a deep breath before stepping forward, towards me. Alice tensed up and let out a very low, warning growl. She still didn't trust Lauren yet, and I couldn't blame her.

"I've been terrible to you since you got here, Bella. And no amount of ass-kissing or apologies will probably ever change that. I don't think we'll ever actually be friends, especially because of our different personalities. But I don't want us to be enemies anymore, either. Jessica's right. It's wrong for me to say all these things and to ridicule you because you're gay or because of who your family is. I've been wrong a lot lately and I guess I didn't see that until now."

"Jessica's slap did the trick, then," I mused.

Lauren sighed. "Yeah, it did, I guess. Look, I don't expect you to forgive me now or ever, but I wanted to say I'm sorry. I'm truly sorry for all the shit I've put you through and I promise that I will try to be a better person around you from here on out."

"Same here," Jessica added. "And I'm sorry about slapping you, Lauren."

"It's fine, Jess," Lauren grunted. "We should go. I'm sure your movie is going to be starting soon, anyways."

"Wait, Lauren," Alice spoke, stopping the two girls when they started to walk away.

Lauren hesitated. She was still afraid of Alice. "Y-yeah, Alice?"

"How do I know that this is for real?" she asked, quirking an eyebrow. "How do I know that you won't return to being the way you have been for the past year and a half towards my family and I, towards Bella? I need to know that this is real, otherwise the peace between us won't last."

Lauren gulped. "It's real, I promise. You…you can shave my head if I go back to being a bitch to you, I promise."

Alice's lips twitched. "I'll hold you to that."

It was silent for a moment, but then Lauren nodded. Her and Jessica then walked off in silence, leaving Alice and I to ourselves. Alice immediately started to gently pull me away and I remembered that we were here to see a movie. We hurried back to our theater and sat down in our spots, noticing that the theater was now fairly full.

"There you two are," Ben breathed. "Where the heck did you run off to?"

"Sorry, we ran into some trouble," Alice replied, giving them a gleaming smile. "But we're here now and the movie hasn't started yet, which is good."

"True," Ben agreed, wrapping an arm around Angela, who mimicked the notion and smiled at Alice and I. "This is gonna be an awesome movie."

"You're just saying that for the girls," Angela giggled.

"So? It's hot!" Eric crooned.

Katie smirked and shot Alice and I a wink, but otherwise remained quiet. I noticed that she and Eric were holding hands, too. Deciding to do the same, I looped my fingers around Alice's. She smiled and instead wrapped her arm around me, pulling me close. I rested my head on her shoulder as she laid her head down on mine. I liked this.

But I couldn't get what Lauren had said out of my head. I thought on it, and realized that, while I didn't particularly like Lauren and I didn't fully trust her, I did feel for what she was going through with her father. Nobody, not even Lauren, deserved to go through that.

"We'll talk about that later," Alice whispered, brushing her lips to my earlobe, causing me to shudder slightly. I would have replied, but then the theater went dark and the previews started up. So I decided to keep quiet and relax while the previews played and finished before the movie finally began.

Two and a half hours later…

"Holy crap," I breathed, taking a sip from the Dr. Pepper that Alice had bought me.

"That was actually a decent movie," Alice mused, running her fingers through my hair. "The overall plot wasn't too bad, the characters were awesome, the action was great, and the tender moments were sweet. And the overall representation of the vampires was…nice."

"Don't forget that main couple," Ben snickered. "They were hot."

"The actors were really pretty," Angela agreed. "I loved the costumes and the special effects that they used, it made the movie seem much more realistic."

The others started to chatter away about the movie and things they liked about it, like scenes or fights or characters in particular. I found it particularly amazing how well I could relate to the main character, almost eerily so. The main character's love interest was similar to Alice, though Alice wasn't as boastful or vain as she was. Still, the actors were incredibly good looking.

I glanced at Alice, who was staring intently at me. "Did you enjoy it?" she asked.

I nodded. "I thought it was really cool. I loved the main characters, especially the love interest because she reminded me so much of you. Not as hot, though. Plus, some of the stuff that the couple did gave me a few ideas, in fact," I teased, winking at her.

Alice smirked and pressed her lips to mine. "You're not alone there, my sweet Bella."

"Hey, you guys gonna give us a demonstration?" Eric asked.

"That'd be real nice," Katie chimed in, grinning.

Alice and I rolled our eyes and broke apart. "No thanks, that is private," Alice giggled, earning three indignant huffs and one giggle in response.

The theater started to clear out as people left, some muttering amongst themselves about the movie, others talking more openly about it and a few who seemed indifferent toward what they had seen and more interested in getting the hell to the bathrooms. I realized that I had a strong need to go and use one too, shooting Alice a brief look. She smiled and nodded, releasing me.

I quickly made my way through the sea of people and got a stall just in the nick of time, which I was eternally grateful for. Once I was finished washing up, I exited the bathroom to see Alice leaning against the wall, waiting patiently for me.

"Hey sexy," she greeted, pulling me into a tender hug with a kiss.

I moaned into her mouth and pulled her close to me, reveling in the sensations that came with it.

A few people gawked, especially some of the ones who had been in the theater with us. I'd noticed on several occasions that some people would turn their heads to glance at Alice and I, who sat in an obvious "couply" way. We didn't care, though Alice did send a few glares throughout the film, especially when she went to grab me a drink.

Honestly, I was much more used to people staring at us when we were together. I'd even gotten more used to publicly showing her affection, though I generally preferred holding hands and hugging more than kissing. Not that I didn't like the kissing. I _loved_ the kissing.

We broke apart after a minute of kissing since I needed to catch my breath. I was a little disappointed because before I'd been able to kiss Alice for several minutes without the need for oxygen getting in the way. I guess what Carlisle had said was right, the changes really were on and off. I sighed and rested my head on her shoulder, content with being held by her.

Alice giggled. "Are you okay, Bells?"

"I'm fine," I replied, squeezing her. "I just like the feeling of being in your arms."

"As I enjoy having you in my arms, my dear," she chuckled, kissing my cheek.

I noticed the others walking over to us. They were laughing amongst each other by the time they joined us, likely about some movie related joke.

"Hey girls," Katie greeted. "We were wondering if you wanted to tag along with us. We're all gonna head out to get something to eat, do you want to join?"

I looked at Alice, who gave me the "whatever you want" look. I thought about it for a moment and was about to say yes when I noticed something out of the corner of my eye. Curious, I looked and saw that it was Lauren, Jessica, Mike and Tyler walking out of the theater with each other. Lauren was with Jessica, her hands covering her face up.

I felt a small pang of remorse for the girl and wondered about her situation. I knew what it was like to have an abusive parent and it destroyed my self-esteem and a lot of what could have been. I could see the same thing with Lauren, only her problems were on a different wavelength from mine. Still, we were alike in that one sense. I didn't like her, but I still felt for her.

"I think we'll pass," I said, smiling at them. "Maybe another time, though? We could always do something this weekend, if you guys want."

"Fine by me," Eric replied.

"Same here," Ben agreed.

Angela nodded. "I'm glad that you two were able to join us for the movie. Did you like it?"

Katie, Eric and Ben all laughed. Alice giggled a little too.

"What?" Angela asked, confused.

"C'mon Angie, they're lesbians, so of course they'll love watching some good old fashioned hot girl-on-girl action," Katie snickered, winking again.

I rolled my eyes. "Ha ha, Katie. Very funny."

"Isn't it though?" she teased. "But seriously, you sure you don't wanna go with us?"

"Sorry, we have plans," Alice replied, smiling politely at her.

"Ah well, stinks for you two," Katie chuckled. "All of that aside, thanks for coming to see the movie with us, you two. I guess we'll see you two hotties at school tomorrow." She grinned at me. "And Bella…call me sometime, and we can _hang out_."

"Can I come?" Eric asked. Katie smirked and, without a word, dragged him off. Ben and Angela both said their farewells and joined them, leaving Alice and I to ourselves yet again. Alice and I walked outside hand in hand, strolling casually to my car.

"So what do you have planned?" Alice asked, looking at me curiously once we were inside. "I can see that you want to do something, but you keep changing your mind every few seconds, so I don't know what you've decided. Either you want to go home or you want to spend some more time with me, but there's something else there that I haven't seen. I can tell. What's up?"

"I've been thinking…" I trailed off, tapping my chin in thought.

Alice giggled. "That's never a good thing. Don't hurt yourself, okay?" I glared at her, which made her smile. "Aw, don't give me the death glare. You know I love you no matter how un-smart you are, Bella. Come on."

"I hate you," I growled under my breath, crossing my arms.

"Do not," Alice replied, pulling me into her lap. She started to nuzzle into my neck as she began to purr, which ultimately made me drop my poor façade and snuggle into her. We stayed that way for a few minutes in silence. My mind was everywhere at once, because while I did want to spend time with just Alice, I couldn't get the image of Lauren out of my head.

I felt like I was inclined to do something, which made no sense. She didn't deserve any kind of help from me after all the crap she'd put me through. And yet, whenever I thought that, I imagined Esme and Carlisle talking to me, telling me otherwise. I could also see them doing something in my predicament, even if Lauren had insulted them.

They were just that good. They were great people. They would help someone no matter what, even if they were helping someone who was cruel to them. The more I thought about it, the more I wanted to somehow follow their example. It was weird, but really, what else was there to do? Sit back and watch as someone, bitchy or not, be abused by her own parent?

No one had ever been there for me when I went through that. And now I had the chance to help someone who was in that very same predicament. Do I really help Lauren, though? I mean, would she even want my help to begin with? And how do I help her, exactly?

"Bella," Alice murmured, kissing my cheek. "Babe, talk to me. I don't like it when you think this hard, you're brain wanders and it kind of ruins our cuddle time."

I blinked. "I'm sorry, Ali."

"Don't apologize, love. I like that you're thinking, I just want to be let in on the conversation."

I sighed and rested my head beneath her chin. "I'm thinking about Lauren, still."

"Mallory? Why are you thinking about her at a time like this?" Alice asked, sounding mildly annoyed. It was obvious that no matter what Lauren had gone through and was going through, Alice wasn't anywhere near close to forgiving Lauren for the things she'd said and done. I understood her feelings and I could agree, to some extent.

"I just…I feel like I should do something," I admitted.

Alice frowned. "Why, though? Why should you help her?"

"Because I was in her situation myself and I didn't have anyone there for me," I replied, remembering Renee and how she'd been towards me. All the cruel words and the demeaning remarks that she'd said. The lack of care and love. The crying…

"Bella…" Alice lifted my chin and kissed me sweetly. "I'm sorry. I should have remembered that you went through that. I still can't believe that you had to suffer that way without a soul to be there for you. But that won't happen ever again, because I'm here for you." She paused and pulled me in close, sighing.

"I know, Alice. It means the world to me that I have you. But Lauren doesn't have anybody, at least not someone who understands that pain. I want to help her somehow, but I really don't know how to help her."

Alice was silent for a moment, rubbing my head. "There is one option, Bella. I'm not so sure that you'll like it, though."

"What's that?" I asked.

"I'm fairly certain that you'll say no to it…" Alice murmured, her voice trailing off.

I looked up at her. "Alice." She looked at me. "Tell me, please."

She bit her lip. "Have you forgotten that we know someone who works in law enforcement and would be inclined to believe what you say?"

I cocked my head to the side, wondering what the hell she meant. Who did…? Oh. _OH_.

"You don't mean…"

She nodded. "I do, love."

"Charlie," I breathed, putting my head back where it was. "Fuck."

"Yeah, I know," Alice agreed, sounding displeased. "I don't like it either, but he's the one person we can go to that would be willing to help us out."

"Us?" I asked, giving her a curious look. "You're going to help me out with this?"

Alice scowled. "I have no love for Lauren Mallory, Bella. I don't like her, I don't trust her. Still, I understand where you're coming from, and even I have enough of a heart to agree that she doesn't deserve the abuse. I'm against doing this, but if it's what you really want to do, then I'm with you, no questions asked."

"Thanks, Alice," I said, kissing her. "I'm not so sure about going to Charlie, though."

"As pissed off at him as I am, he really did mean what he said when he told you that he wanted to start over again with you, Bella. I looked into it out of curiosity and saw him talking to someone about you and that he "wants to make amends". This might be a good chance for the two of you to talk and maybe strike up a friendship of some kind."

"I thought you were against the idea?" I asked, narrowing my eyes.

She grimaced. "It feels like I've been forced to do away with some of my more bias ideas as of late, if you haven't noticed. I allowed another person to kiss you, not to mention the fact that I was actually watching her kiss you and I'm going to help someone that I dislike. Why not throw something else into that list, eh?"

"I thought that you were okay with the Katie situation?" I inquired.

"I was then, but now I'm actually thinking about it and the whole thing is making me jealous beyond belief. I won't rag on either of you for it, though, because I know that what happened wasn't your fault, my fault or her fault."

I smiled apologetically at her. "Sorry about tha—"

Alice put a finger to my lips. "It's okay, Bella. It's going to _bug_ the living hell out of me for a while," she grumbled under her breath. "I can live with it. So stop worrying." She pulled her finger away from lips, but kept it held up. "Now, what do you want to do about this?"

I bit my lip and pondered it. Damn my head was starting to hurt. Too much thinking is seriously bad for Bella. Damn it.

"I guess…we go to Charlie," I replied, lowering my head. "If he's the only one that can help us, then it's better to go to him as soon as possible."

"Do you want to go now?" she asked.

I nodded. "Yes."

Alice gently set me down on my seat, then blurred over to the driver's seat and started my car up. I quickly buckled up and then we were off, driving out of the theater parking lot and toward Charlie's house. My old house. I hadn't set foot there for a while now and I hadn't seen Charlie since I'd been on La Push.

Did I really want to see him again? No, not really. I needed too, though. I hadn't forgiven Charlie of what he'd done in the past. Truthfully, I hadn't even thought about him. I'd been too focused thinking about the wolves and the other vampires, worrying when they would strike again or when something would cause some giant war to outbreak.

I didn't get a whole lot of time to think on it—thankfully, it was giving me a headache—because Alice pulled up to his house shortly after we'd left. She turned the car off and we sat there in silence, both of us staring at the door to the house. I looked at Alice and she looked to me.

"Are you positive you want to do this, Bella? No one will hold anything against you if you decide to change your mind, and we can go back home and call it a day. It makes no difference to me what you choose to do, because no matter what, I'm with you one hundred percent."

"Yes," I replied, reaching over to squeeze her hand. "It's the right thing to do, no matter how much I may not like it. Don't you agree?"

She considered that. "I suppose so."

"Shall we?" I asked.

"Let's."

**A/N: Funny thing, I originally had a different concept for this chapter. But then I decided to be different. I wanted to give Lauren a character, not just a gay basher. It's a****n odd twist, don't you think? As some of you would say, draaaaaaaaaaaaaaama. What can I say, I kinda like the drama. Depending on the type of drama, that is. If that makes any sense whatsoever. I dunno.**

**Regarding the last chapter, I am surprised and pleased that I am not on anyone's "to kill" list for that little twist I threw in. Most (if not all) of you seemed to enjoy that. That is good, though I can't say it will ever happen again. Hee hee. Thanks for the praise and support, peoples. It means a lot to me. I know that some of you keep telling me my story is great and all, but I can't help but worry from time to time. It's just an old habit, wondering if what I post is good enough. Maybe it's because I base my opinion off of review count. I guess that might be a reason (don't mistake it for greed, honest). But I'm not about to demand reviews from readers. That's not fair.**

**Anyways, I have three little things to blurb here.**

**Thing one, the pimping of another story, ManaMila's Fire's Angel. It's a good story. It has plot, characterization, the writing isn't horrid it's Bellice. What more can you ask for? (Shut up, smutaholics, I wasn't asking you. :P) But in all seriousness, go check it out. Also, go check out megster1992's Pack Mentality/Full Moon series. Figured I'd be nice and throw in another series, seeing as how she's a beta of mine. :D**

**Thing two, like I said in my last post, I am opening up an OC business. As in, I will make you an OC for your Twilight story. The character will technically be mine (since I'm the one making it), and I'd like credit for it, but you would be more than welcome to use them in whatever way you deemed necessary. And on that note, I have three separate tumblr accounts open, one for myself, one for Blood Solstice and one for Broken Aurora. Go check them out, follow if you wish, leave me questions or comments or suggestions on what you think I should be posting there.**

**And thing three, the BloodSolstice channel on Youtube has several new soundtrack additions for a few characters.**

**That is all. Peace out. **


	64. Lauren

**Disclaimer: I don't take credit for Stephanie Meyer's Twilight. I only take claim for my own characters and ideas. Shabang.**

**Lauren**

My heart was pounding as I slowly neared the door. I didn't know why I was so nervous, but I was and it was driving me insane. Alice was right next to me, her left arm wrapped around my waist, pulling me close to her. Her cool lips were tenderly kissing my neck, cooing in my ear to help relax me, which it did.

"Calm it down, love," Alice cooed again. "It's alright. I'm right here with you and I'm not going anywhere, okay? Take it easy." She wrapped her other arm around me and pulled me into her body, hugging me tightly but lovingly.

I took in a few deep breaths and relaxed into my love's body. "Thanks."

"Any time," she replied, kissing my cheek. "There's no reason to be nervous, though."

"I know, Alice. I can't help it," I mumbled. I took in one last breath. "Alright, let's do this."

Alice nodded and released me, though her arm remained around my waist. I walked the last few steps to the door and, after taking a moment to debate it one last time, knocked on the door three times before pulling my hand back and waiting.

Not a moment later the door opened up and out stepped Charlie, looking a tad grayer than I last remembered him being, wearing his police uniform. His weathered eyes widened when he saw Alice and I standing together and for a brief while he said nothing, clearly trying to figure out what in God's name I was doing there. The silence was a bit awkward, but with Alice by my side, the tension was much easier to deal with.

"Bella," Charlie murmured at last, rubbing the back of his neck. "And Alice, too, I see."

"Chief Swan," Alice greeted in an even tone. I didn't fail to notice that it was still a bit difficult for her to be civil towards him. Then again, I hadn't said anything yet, so I wondered whether I would have the same level of difficulty or not.

"W-wha…what can I, uh, do for you girls?" he asked.

Alice and I looked at each other. Her eyes clearly said "you wanted to do this, so you have to be the one to tell him". I grimaced and shot her a pleading look to help me out, but she shook her head and squeezed me gently in support. Damn it.

"Can we come inside?" I asked, not looking at Charlie. I didn't know if I could face him without all the memories flooding back again. I didn't want that, not at a time like this.

Charlie thought about it. "Sure, come on in." He stepped aside and held the door open for us to go inside, which we did.

Alice remained by me as we walked into the living room and sat down on the couch. I know that it wasn't normally polite to just randomly sit down on someone's furniture without permission, but seeing as how I used to live here, I didn't think it mattered much. Charlie didn't seem to mind in the slightest as he trudged over to the easy chair next to the couch and plopped down into it, clasping his hands together as his dark eyes appraised us.

Again, it was silent. No one spoke. Charlie seemed to be debating with himself over whether or not he should say anything or not. Alice looked like she didn't want to be here, but at the same time she was doing this for me, so she had to suck it up.

"How're…things?" Charlie asked, breaking the silence and my train of thought.

"Fine," I replied.

"Are Dr. Cullen and his wife being good to you?"

Alice narrowed her eyes, looking insulted. "Are you insinuating that my parents wouldn't be good to her?" she asked, her tone dripping with malice and her eyes dark as she glared menacingly at the man a few feet away from us.

Charlie flinched back. "N-no, no, not at all."

I brushed my lips against her ear. "Alice." She didn't look at me and continued to glare daggers at Charlie. He sat there with a look of terror on his face as he rubbed his knuckles nervously. I could hear the sound of his heartbeat, which pounded in my eardrums as he sputtered in an attempt to try and calm Alice down. I grimaced. His heart…the blood…I can hear it…

I closed my eyes and focused on the sound of his beating heart. I imagined his blood flowing inside of him, calling to me. My mouth watered. I could almost taste it.

"Bella!" A whisper, yet loud, ringing in my ears. "Bella!" Again I heard my name, which was louder than the sound of the heartbeat. I felt something cool squeeze my hand and the heartbeat dissipated into nothingness. I opened my eyes to see Alice was staring at me worriedly, cupping my cheeks with her cold hands as the haze in my mind cleared. What the hell?

"Bella," Alice breathed, letting out a sigh of relief. I glanced over to see Charlie watching on with confusion and concern in his eyes, but he said nothing. She leaned in so that her lips were near me ear. "Are you okay, love? Talk to me."

"I…I'm fine," I replied, nodding. "I'm just uh…thirsty." Alice frowned, obviously seeing through my lie. She didn't say anything on that and instead turned to Charlie.

"Get her some water," Alice commanded firmly.

Charlie didn't even bother arguing; he got up and walked into the kitchen, returning a minute and a half later with a glass of water. He handed it to me in silence. I took it and guzzled down the water, trying to clear my head of all the things running through it. Once I'd finished Alice put the glass on the table beside us and pulled me into her lap, hugging me closely.

I sighed. "Sorry about that," I murmured, loud enough for Charlie to hear. It wasn't until that moment that I remembered why Alice and I were here to begin with. I turned to face him, though I remained in Alice's arms for support.

Charlie cleared his throat. "I'm sorry about what I said earlier. I meant no offense. I was just wondering how things are going with your new, er, family."

"They're going fine," I replied. "Carlisle and Esme are amazing. They're great parents and I love them as much as they love me."

"That's good," Charlie grunted. His eyes reflected sorrow, but he quickly covered that up. "And, uh, how's school going?"

"Boring and annoying," I answered, because it was. "Actually, that's one of the reasons why I wanted to come here to talk to you. Well, okay, it's not _the_ reason, but the reason has to do with it. Wait, no, it's…fuck, I need your help."

"My help?" Charlie asked, surprised. "What do you need my help with?"

I bit my lip and worded it in my head before speaking. "There's the girl that goes to the same school as we do. Her name's Lauren Mallory—"

"—Mallory? Robert Mallory's kid?" Charlie inquired.

Alice hissed. "Do you mind letting her finish first?"

He grimaced. "Sorry."

"Yes, that's the one, I think," I said. "You know her father?"

"Well yeah, I go fishing with him every weekend," Charlie replied. "He's a good man, that one, and his daughter's nice too. It's a shame about his wife dying, but with looks like his, he'll probably find another woman in no time."

I frowned. Say what? "His wife died?"

Charlie nodded somberly. "Yeah, it was really sad. His wife was killed a few years back along with another woman, her friend I'm assuming. It was real bad when I got there and he was pretty shaken up over it. He hasn't even told his daughter yet, apparently."

I stared at him. I was now even more confused, yet there were now tens of thousands of red flags rising in the back of my head. Something about this didn't seem right. Did…did her father…?

"Was the killer found?" Alice asked.

"No," Charlie replied, his eyes narrowed in distaste. "The bastard that did it was long gone by the time we got there. We've been going over the evidence, but nothing seems to fit. I can't for the life of me figure it out, but I keep telling Bob that I'll get to the bottom of it eventually. He's still a bit upset over it. I hope that things get better for him."

Charlie continued to mutter to himself. I stared at Alice and nodded my head to the kitchen, wanting to talk to her. She nodded in understanding and set me down. I quietly excused us from the room, Charlie waving us off, and together we walked into the kitchen, far enough so that Charlie wouldn't be able to hear us.

"Something stinks about this," I grunted.

Alice, to my surprise, giggled. "Something stinks? Yeah, he does. Or did you not notice?"

"Alice, I'm being serious," I sighed.

She sobered up. "Sorry." She tapped her chin. "You're thinking that Lauren didn't give us the full story? I don't think that's it. I think its fairly obvious what happened here and that Lauren doesn't know because her father hasn't told her."

"You think he killed his ex-wife and covered it up?" I asked, mortified. "And that the woman she was with was her girlfriend?" She nodded once, all traces of humor gone from her angelic face. I could see from her eyes the severity of the situation. "Holy shit…"

"Indeed," she mumbled. "This isn't good."

"Holy shit," I repeated. "We have to do something, Alice. If Lauren finds out…"

"It will devastate her, yes. But she needs to know. Not only that, but this man is abusing her day in and day out. I looked into her future to see if she was telling the truth when she first told us and, sure enough, she was right. Her father isn't a "good man". Charlie's an idiot. He can't see that the person he thinks is kind is a cruel, heartless piece of shit."

I furrowed my brow. "He's probably really good at hiding who he is, Alice. There are loads of people who do that, a lot of them bad. They act one way when they're in the public, but behind closed doors they reveal who they really are. We need to get this bastard. But how?"

Alice's eyes glazed over momentarily. "Tell Charlie that you think there's something wrong with Bob in five minutes," Alice said.

"Five minutes? Why wait that long?" I asked.

She smirked and tapped her skull. "Don't doubt the super psychic, remember? I'm always right."

"I…yeah, you're right. Alright. Then what do I do?"

"You're going to get a phone call," Alice replied, grinning. "Now, this is important. You need to pretend that the person you're talking to is Lauren and that you're good friends with her. It's a disgusting thought, but if you do, then this will work out perfectly. Act like its Lauren and that approximately one minute after you get the call, you'll hear screams. Act naturally and get Charlie to go and check it out. Things will go as needed from there."

"You thought this out in that short of time?" I inquired.

Alice giggled and kissed my cheek. "No offense, love, but someone in this couple has to have a useable brain; otherwise we'd both be screwed whenever we needed to plan something."

I glared at her. "Another dumb joke?"

"You know I love you. Now go back in the living room and sit down, I have to call the house to get someone to call you."

I huffed indignantly, but she giggled and pushed me off, kissing my cheek again. I sighed and shook my head as I made my way back into the living room, plopping back down on the spot I'd been in before. I reached my hand into my pocket to make sure that my phone was on to begin with—and that I had my phone, which I did—before leaning into the couch.

"Is everything alright?" Charlie asked quietly.

"Yeah, everything's fine. She just wanted a drink of water, too," I lied.

"You could've asked me, I would've gotten one for her," Charlie said.

I shrugged. "Oh well."

Charlie rubbed the back of his neck again and sighed. "Listen, Bella. I know that we got off on the wrong foot the last time we talked. I've been meaning to try and call you, but every time I think about it, I change my mind. I can't seem to find the right words to express what I feel and there are no words to express the amount of shame that I have. I truly do want to make up for the things that I did and didn't do when you were little. I just wish you'd give me the chance."

I absorbed his words and thought about it, noticing that Alice was now sitting next to me. I looped my fingers around hers and squeezed her hand in support, which she returned. I could practically feel her smiling at me without looking.

"I don't know, Charlie," I sighed. "A lot has gone on in my life, a lot of things that you wouldn't be able to understand. It hurt me when you didn't want anything to do with me and now that I'm older, it just feels like it's a little too good to be true that you want to change like this. How do I know that you'll stick to your words? That our peace will remain intact?"

I glanced at Alice while I spoke since my word choice mirrored what she'd used earlier today with Lauren. It seemed to work then, so why wouldn't it work now? Alice gave me a gentle smile and kissed my cheek.

Charlie furrowed his brow and looked down at the coffee table. "Well, I—"

He was cut off when my phone started ringing, at which point I remembered that I was going to be receiving a phone call. I gave him a slight apologetic look and pulled my phone back out to put it to my ear, wondering who was calling. Oh, right. "Lauren".

"Hello?" I asked into the phone.

The other end was silent for a moment. "Do I really have to pretend to be that bitch?"

I recognized the voice. Rosalie. I almost started to laugh, but Alice squeezed my hand and gave me a look to keep me in check. Of course, she looked like she was about to laugh, too.

"Er…hi, R-Lauren," I greeted, barely able to keep myself from laughing.

"Hello, Bella," Rosalie said in a mock Lauren voice. "Did I mention that Alice owes me big time for this? I'll kill her if she tells anyone about it, you too for that matter."

"I'm fine, thanks. How are you?" I asked, glancing at the clock. Alice silently mouthed the time to me, giving me a good estimate of when I was supposed to act.

"Wow, your acting stinks," Rosalie snickered.

_Fuck you, Rosalie_. "I'm at my dad's house right now," I droned out. I was about ten seconds away from bursting into giggles and Alice looked like she would be the first to cave, her lips twitching insanely as she made sure Charlie couldn't see her face.

"Yes, yes…oh, I'm supposed to scream now, aren't I? Best pull the phone away from your ear a bit, Bella. This might hurt." Alice twitched and I pulled the phone away from my ear a tad, not wanting to go deaf anytime soon.

"So Lauren—"

A scream tore from the other end, loud enough for Charlie to hear. He jumped on his feet in an instant as I dropped the phone, stumbling a little. Alice did the same, forming a beautifully sculpted look of surprise on her face.

"What happened?" Alice asked, sounding frantic. Charmer.

I grabbed the phone and pretended that something was wrong. "Lauren? Lauren, can you hear me? Hello?" There was no answer on the other end, though I was vaguely aware of Rosalie laughing rather darkly to herself. I barely managed to keep my eyes from rolling as I looked up at Charlie with mock worry. "There's no answer."

Charlie nodded. "I need to go, then. I'm heading to her place to see what's wrong."

"We're coming with you," I said. Charlie looked like he was about to argue. "Charlie, she's my friend and I'm worried for her. Please." I gave him the puppy dog eyes just for an added bonus and he caved, nodding his head once.

I'm not sure if it was bad of me to say, but I felt a little cool tricking him like that. It was fun. I pushed that away though when I remembered that this was a serious situation as Alice and I followed after him, jumping into my car and following Charlie's police cruiser as it drove off in the direction of Lauren's home.

"So how exactly is this going to help us catch her father?" I asked as Alice smoothly drove.

"Simple," she replied. "Her father has no clue that we know the truth about what he did to his wife and her lover. He thinks he has Charlie in the palm of his hands because he was able to get away with his horrid crime. Plus, he has Charlie thinking that he and his daughter have a wonderful relationship, which is an obvious lie."

"Yeah…and?" I urged. "That's not really explaining how we're going to catch him, Alice."

Alice rolled her eyes. "He's drunk right now, Bella. And he's going to begin yelling at Lauren in approximately one minute and thirteen seconds. By the time we get there, he will have his hands around her throat when Charlie barges in and sees. He will instantly proceed to try and arrest the bastard, at which point he will try and fight back, because he is drunk and stupid."

"Oh," I replied. That made sense.

Alice nodded, but then her face became serious. "Bella, listen to me. I want you to go over and grab Lauren and pull her to safety. Do not try and engage that man, Bella. If you do, he will swat you aside and I cannot guarantee that I won't kill him myself. I can't risk that and I sure as hell can't risk you being hurt. Just avoid him and keep her safe. I will be there to keep you safe, don't worry, but I need to call Carlisle to let him know that he'll have a new patient today."

I nodded curtly. "Alright, I understand."

"Bella?"

"Yes, Alice?" I asked.

Her amber eyes smoldered. "Please."

"Alice…" I sighed.

"I can't help it. I won't be long, I promise. I'll be there if something happens," she said, as I pulled the car to a stop. "We're here. Go."

I bolted out the door as she did the same, Charlie already running toward the front door of Lauren's house. He had his gun in one hand as he rammed open the door, me following a few steps behind him with Alice behind me, her phone to her ear.

As Alice had said, there was Lauren, being choked by the man that I presumed to be her father. I gaped at the sight and felt an overwhelming rage begin boiling inside of me. I didn't like Lauren, but I couldn't stand the sight of someone abusing their child. That piece of shit. Charlie stopped in the doorway when both pairs of eyes turned to see him. Lauren's eyes were wide, especially when she saw me, and the man's eyes were glazed over.

One thing I saw when I was closer. He was fucking huge. He was at least 6'6, taller than even Emmett was and much more muscular. Not that Emmett couldn't take him, since not even a man that big could fight off the toughest vampire in my family.

"Bob," Charlie breathed, stunned. He immediately switched into cop mode. "Put the girl down Bob and put your hands behind your back, now. I can't believe I'm saying this, but you're under arrest and you're coming with me."

The man grumbled something that I didn't catch as he released Lauren, the girl landing on the floor with a loud thud. She instantly started to scoot away, terror in her eyes. Charlie walked forward with his gun drawn at the larger man.

"Now put your hands behind your back," he commanded. "Nice and easy."

I slipped behind him before he could react and grabbed Lauren, pulling her nearer to the doorway as fast as I could. Charlie looked at me for a moment, stunned, but before he could return his attention, the large man was already barreling toward him.

"Charlie, look out!" I shouted.

Charlie didn't get that chance as the larger man punched him, knocking him down instantly. I looked to Lauren, who was trembling like a frightened child on the floor. I'd never seen her this vulnerable before. It was so unreal. I noticed the larger man looking at Lauren, then at me, a twisted, drunken smile forming on his reddened face.

"C'mere, girlie," he slurred.

I heard a snarl outside and Alice was instantly indoors, glaring daggers at the man.

"Touch her and I kill you," she hissed.

"Huh?" the man asked, confused by her words.

She speedily moved to stand in front of me protectively, looking like she was ready to pounce at any given moment. I noticed the Charlie was up now, grasping his gun and pointing it at the man, his face red from where he'd been punched.

"Girls, get out of here!" he bellowed. The large man turned around. "Bob, get down on the ground or I will shoot you. Now!"

I looked down at Lauren, who was in no condition to move whatsoever. "Alice."

Alice turned and, after turning over her shoulder once, scooped both Lauren and I into her arms and ran out the front door with us both. Lauren didn't even seem to register what was going on as Alice gently set us down on the grass. Within seconds the sound of glass shattering and a gun going off sounded throughout the house and both Alice and I turned to look at the doorway.

"Is he…?" I looked at Alice, who shook her head.

"Wait," she said.

So I waited. And waited. Nothing. Suddenly the man appeared, barreling through the doorway, appearing furious. There was a bullet hole and blood trickling down from his right shoulder, which caused Alice to immediately cover my mouth with her hand. She did the same to herself and I remembered the vampiric senses and blood. Definitely not good.

He started to walk towards us, slowly and menacingly. Alice snarled and stood in front of me protectively again while I covered my own nose, trying hard not to focus on the blood trickling down his shoulder. The sound of a screeching car rang in my ears and in a flash I saw Carlisle standing between us and the man.

"You will not touch them," Carlisle said, calmly, but dangerously. That was the first time I'd ever heard him speak that way. The man grunted something and tried to swing at Carlisle, but he calmly and carefully dodged his fist and swept him to the ground. Then Carlisle did something I never thought I'd see him do. He speedily slammed a foot onto the man's leg, breaking it.

I was astonished. The man growled in pain and clutched his leg as Carlisle moved into the house, re-emerging shortly after with Charlie following behind him. Charlie was on top of the man in an instant, cuffing his wrists together and grabbing his walkie-talkie to call more units in.

"You broke his leg?" I whispered, stunned.

Carlisle moved over to us and gently touched Alice's shoulder, then mine. "I did what was necessary to ensure that you would be safe." He glanced down at Lauren, who had slumped into my arms. I couldn't help feeling terrible for her and hoped that she was okay.

"I'll take a look at her," Carlisle said, gently lifting her. "Well done on protecting her, Bella."

"Thanks," I murmured, watching as he walked her over to his car. I looked to Alice, who let out a long sigh and pulled me into her arms.

Charlie walked over to us, shaking his head. "I don't believe it," he breathed. "I had no idea that he was like this. I always thought that he was a good man…but…"

"But what?" I asked.

Charlie sighed. "To think that he's been abusing his daughter. How long has this been going on for, I wonder?" He started muttering to himself and looking away.

I looked at Alice, who nodded. "Charlie?"

He looked at me. "Yes?"

"I think…I think that he killed his wife," I told him. "And I think that the woman that she was with wasn't her friend. She was her lover. Lauren told me some time ago that her mother came out as being gay before divorcing him. She said that she never saw her since. Lauren also said that she found letters from her mother in her house that he kept from her."

"You think he killed her? But then how…?"

"He used his friendship with you to manipulate you," I replied.

"That doesn't make any sense," Charlie said, shaking his head. "Are you sure about this?"

I looked into his eyes. "I'm positive."

Charlie seemed to hesitate as he absorbed my words. He rubbed the back of his neck.

"I'll look into it," he said. "Thanks for the tip." Sirens could be heard as another police car pulled up, two officers, a man and a woman, appearing and running over to deal with the downed criminal as Charlie watched on. "Oh, and Bella?"

"Yes?" I asked.

"Good job on helping your friend. That was mighty brave of you, doing that. You too, Alice."

"Thank you, Chief Swan," Alice said, not looking at him. She was too focused on cuddling me.

Charlie nodded. "Are you two girls going to head back or are you heading home?"

"I think we've had enough action for one day," Alice said, standing up with me. "We're going to head back home and rest for a while."

"Alright," he replied. "I'll, uh, see you some other time, Bella."

"Bye," I murmured, wrapping my arms tightly around Alice as we walked over to my car.

Carlisle walked over to us and hugged us both before smiling and departing, Lauren sound asleep in the back of his car. He then departed, driving off to the hospital as Alice and I entered my car.

"Wow," I sighed, leaning into her seat. "That was…different."

"Are you eager to get back into the fray any time soon?" Alice joked.

I chuckled. "I sincerely doubt that you would ever let me do that."

Alice's lips twitched. "I would profusely fight to try and persuade you not to, but in the end, it would be your choice, not mine. Of course, with your clumsiness and general lack of thinking power, you'd stink at being a cop. So really, there's no point in worrying about it."

I glared at her. "Oh yeah? Well I don't see you with a job, smart ass."

"I used to work as a psychic," she giggled.

I snorted. "I bet you cheated people out of their money."

Alice looked at me with wide eyes and a look of mock shock. "What? Me? Why I never! Well, okay, maybe a few times, just for shits and giggles. I only did it to people who were filthy stinking rich, though, not people who were poor, I promise." She winked at me as we drove off.

"Are we going home?" I asked.

"Yup," she replied. "I have a special little something planned for you, my dear. And before you ask, you will just have to wait and see what it is." I pouted at her, but she shook her head furiously and bit her lip. "Nope, that's not going to work on me this time. I'm not looking, so stop pouting and just sit there and wait."

"Bitch," I grumbled under my breath.

"Stinker," she replied, sticking her tongue out at me.

We drove in comfortable silence. I was…happy. I was happy that I'd been able to help Lauren out and I was certain that she would be fine. She might have a few emotional scars left over from what happened, but hopefully she'd be able to pull through it. I didn't see us becoming friends any time soon. I did believe that she wouldn't be harassing us anymore, at the very least.

"Hey Alice…"

"I don't know," Alice murmured. "I'm fairly certain that she'll be okay, but I'm not sure how she'll take the news when she finds out that her father killed her mother. She won't be coming to school for a little while, I do know that much. I believe that she has family that will come down to take care of her for a while, though. That should be good for her."

"I agree." She smiled. "Hey Alice?"

Alice giggled. "Yes, Bella?"

"We did a good thing today, helping her like that," I said, smiling at her.

Alice shook her head. "No, _you_ did a good thing today, Bella. You were the one that went to see Charlie, you were the one that got him to go over there and you were the one who told him that her father was a killer and got him to decide on looking into it. _You _are the hero for today."

She smiled proudly at me and leaned in to press her lips to mine. I sighed contently and kissed her back as she drove without looking at the road. It didn't take long for us to break apart, though by that point in time we were home. Esme was outside tending to her garden while Amara was wrestling with Emmett, Edward and Rosalie. Jasper wasn't there. Out hunting, I assumed.

"Hello girls," Esme greeted from her flower patch.

"Hi Esme," I replied as Alice opened my door for me. "And thank you, my gentlewoman."

"Any time, my sexy Bella," she replied, pressing her lips to mine once more.

"Get a room," Rosalie jeered teasingly. She frowned, then. "That reminds me, I do believe that you owe me some payment for having to pretend to impersonate someone that I loathe. Alice?"

Alice crinkled her nose in disgust. "Yes, I know Rose. Hold on." She blurred into the house, reappearing something that appeared to be a sheet of paper? Or a photo? I couldn't tell, but Alice looked like she wanted nothing to do with it. She handed it to Rosalie, who glanced at it and grinned delightfully before stuffing it into her pocket.

"Thank you, short-stuff," she said, kissing Alice's forehead.

"I hope I never have to see one of those again," Alice groaned in disgust.

Edward started laughing from where he stood, which made me confused. Rosalie laughed along with him, further adding to the extreme confusion. Alice shook her head and shuddered, wringing her arms out dramatically. What?

"What's so funny?" I asked, cocking my head to the side.

Rosalie beamed at me. "Oh, nothing." I noticed Emmett pouting behind her.

Alice rolled her eyes. "Whatever. Hey, Esme, did you…?"

Esme walked over to us and wrapped me into her arms, then Alice. "Yes, I did," she replied, tapping Alice's nose. "It's waiting for you in the kitchen, along with everything else you wanted, as requested." She winked at me and giggled a little. I was officially even more confused, now.

'Wha—?"

"Don't worry, Bella," Alice said, grinning mischievously. She held out her arms. "Now do me a favor and close your eyes. I have a surprise for you."

**A/N: So much happening in one chapter. First off, Charlie came back! And it looks like there might be some hope yet for Bella and Charlie being friends. ;) Second off, Lauren got screen time and it wasn't her mindlessly bashing Bella and Alice. Do you feel a bit bad for Lauren, somewhere in there? That was one of the points of the chapter, to show that there was a bit more to her than just a bitch. We'll see where that goes, now won't we? And the third thing was...a fierce Carlisle? You don't see that every day, now do you? I wanted to give him some screen time, too, so voila, I did.**

**The next chapter is going to be super fluffy. Lots of tenderness involved, so you fluff lovers will get your fix. You plot lovers don't have to wait too much longer for things to get back into swing, I promise. Just be patient and enjoy the treat that lies ahead for you in the form of the next chapter. **

**I think I made my case in the last few author's notes about my "business" and blogs. Hope you get a chance to check them out, maybe follow. I won't beg. Yet. ;P**

**Until next time. **


	65. Relaxation

**Disclaimer: I take all credit for my own characters and ideas, but not for Twilight or it's characters. Those belong to Meyer. Now then, on to the show.**

**Relaxation**

"Er…" I stared at her arms, uncertain. "What kind of surprise are we talking about here?"

Alice narrowed her eyes and instantly encased me in her stony arms. She immediately smirked and glided inside of the house with me still in her arms, the sound of Edward's guffawing ringing from outside, much to my annoyance. I had the incredible urge to tell him to shut up, but…oh.

_Shut the fuck up, Edward!_ I roared inside of my head. That just made him laugh harder. _Ass_.

Alice stopped in front of our door and set me down.

"Ignore him, love," Alice cooed, kissing my cheek. "I have a very special evening planned out for the both of us and that would require you to do something you might not like. Now be a dear and go change into what's waiting on the bed for you. Meet me in the kitchen when you're done and we'll get going." She winked at me and danced down the stairs, leaving me puzzled.

I sighed and walked into our room and saw a few clothes on the bed. I wondered why she wanted me to change so badly, and then I saw what it was she wanted to change into. A bikini.

I gaped at it and heard Alice's musical laughter downstairs. My cheeks heated up and I considered chickening out, but then I realized that I needed to get over the fear of being like this around her. Plus, if she was going to be wearing a bikini…yum.

So I sucked it up and dropped my clothes to the floor before switching into the dark blue bikini, which I recognized as the same one that I'd worn to La Push, but I'd never showed. I bet Alice was more than pleased to know that, since she probably wanted my body to herself. I couldn't argue with that logic, not at all.

Once I was dressed—if that term even applied—I took a deep breath and walked toward the door, only to find Alice standing outside of it, fully clothed. Her amber eyes darkened slightly as she appraised me, raking my form several times as a large smile tugged at her lips.

"You look sexy," she said, capturing my lips. "But then again, you're _always_ sexy."

My face was redder than a tomato. "Thanks…" I murmured. "Are you…?"

"Of course, silly, I just wanted to come compliment you and give you this," she said, handing me a plastic bag with new clothes in it. "Those are for when we're finished. You'd best not try to put them on now, or I'll tear them off. Just so that you're warned ahead of time."

"But what about—"

She gently tapped a finger to my lips. "Don't worry; I'll give you a towel to cover yourself. They know that if they make any crass remarks that I'll rip their heads off, anyways. I won't ever put you in an embarrassing situation, Bella. I promise."

I nodded. "Okay."

"Hang on a sec," she said. She vanished, then reappeared shortly after with a towel, which she handed to me with a smile. "Here you are."

"Thanks." I took the towel and wrapped it around myself.

Alice giggled and beckoned me into her arms, lifting me into a bridal style position. I nuzzled into her shoulder and hugged her tightly, the bag with my new change of clothes pressed between us as she gracefully danced down the stairs. She stopped to grab something, but her movements were too fast for me to watch since she immediately picked up her pace and dashed out the door, nuzzling into the top of my head.

"Close your eyes," she whispered. So I did.

About two minutes later, Alice stopped and set whatever it was in her other hand down before kissing my cheek and setting me down. I opened my eyes and was surprised when I saw that we were in the same area that we'd come to in the past, the place where we first admitted our feelings to each other not that long ago. Or at least, I thought it was.

It looked different.

"We're here," Alice giggled, waving her hand around. "Do you like the renovations that I've had made to our special spot?"

"What happened here?" I asked, amazed at the scenery change.

The waterfall that had been there looked a bit larger in size now. Not only that, but it was now pouring into a large hole that hadn't been there before, a single, flat surfaced rock in the very middle of it. The excess water flowed out into a small river that snaked into the surrounding forest, creating a very beautiful, relaxing looking scene.

Alice wrapped an arm around me. "I asked the others to move some things around, so they did. I wanted this to look perfect for when I took you out here. In all honesty, I was going to wait for this weekend, but I'm far too impatient to wait that long, so I decided to take you out here for our first official date with each other."

"It's gorgeous, Alice. Thank you."

"Don't thank me, thank Esme. It was her brains that helped plan this out. And I guess you should thank our siblings for helping to patch this place up. As a little gift to you."

"You didn't have to go and do all of this for me," I murmured, rubbing the back of my neck.

She rolled her eyes. "It was no trouble at all, Bella. Besides, they like destroying things and it gives them something to do with their spare time. Esme was just happy to have them out of the house for once since they were beginning to get rowdy with each other. So really, it's no problem, and I know for a fact they enjoyed doing it."

I wrapped my arms around her and pressed my lips to her smooth, icy ones. "This means a lot to me, Alice. Really, it does. I swear sometimes I think you're too good for me." I kissed her again, not even caring that my towel had dropped to the ground.

Alice smiled against my lips. "You know that isn't true, Bella. Not at all. Now wait here. I'll be right back." She gave me a teasing wink, then grabbed onto what she'd been carrying, a bag like mine, before dancing behind a large tree, blocking my view.

She was such a tease.

I shrugged and grabbed my towel to set it on a rock that was conveniently placed a few feet away from the water. Judging by the marks on the ground, it was obvious that Emmett had been the one to move it. I could tell because he'd drawn a "B" and an "A" in the ground with an arrow pointing between the two initials. If that wasn't a surefire giveaway, the "HOT" beneath it was.

Oh, Emmett. Sigh.

I heard a throat clear and turned to see Alice standing in a yellow silk bikini. My jaw dropped and I'm fairly certain I now had a nosebleed from the sight. I had forgotten how inhumanly _sexy _she looked in a bikini. _Holy shit._

"Guh…uh…"

I just stood there with my mouth hanging open like a moron, gaping at the sight of my beautiful vampire girlfriend. Alice laughed melodiously and strolled up to close my jaw, then leaned in to gently kiss me. The contact with her lips broke through the haze in my head and I moaned as she quickly deepened the kiss, pulling me into her arms.

Gently, Alice lay down and pulled me on top of her, giving me full access to her mouth. I licked her lips, reveling in her taste as she began to purr happily at the attention she was getting. I proceeded to insert my tongue into her mouth, eliciting a moan from both her and me, and slowly began to circle it around, kissing her and moving my fingers through her hair all the while.

Alice wrapped her arms around me, using one to gently press my face into hers and letting the other roam down my back, causing me to shudder at her cold fingertips. She seemed to hesitate for a moment with her hand as we kissed, but then she moved it downwards and cupped my ass with it, giving it a light squeeze. I gasped at the sudden stimulation and moaned into her mouth as she started teasing my tongue with hers.

We kissed for another minute or so, though it felt more like a century in heaven to me, before we broke apart so that I could breathe. Sometimes I hated the fact that I was still human and kind of yearned to not have to deal with breathing anymore. I ran a hand through my hair and glanced at Alice, who sat watching me with dark amber eyes, smiling.

"That was fun," she breathed.

I nodded. "It always is."

"Shall we go for a swim?" Alice asked, standing and offering me her hand.

I graciously accepted it and allowed her to lift me up, looking at the water with wonderment.

"Won't it be cold?" I asked.

Alice smiled and shook her head. "Not to me it won't be. As for you, I had a special little thing installed beneath, just for this type of occasion. Come along, don't worry. You'll love it; I've already seen it to make sure."

She led me toward the water and stepped into it, not bothered in the slightest. I tested the water with my toe out of habit, earning me a "tsk" from my girlfriend. I hadn't even touched the water for a second when she grinned, grabbing onto my leg and pulling me in, not even giving me the chance to yelp in surprise as the cold water rushed around my body.

"Bitch!" I cursed once I'd surfaced, Alice grinning next to me. The water was cool, but not as cold as I'd initially thought, but still! Alice burst into laughter, clearly amused. I glared at her and splashed her face with water. "That is so _not_ funny!"

Alice snorted. "Yes it is and you know it." I crossed my arms and huffed, shuddering slightly as my body slowly adjusted to the temperature of the water. Alice swam over to me and wrapped her arms around my waist, pulling me into her. "Aw, is my little Bella mad at me? Does she want me to kiss her and make it all better?"

I crossed my arms petulantly and shook my head. "No."

"You are such a stinker," Alice giggled, kissing my cheek.

I laid my head on her shoulder and sighed. "You said you had something installed?"

Alice grinned and pulled away from me momentarily, swimming over to the large rock in the center. I heard what sounded like a switch being flipped and within no time the water started to warm up. I gaped in surprise as Alice re-wrapped her arms around me, pulling me into her lap.

"We installed a special heating unit under this little area so that it would be like our own personal hot tub," Alice explained, smiling sweetly at me.

"This is awesome," I said, squeezing her tightly. "Thank you, Alice."

"You're welcome. All I want is for you to enjoy yourself."

"I will," I replied.

We stared into each other's eyes and kissed for a few minutes, enjoying the peace around us and the warmth of the water. I wondered what it was like for Alice since she had such naturally cold skin, but I decided I'd ask her another time. Now was just a time for us to relax and enjoy each other's company. Thinking can come later on.

Alice and I both swam around in the water, playing little games with each other as we did. We played a game where we would each see who could stand on their hands in the water the longest, which Alice won when she started to tickle my ribs, totally ruining what little chance I had to win in the first place. Okay, I wasn't going to win, but it was fun to try.

Another game we, or rather Alice, played was when she decided it would be funny to steal the bottom of half of my bikini. I chased her around the water with my ass showing, Alice squealing and giggling delightedly the whole while as she easily avoided me. In the end I gave up and she ended up tackling me into the water. After a brief squeeze on both of my cheeks, she happily declared herself the victor and allowed me to put the other half of the bikini back on.

I don't know how long we spent in the water. It felt like hours, but I didn't care. I was having the time of my life spending time with Alice, whether it was having a splash war or trying to see who could make the weirdest noises underwater or just swimming around, relaxing. Once we'd finished, the sky was slowly starting to turn dark, but otherwise it was still light out.

Alice and I laid next to each other on the large, smooth rock in the center of the small lake. We lay with our arms around one another, my head resting on her left shoulder as we gazed lovingly into each other's eyes. I loved her eyes. They were so easy to get lost in, so easy to make me forget about the rest of the world and think nothing of it.

She leaned in to press her soft lips to mine. "I love you."

"I love you too, Alice," I murmured.

She pulled me closer to her with her left arm and I rested my hand on the upper part of her stomach. The sunlight peeked through the leaves of the trees surrounding us and shone down on her pale skin, instantly setting her alight. I gazed down at the spectacle, unable to keep my eyes off of her beautifully sculpted body. I swear, I could never get over how amazingly beautiful my Alice truly was. It was like looking at an angel. Hell, she _was_ my angel.

"You're so beautiful," I sighed, gently stroking her flat stomach. "And perfect."

"As are you," Alice murmured, brushing her lips to the top of my head. I felt her nose graze my hair and breathe in several times, a content sigh escaping her lips. "You smell utterly divine, too, my sweet Bella. You have no idea how good you smell."

"Mouthwateringly?" I joked.

Alice smirked. "That and more, my dear, that and more."

I smiled and sat up slightly, wanting to get a better look at her physique. I'd been dying to admire her form for quite some time, and since I was finally getting that chance, I sure as hell did not want to miss it.

"Whatcha doing?" Alice asked, giving me a curious look as I scanned her majestic form.

"Just looking," I replied.

I started at her face, which was definitely one of my favorite parts of her. Her soft, spiky hair that I loved running my fingers through, her gorgeous eyes, that smile. God, her smile was so addictive. I could never get enough of it. I made a small mental note to myself; that I would make sure that she smiled as often as possible. I was tired of her being worried or sad or upset. I wanted my Alice to be happy, then I would be happy. It was better that way.

"What are you smiling at?" Alice asked, sitting up slightly.

I instantly pushed her back down. Well, I tried to, but my human strength did nothing and she sat up anyways, giving me a humorous look. I shrugged innocently.

"I'm just admiring my girlfriend's body. If she doesn't mind, that is…" I said, blushing a little.

Alice giggled and pressed her lips to my nose before lying back down. "Admire away, then."

I rolled my eyes at her cockiness. Then again, I loved her cockiness.

My eyes moved down and fixated on her chest. I'd always tried to avoid looking since I felt like a pervert whenever I stared at her breasts, but since she'd seen me naked countless times, I really didn't see a point in hiding it anymore. Besides, she didn't seem to mind. If anything, Alice looked flattered and a little excited at the attention that she was getting. I still blushed, though.

Alice's upper body was perfectly proportioned. Not too big, not too small, and rather cute looking, though I wasn't about to openly say that to her. There was no way I could. I could see the outlines of her breasts through her bikini top, a sight that excited me quite a bit. In the back of my mind, I felt a strong urge to touch her. Not just her chest, but everywhere. I wanted to feel her skin, to memorize her softness and to truly know what it was like to _feel _a vampire.

My eyes continued to trail down her body. I made sure to look at her arms first, admiring how toned they were without being muscular. Her fingers were thin and long and her nails were perfectly manicured, which I couldn't help smiling at. That was such a typical Alice thing.

I then proceeded to gaze upon her stomach, which had fascinated me the moment I'd first laid eyes on it. The skin of her stomach was both soft and smooth, like fine silk, not to mention how well defined it was. Her curves, which were perfect in appearance, were delicious looking and I ached to run my fingers along them. And of course there was her belly button, which was beyond cute and furthered my ache to touch her even more.

I finished my journey by scanning her lower body, which, like the rest of her, was perfect. Her legs were thin and toned like her arms and her feet…well, I'd never been one to give a person's feet my attention, but being with Alice, I was curious. I had to say, they were cute. It wasn't a term I'd ever thought I'd put to feet, but it was true. Her toes were adorable looking and the nails were manicured and painted like her fingernails were.

And of course there was always that round, cute little ass of hers. To not stare at that, especially when she wiggled it around as she danced, was fairly impossible. But really, why should I care if I stare at her body? She's my girlfriend, my soulmate. There's no crime in basking in the beauty of the person you love, right? So in all honesty, my embarrassment was pointless.

I noticed Alice gazing at me intently, her amber orbs boring into mine. The urge to touch her had increased to the point of a physical pain and I was at the edge of losing it. I bit my lip and gave her form a quick once-over again and swallowed the lump in my throat.

"Alice?" I asked groggily, trying to steady my increasing heart rate.

Alice remained silent as she sat up and wrapped her arms around me, pulling me closer to her body and pressing her forehead against mine. Her face was nothing but gentle as she pulled me as close to her as I could, our chests and stomachs touching in a way that made me melt. I licked my lips nervously. Try as I might, I could not fight off these urges, which were stronger than they had been earlier today. It was nearly overwhelming, but I kept myself in check.

"Yes, Bella?" Alice asked, cupping my cheek with one hand.

"I…" My eyes wanted to go down. My hands wanted to touch her. I needed to touch her. It didn't need to be sex. No, not sex. Just touch. Feel. "Alice, I…" I gulped again as Alice gently kissed me, stroking my cheek with her thumb.

"It's okay, Bella," she cooed. "Ask."

"C-c-can I…can I touch you?" I asked in a whisper so low, for a moment I thought I hadn't even asked her. I blinked, turning my head away from hers and swallowed the lump in my throat again, feeling the sweat forming on my brow as my heart raced. "Please? I-I really want to t-touch you, Alice. The urges…they…I can't…"

Alice gently hushed me and pressed her lips to mine again. She did so several times, swirling her thumbs on my cheeks as she moved her other hand up. The tenderness in her actions and her cooing did wonders and helped calm my beating heart. I let out a shaky sigh as she kissed me one last time before pulling away a bit.

"Of course you can touch me," she replied. "I would be honored."

I nearly choked. "R-really? You don't mind?"

Alice laughed melodiously, her laughter doing wonders for my nerves. I relaxed almost on instinct as she ran her fingers through my hair, smiling warmly and lovingly at me.

"Bella, it's okay," she soothed, hugging me again. Her eyes shone with endless love, all aimed at me. "I have no qualms with you touching me. I would love it, truthfully. You act like touching me is a sin of some kind. Trust me, love, it isn't. And it's not like we need to go into having sex or anything like that. That can come later when you're ready."

I bit my lip and nodded. "Alright. I'm just nervous, that's all."

"Why are you nervous?" Alice asked, appraising me placidly. "You don't have to be nervous about touching me or asking me that type of question. And if it's the sex you're nervous about, like I've said before, don't be. It's something that we'll do when you're ready. Besides, you've had sex before, so why worry about it?"

"Yes, but Alice, I haven't had it with _you_ before," I stated. "My first time was a huge mistake that I can't take back and the second…"

"Let's not talk about that," Alice interrupted, kissing me. "That still isn't much of a reason."

I sighed. "Because they weren't _you_, Alice."

"I don't understand. What do you mean "because they weren't me"?" she asked, cocking her head to the side and giving me a quizzical look.

"Alice…you're so much better than anyone else I've ever been with or thought about being with or anything like that. You're a fucking angel and then some in my eyes. Not only that, you're my first true girlfriend and the first person I've ever felt a connection like this to. I don't want to fuck it up when we do go through it, you know? I want to live up to your expectations."

Alice shook her head, laughing quietly. "Bella, stop that. You won't "fuck it up" as you seem to think you will. As far as living up to my expectations goes, you have already lived up to my expectations and more. Please, stop concerning yourself over this." She gently grabbed onto my left hand and brought to her lips, kissing each knuckle. "I want you to feel."

She proceeded to move my hand to her covered right breast before gently placing it down, smiling at me as she removed her hand. My face was both red and hot as my eyes moved down to her sculpted chest, but I gulped my nervousness down and did what Alice asked. I felt.

Her breast fit into my hand fairly well. It was hard as a rock, just like the rest of her skin, yet it was incredibly smooth, even with her top still on. Alice closed her eyes and smiled as I marveled at it, quickly doing the same with my other hand and cupping her other breast. It was amazing, like touching a statue, almost, except that the statue moved. Her breathing made her chest rise and drop, furthering the sensations brought on by the touch. I even made a bold maneuver and felt her nipples, which earned a light yip and a pleasurable purr from Alice.

I removed my hands and wrapped my arms around her waist, pulling her closer to me. I then leaned my head down and rested it above her left breast, closing my eyes as I did. Alice gently laid her hand on the top of my head as I listened to the sound of her breathing. It was weird, but the fact that she had no heartbeat was eerily soothing. I listened to her breathing for a few minutes before pulling my head up and pressing a kiss to her skin there.

Her skin tasted wonderful. It wasn't as good as her lips and tongue, but it was a much better taste than even the sweetest ice cream or dessert I'd ever eaten. I looked up to see her smiling contently, her body vibrating in her purr. I loved the sound of her purr. I placed my left hand on her upper chest and started to gently stroke her smooth stomach, reveling in the softness and in the effect it was having on Alice.

I moved my hand up and down, eventually stopping to circle my finger around her belly button, which I stared down at lovingly. I remembered that she'd kissed mine a while back to help ease me and the thought popped into my mind to give it a try with hers.

"Alice?"

"Mm?" she asked, not opening her eyes.

I hesitated and bit my lip. "Can I, uh…can I kiss _your_ belly button?"

Alice laughed melodiously. "Silly Bella, of course you can. Haven't I done yours before?"

I nodded and leaned down to kiss the area around it. Alice's body vibrated happily as I kissed her stomach and I swore I heard her moan. I then proceeded to kiss the center of her stomach, which was like a concentration of her natural chocolaty flavor. I couldn't resist myself, so I allowed my tongue to slip out and lick her abdominal hole. Alice moaned again, louder this time, and I couldn't help moaning too. It tasted heavenly, though still not as good as her lips.

After a few minutes of exploring her innie, I removed my tongue and leaned up to press my lips to hers. She purred and tugged me close to her to kiss me passionately for a few minutes, breaking away shortly after and smiling rather broadly at me.

"It tastes kinda good," she mused humorously, licking her lips.

I laughed. "It does," I agreed, licking my lips too. The flavor from that and the rest of her skin lingered on my tongue. Oh how I loved that.

"Not as good as yours, my sweet," she giggled, connecting our lips again.

We kissed sweetly for a few more minutes, each of us running our fingers through the other's hair as we hugged one another closely, before stopping again, both of us smiling foolishly at each other. Alice proceeded to roll on top of me and press our foreheads together, her amber eyes smoldering rather vibrantly with affection.

"I do believe that now would be a good time for the second half of our evening together," Alice said, kissing me once more.

"What do you have planned?" I asked.

She smiled and lifted me into her arms. "Hang on to me for one second." I wrapped my arms around her and watched as she leapt from the boulder we'd been laying on back to the other side where our clothes were. Alice giggled and gently dropped me down beneath the nearest tree and handed me the change of clothes.

"Go on and change. I'll go over here to change. Then we can begin," she said, winking.

I nodded and in a flash she was gone. I stood and quickly removed my bikini, then speedily put on the clothes that Alice had given me. I almost laughed a little as I slipped into the clothes; they are very fine silk, including the bra and panties that she'd been gracious enough to give me. I guess my girl had a thing for silk. But then hey, so did I.

Once I'd finished dressing, Alice reappeared where a similar set of lace clothing that made got me excited, carrying something in her left hand. I couldn't tell what it was because it was covered by a large cloth, but it looked like a basket of some kind. A picnic basket?

Alice smiled and pulled the blanket away, revealing none other than a picnic basket.

"If you would be so kind as to move a little, please," she commanded softly.

I took a few steps back and watched as she smoothly laid the blanket down beneath the shade of the tree before setting the picnic basket down and plopping down in the center of the blanket, patting her lap and beckoning me over. I smiled and happily sat down in her lap as she wrapped her arms around me, pulling me close to her.

"Now then, we can begin part two of our special evening with each other," she purred, kissing both of my cheeks and bringing the picnic basket closer.

"That sounds like fun to me," I chuckled.

**A/N: It's so FLUUUUUUUUUUFFY! **

**Yes, I totally just stole a movie quote. So what? Er, anyways.**

**I remember a while back I got a couple comments saying that they wouldn't mind seeing Bella and Alice being together with each other doing couple-y stuff and not being hunted down by crazy vampires or trying to defend themselves against smelly werewolves or the bitches at school and all that rot. So I decided to do exactly that, not just to appease them but to appease myself. Besides, usually people seem to really like the fluff chapters. Or maybe that's just me thinking that way. Whatever. You don't like fluff, there be something wrong with you (in my opinion, and I'm crazy, so who knows if I'm right). :P**

**ANYWAYS. I hope that you enjoyed the fluffiness. There's a bit more fluffiness to come before things get back into swing (or whatever phrase you would use, I don't know). **

**I want everyone to know that this chapter, 63 (it's 64 because of the preface) is pretty much the top of the roller coaster's final run. Which means you need to hold onto your seats, folks, and enjoy the ride while you go down (just don't throw up on the person next to you) because Blood Solstice is coming to it's climactic (if you want to call it that) ending very, very soon. Just a warning. Does that mean the end of Blood Solstice? **

***dramatic pause***

***another dramatic pause***

***one more dramatic pause to add more words to the word length and irritate you***

**NO. It does NOT *happy dance*. For three reasons. **

**One, I will be open to suggestions or ideas for oneshots (maybe multi-shots) in the Blood Solstice universe that I will post on my Tumblr account and MAYBE here. So if you have any ideas, either message me on Tumblr, PM me or let me know in a review. No threesomes, though. Though I MIGHT do a piece or two, possibly with Katie involved (because a few of you thought it was hot and wanted it) and possibly with Amara (because apparently SOMEONE started a petition to get people to vote on Amara kissing Bella and Alice). These would be set in the same universe, post the end of Blood Solstice, but not a part of the actual story. **

**Two, I have been considering writing a, shall we say, collection of oneshots (all canon) post Blood Solstice and putting them together in one thing. This would be family fluff, like Bella bonding with everyone including her human friends and the like. It'd be for fun, nothing too serious. I MIGHT do this. If you would like to see this, let me know via the review. I would make a poll, but for the life of me, I can't figure out how.**

**And three, the alleged sequel. Yes, sequel. You heard right. More on that next chapter. :D**


	66. You

**Disclaimer: I don't claim Twilight, because that belongs to Meyer. I do take claim for my own characters and ideas.**

**You**

Alice kissed the top of my head as she set the picnic basket down on my lap. She opened it up to reveal a myriad of different things, including a few plastic containers, a sandwich, a bag of my favorite kind chips and a bottle of what I believed to be a smoothie of some kind. I did not fail to notice the smiley faces pasted onto them.

"You made all of this?" I asked, though I knew the answer already. Nobody else, other than maybe Esme, would put smiley faces all over the inside of a picnic basket. That was screaming Alice at me.

Alice giggled and tapped my nose. "Esme helped a little bit, but yes, I did."

I reached down and pulled out the sandwich, testing it by sniffing it at first. If anything, it was just to annoy Alice, which I was successful in doing. Her brows furrowed and she crossed her arms petulantly, sticking out her bottom lip in that oh-so adorable manner I loved.

She huffed. "Just eat your stinky sandwich, damn it. I didn't poison it or anything." I snickered and kissed her cheek, which erased the pout on her face, then bit down on the sandwich. It wasn't bad. I mean, it's a sandwich, there's very few ways that someone, even Alice, could ruin a sandwich. Alice nuzzled into my neck. "Is it okay?"

I nodded. "It's fine," I replied.

Alice leaned in with her mouth open and for a moment I thought she might take a bite of the sandwich. Instead, she breathed on it, allowing her sweet scented breath to be absorbed by the otherwise plain food that I was eating. After a minute and a half she closed her mouth and smirked at me. I was about to thank her, but she pressed her lips to mine before I could.

I moaned as she snaked her tongue out of her mouth and twirled it around mine for a short time, allowing me the chance to taste her. So good…

"You're welcome," she replied when she broke away. "Oh, and one more thing."

"What's tha—?"

Alice opened her mouth and let loose a burst of her breath directly on my face. My nostrils flared as I absorbed the heavenly burst of flavor and I nearly blacked out from it. My brain turned to mush and it took me a few minutes after Alice had closed her mouth to be able to articulate what in God's name had just happened. I blinked several times, noticing Alice's humorous expression.

"Holy…shit…" I breathed out groggily. "Your breath smells Godly."

Alice giggled. "Why thank you. But really, would you ever tell me otherwise?"

I blinked a few more times. "Well, I don't think your breath can smell anything _but_ good."

"True. Now, enjoy your sandwich."

I felt my mouth water when I remembered that she'd breathed on my sandwich. Which only meant one thing; I needed to eat that bitch. So I quickly bit down on it and immediately moaned when I tasted the intense flavor that was Alice pulsating through my mouth. It felt like I tasted heaven as I swallowed the bite in my mouth and greedily went for another one.

Alice watched me in wonderment as I ate the flavor-induced food, nearly chomping on my fingers once I'd eaten it. Alice giggled and stopped me to remind me that there was no more food in my hands, which was a severe letdown. She proceeded to hand me the chips and the smoothie—plus a napkin—and did the same thing to them as she had to the sandwich. Needless to say, if I could have an orgasm in my mouth, I would have had at least ten from the meal.

Once I'd finished, I burped, which Alice laughed at and applauded. I blushed, but I couldn't help laughing along with her. Alice then set the basket aside and we proceeded to snuggle with each other on the blanket, nuzzling into one another in peace.

"What else did you bring?" I asked, glancing at the basket.

"Cake," she replied. "But that's only if you're a good girl."

I rolled my eyes. "I'm always good."

"No, you're a stinker is what you are," Alice said. I stuck my tongue out at her. "See? That right there proves my point."

"Shut up!" I grunted.

"No!" she giggled, gently pinning me to the blanket.

She grinned and pressed her lips to mine and we rolled around, kissing and giggling like little school girls with one another. When we stopped, Alice pulled me up and gently pressed my back to the tree, her eyes shining.

"Can I give you a foot massage?" she asked, cocking her head to the side.

I giggled. "Is that an excuse for you to touch my feet?"

Alice stuck out her bottom lip. "Please?"

"Yes, Alice, you may," I replied, smiling at her.

She squealed delightedly and moved down to my feet. She took my right foot in her hands and, after taking a minute of feeling it, she began to tenderly massage it. I closed my eyes and sighed contently, enjoying the soothing feelings brought on by her motions. I felt her press her lips to the sole of my foot, which made me giggle. Alice then proceeded to do the same with my left foot, placing a gentle kiss on the sole once she'd finished up.

"That was nice," I said. Alice smiled and continued stroking my feet. "You're weird."

"Yup," she giggled, nuzzling into my left foot. "Can't help it, it's just who I am."

"And I love you for that," I said, smiling warmly at her.

Alice smiled just as warmly and crawled up to press her lips to mine. "As I love you, my sweet Bella. I love everything about you, in fact, which is great because there are so many things, so many small details about you, Bella, that make you beyond perfect in my eyes."

"Really?"

"Really, really," she cooed, kissing me again. She then pulled me into her lap, re-wrapping her arms around me and letting me snuggle close to her. Alice lifted my chin up and pressed her lips to mine, holding them there for a few seconds before pulling away. "Do you want to know what I love most about you, Bella?" I nodded sheepishly. "It's a long list, so here we go."

"First off…" She leaned in to brush her lips against mine. "I love your feet. They are so utterly adorable that I can't get enough of them." I chuckled and she smiled, kissing me again. "I love your hair. It's so soft and shiny and long and there are so many ways that I can enjoy it, whether it's running my fingers through it or styling it any way I want."

I rolled my eyes. Another kiss. "I love your smile. It's so beautiful. You have no idea how much I love seeing you smile, Bella. I want to make you smile for the rest of eternity, always." I couldn't help smiling at that, which pleased her. "I love your nose. Honestly, aside from your smile and your eyes, you have an adorable nose." She laid a gentle kiss on it, making me blush.

"I love your blush," Alice said. "It's so incredibly cute. And I love how clumsy you are, at least when it isn't hurting you." Kiss. "I also love your foul mouth." Kiss. "I love your fascination with my belly button." Kiss. "I love your inner bravery." Kiss. "I love your smell." Kiss, this one longer and more passionate. "I love your taste." Kiss.

She pulled away, beaming at me. "You are kind and loving, beautiful and, even though it might not seem like it most of the time, you're very intelligent." She winked at me when I narrowed my eyes. Alice then cupped my cheeks and pressed our forehead together. "I love that you can put up with my possessiveness and jealousy, even if I try as best I can to keep them in check. I love that you're so physically affectionate. I love that you're as perverted as I am."

I giggled. Alice's smile grew. "I love the sound of your laughter, too. But really, to put all that together, I love…you. No matter what we go through or what anyone says or thinks, you are perfect for me, Isabella. You complete me. You are my soul, my heart, my other half, and any other cliché or corny-yet-true love related thing you could think of."

We gazed into each other's eyes in silence. I watched how her eyes glistened like actual gold and sighed contently, Alice doing the same. I absorbed the love radiating off of her and soaked in her words, relishing in how much she truly loved me and in how much I truly loved her. Alice rubbed our noses together, smirking.

"I do believe that you owe me the same treatment, no?" she asked.

"You're not supposed to _ask_ for it, Alice," I pointed out. "But…yeah, you do deserve it. I don't know if mine will be as heartfelt as yours was…"

"Just shut up and kiss me," Alice snorted. So I did. I pressed my lips to hers this time and held them there, savoring the flavor of her smooth, rose-colored lips.

I took in a deep breath and pulled Alice close. "I love your hair," I started, running my fingers through her silky locks and kissing her. "It's so soft and addicting to run my fingers through, and I have a thing for girls with short hair." Alice giggled. I captured her lips again. "I love the sound of your laugh. It's so musical and soothing and beautiful, just like the rest of you."

My eyes trailed downwards and I smiled, kissing her again. "I love your stomach and how soft, curvy and sexy it is." She rolled her eyes and I kissed her again. "Your eyes…God, I could stare into them for hours on end and never get bored. I love your eyes so much, Alice. They're my favorite part of you." She lifted an eyebrow and pointed downwards at her stomach, smirking at me teasingly. I huffed. "Okay, fine, they're _one_ of my favorite parts of you, sheesh."

I leaned in and kissed her again, cupping her cheeks. "I love how adorable you are half the time and how sultry you are the other half." Kiss. "I also love how cuddly you are. I don't I could go five minutes without hugging you at least once." She pulled me closer as I kissed her again. "I love you when you get jealous. You have no idea how cute it is when you shout "mine" and pull me closer to you. Plus, I find it endearing and sweet."

"I love your lips," I murmured, pressing mine to hers once more. "I can't even begin to describe how much I love them; the taste, the softness, the beauty…there's so much to say." Kiss. "I love your cockiness and the way you carry yourself. I love your foot fetish, too, and the way you smell and the sound of your purring…"

I kissed her one last time, deepening the kiss as she pulled my head in close.

"You are everything that I've always wanted, Alice. You are kind, loving, smart and fiercely loyal and protective, yet you still have a lot of flaws, all of which I love about you. No matter what, I'm glad that we met and I'm beyond glad that we're together. You've changed my life in so many ways, Alice…and I love you so much…"

"I love you too, Bella," Alice said. "You are my world."

"And you are mine," I replied.

"I am indeed yours," Alice giggled, laying me down again. "Would you like your cake?"

"Yes ma'am," I replied, giving her a mock salute.

She stuck her tongue out at me. "Don't call me ma'am!"

She proceeded to reach into the basket and open up the container inside, which contained a well sized portion of chocolate cake. There were pink swirls on top forming rather intricate flower designs, including two in the middle with the first letter in both of our names. And then, there was a smiley face in the very center, which I found adorable.

"Go on, try it," Alice urged. "I baked it myself, no help from Esme whatsoever." I gave her a quizzical look. She ran a hand through her hair. "Okay, so I burned the first two cakes and blew up the third and fourth. But this one is perfect, I swear."

I shrugged and cut a piece using a conveniently placed plastic fork and put the piece in my mouth, nearly choking on the intense explosion of flavor. I managed not to, thankfully, but I was feeling dazed for a moment after I'd swallowed the bite down.

"Holy…" There were more flavors in that bite then there had been in the sandwich. _Damn_.

Alice giggled. "I made sure to breathe on that quite a bit once I made it. I'm glad that the flavor remains, because it gives the intended effect rather nicely."

"I'll say," I muttered breathlessly. "This is fucking delicious."

"Well I'm glad you think so," Alice said, kissing my cheek. "Try not to have an orgasm while you eat it, though. That would ruin the nice silk clothes that I bought you."

I trembled and picked up another bite. "I can _try_."

About an hour later I set down the empty cake container and fork, trembling and drooling like a madwoman from the sensations pulsing through me. Alice hugged me and cooed in my ear and I swear to God I felt so incredibly high from the flavor outburst, I was too afraid to trust my own senses, so I just laid in her arms until I could think clearly again.

I laid my head on Alice's shoulder as Alice kissed my cheek. "So, did you die from the intense flavor of my super awesome cake?" she asked, pressing her forehead to mine and gazing into my eyes with wonderment and love.

"I think I almost did," I breathed. "That was amazing, Alice. Thank you."

"Of course, my sweet," Alice replied, nuzzling into me. "Anything for you."

Alice kissed my neck several times, moving around. She moved to the base of my throat and glanced at me for permission, then laid a gentle kiss there. She let her lips linger before moving so that she was sitting on my lap and kissed the other side of my neck. I closed my eyes and enjoyed the sensations that were brought along with her lips.

"That feels really good," I sighed as she trailed her lips all over my face, ending on my lips.

"Tastes good, too," Alice murmured against my skin. She started to purr again as she laid me down and nuzzled into my neck affectionately, breathing in and out several times and moaning loudly. "You smell so good, Bella. So good. I love your smell."

She kissed my neck again and started to trail her lips downwards, kissing every inch of my collar bone that she could, even kissing my shoulders. Her lips continued to slowly go down, even pressing an inch above my cleavage. Alice paused and stared down at my breasts, then raked my form with her eyes and licked her lips.

"Alice?" I asked, looking down at her. Her eyes were darker as she looked up at me.

"You look so fucking scrumptious and sexy," she purred. "Bella…will you do me a favor and take your shirt off?"

"Er…" I blushed.

"Please?" Alice asked, giving me a pleading look. "I want to do what you did to me earlier."

I thought about it for a moment, then nodded. Alice grinned and pulled my shirt off for me before setting it down to my left. She gazed at my body lovingly, running her fingers from the middle of my bra down to my stomach. Alice smiled and pressed her lips near the waistband of my pants, an inch below my belly button.

She then pressed her lips all around my lower stomach, her breath tickling my hips as she moved up and down them. Alice then started kissing circles around my upper chest, moving all over the place, up, down, left, right. Alice then went down and started at the same place, gradually moving upwards. Her lips enveloped my innie and I moaned when her tongue darted out, swirling it around several times before she continued upwards.

Alice's lips pressed beneath each of my breasts and, in a move fueled by passion, I grabbed her head and pressed her lips to each side of my bra. Alice was purring delightedly all the while, as she hungrily pressed her lips to mine. I curled my arms around her, moaning at how soft the silky clothes she was wearing was. Apparently I had a thing for silk. Doesn't matter. Feels awesome.

Alice's tongue snaked into my mouth and began to swirl around, teasing my tongue as if to egg it on into playing with it. At first I just enjoyed her tongue on mine, but I felt a small urge to battle it out for control of my mouth, so I snaked my tongue around hers and fluttered it about. Our tongues fought each other for control of my mouth, but hers won rather quickly. I gave up because I loved the feeling of her tongue in my mouth too much.

I started ruffling her shirt as our kissing became more lustful than passionate. I could hear my heart pounding in my chest and felt sweat forming on my brow, but I didn't care. Alice seemed to like that because when she broke apart, she kissed up the small beads of sweat and licked her lips joyously, then crashed her lips onto mine again.

"You." Kiss. "Taste." Kiss. "So." Kiss. "Good," she moaned. She stopped and pressed her ear to my upper chest where my heart was. I watched her shudder and moan again. "Your heartbeat sounds wonderful, too. Like music to my ears." She brushed her nose against my skin. "And your smell…fuck, you smell _so_ amazing."

"Alice," I breathed as she kissed me again.

My brain was already mush and I felt a residual need rising within me, a need to _be_ with her. I had had thoughts about it in the past, but never thoughts this strong. They were overwhelming and a part of me, the primitive part surfaced by my vampire instincts, wanted me to give in to my urges and take Alice, make her mine once and for all.

Do I do it? Do I give in? Make her mine?

_Yes. Do it. She wants it. You want it._

_Not yet. It's too soon and I'm not ready._

_Yes._

_No._

_Yes!_

_No!_

_Yes. I want this..._

Alice broke my chain of thought and pressed her lips to my neck several times, even kissing all over my throat, before stopping at and licking my pulse point rather affectionately and nuzzling into it. I gasped when I felt her teeth graze the skin there, but she didn't bite it, she merely kissed and licked it, purring happily.

"Alice…" I murmured, not scared of her, but wary of her control. Her black eyes looked up at me as she switched to the right side of my neck and proceeded to do the same thing. I felt a bit nervous, not knowing how strong her control was right now, but I trusted Alice. I knew she wouldn't hurt me, not after the last accident we had. It did feel kind of good, regardless.

"WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING? GET OFF OF HER!"

The loud, booming voice startled me. I would've jumped were it not for Alice being there, though in an instant she was flung off of me by a rather powerful kick. I yelped in surprise as Alice landed lithely on her feet, snarling thunderously as her eyes narrowed into angry slits. I whipped my head up to see none other than Jacob, standing with clenched fists and no shirt, looming over me as if he were protecting me.

"Jacob?" I shrieked. "What the fuck are you doing?"

Jacob looked down at me with dark eyes. "She was biting you!" he growled, gritting his teeth angrily. "So I got her off of you to save you."

His eyes widened and his mouth dropped open as if he had just seen God. That was when I realized that I didn't have a shirt on. Feeling violated and disgusted, I quickly covered my chest up with one hand and grabbed my shirt with the other, pulling it over my body as I stood up. He did not just fucking check me out while I was shirtless. Ew! Ew, ew, ew, ew!

"Stop staring at me, you perverted mutt!" I hissed, feeling my face heat up. "And get the hell away, Jacob! Alice wasn't trying to bite me, she was kissing me!"

"But—"

Alice let out a guttural snarl that made Jacob stop dead in his tracks. I turned to see her body vibrating with fury as her black, slit-like eyes glared Jacob down. Immediately she enveloped me in her arms and pulled me in close to her.

"MINE," she snarled.

"Get away from her, leech!" Jacob growled.

"Jacob, _leave_," I growled back. "You're not welcome here."

Jacob looked shocked. "What? I was helping you, damn it. All I wanted to do was come here and apologize for all the shit I'd said, but apparently I don't need to. Trust me, Bella; if you stay with this bloodsucking monster, you'll end up dead! She's not good for you!"

I twitched and was about to lash out at him, but Alice sprang forward and nailed him right in the face with a vicious left hook. Jacob went flying backwards and crashed into a nearby tree, growling and bursting into his wolf form in an instant. The large, russet furred wolf snarled angrily and stalked towards us, Alice snarling back and crouching down, ready to attack.

An image of Alice being torn apart by the giant wolf flashed through my head, causing me to jump in front of her protectively. Alice hissed, gently grasping my shoulders and tried to pull me behind her, but I wrapped my arms around her and refused to budge as Jacob neared us, stopping and growling in annoyance at me.

"Get _behind_ me," Alice hissed, struggling to pull me back. "_I_ protect _you_."

"No," I breathed. "I have to protect you, Alice." I turned my head. "Go away, Jacob! Leave us alone, I'm not letting you hurt her! She's _mine_, do you understand me? And it's _my_ business whether or not I want her to bite me anyways, not yours!"

Jacob growled and lunged at me. Alice roared and tried to move me out of the way, but I clamped my eyes shut and focused solely on protecting her. Seconds later Jacob was flying backwards as a wave of air rippled from my body, creating a shockwave like I had several times in the past. Alice's eyes widened as Jacob landed roughly several feet away, his foul smelling blood trickling down his hairy lips.

His eyes narrowed and he let out a loud howl that made me shudder. Not too long later, three more wolves showed up, growling in unison at Alice and I. The urge to protect Alice faltered and I realized rather quickly what I'd just done and what was happening now. I gulped as Alice growled and pulled me behind her, shielding me with her body.

"Alice…" I said, my eyes darting between the four wolves. "What do we do?"

"Get my phone," she ground out. "Call home for help. Stay behind me."

I dashed over to where her earlier clothes were and grabbed her phone, since I'd forgotten mine at home like a genius. I flipped it open and called the first person on the list, which just so happened to be Amara. She picked up on the first ring as the growls grew louder.

"Hey there foot lover, what's cracking?" Amara asked on the other end.

"Amara, Alice needs your help! There are four wolves here and they're not happy!" I shouted into the phone, darting my head around as the wolves started to circle her. "Hurry!"

Amara didn't answer for about three seconds. "On the way, hang tight."

She hung up and I set Alice's phone down before speedily pulling her into my arms. I knew I wasn't threatening in any way, shape or form, but I'll be damned if I was just going to let them attack her. Besides, I was a human, which meant that they shouldn't attack me. And I was right.

Two of the wolves, which I vaguely remembered being Quil and Embry, whimpered and stopped circling around Alice and I, looking to Jacob questioningly. The other, which I think was Paul, glared at me, but continued to circle, looking for an opening to attack Alice. Jacob gave me the "get the hell out of my way" look, but I didn't budge.

"You stay away from her, you stinking mongrels," Alice snarled.

That made all four of them growl at her. Paul's body was shaking violently and he appeared to be preparing to pounce. I heard a few loud snarls from the distance and at once all four wolves whipped their heads in the direction. I smirked and hugged Alice close to me as our siblings sped into the clearing, Emmett leading them.

The four wolves moved away from Alice and I and growled at our siblings as they crouched down and squared off with the wolves; Rose glaring down Paul, Edward and Emmett glaring down Jacob, Amara against Quil and Jasper against Embry. Alice smoothly pulled away from me and pounced on top of Jacob with her teeth bared only to be slammed into by a female wolf, which I believed to be Crystal. Then the battle began.

Snarls, growls and hissed erupted as everyone ran at each other and began to brawl, clawing, kicking, punching and even a bit of biting as dirt and debris was kicked up. I wanted to do something to help, but I was forced to watch on as everyone battled it out. Alice yelped when Jacob whirled around and chomped on Alice's right leg.

"Alice!" I screamed, trying to run toward her.

"Stay back!" Alice hissed, kicking Jacob forcefully in the nose with her left foot.

She clutched her leg as Emmett rammed into Jacob and the two started wrestling around on the ground, Jacob trying to snap off Emmett's head every chance he got. Crystal lunged at Alice, but was sent crashing down when Amara threw Quil into her, growling all the while. This was a mess, and I didn't know what to do about it. What could I do, though? I was helpless and useless.

I _hated_ that so damn much.

I felt a hand touch my shoulder and yelped, spinning around in surprise.

"Get off…Leah?" I blinked in surprise as the tall, tan skinned girl was standing behind me in her human form, worriedly watching on. Seth was next to her, also worried. "What are you two doing here? Shouldn't you be…?"

"Helping them?" Leah finished. "No. I saw Paul, Quil and Embry take off, so I got worried and went after them. I would have phased, but then I smelled you, so I decided to stay human, just to make sure that you were alright. Seth, of course, tagged along even though I told him_ not_ to."

She glared down at her younger brother, who smiled innocently at her. It didn't last long because of all the violence going on in front of us and I longed to go and help. I didn't want Alice or any of the others getting hurt. Damn Jacob. Why does he always have to ruin my special moments?

"What happened?" Seth asked.

"Jacob happened," I ground out.

"Again?" Leah sighed. "Stupid asshole doesn't learn."

Jacob snarled at her and Leah growled back. Alice, who was trying to get to Jacob, but being blocked by Edward from doing so, whipped her head around and sped over to where I was, pulling me into her arms protectively. Seth and Leah tensed up, Leah narrowing her eyes warily at Alice while Seth merely looked concerned.

"Mine," Alice hissed.

"I know that, bloodsucker," Leah growled. "I came because I was worried about her."

Alice seemed to register that and released me, pushing me into Leah's arms.

"Take her away. Take her anywhere, I don't care. I won't have her getting caught in this."

Leah blinked. "But—"

"Just take her and protect her!" Alice snarled. "Please!"

Leah nodded curtly and pulled me into her warm arms, hugging me close to her body. I hugged onto her, but shot Alice a worried look. Alice's eyes smoldered with sorrow, but she turned without a word and rushed back into the skirmish.

"I'm staying," Seth said. "To help if I can. Sam and Raina will be here shortly, I'm sure of it."

"Be careful," Leah told him, lifting me up.

"Leah…" I breathed.

"You too, sis," Seth replied.

Leah grunted and took off into the woods with me in her arms. I tried to fight out of them at first because I wanted to be with Alice, but I eventually gave in, knowing that I'd be safe with Leah and praying that the fight would end soon.

"Don't worry, your little bloodsucker will be fine," Leah murmured.

I sighed and squeezed her for support. "I hope so."

**A/N: Stupid dog! You done ruined the moment for everybody! Oh, wait. I made him do that. *evil smile here***

**Yeah. Well. Um. **

**What?**

**I can't always come up with some snarky jabber that helps keep your attention on my random comments. Seriously. I will, however, say that the plot is now returning, so I hope that all you fluff-lovers enjoyed the love-fest before that moron Jacob had to come and ruin it. I mean really, he's so short-tempered and biased and annoying...wait, that's canon. So in all honesty, my interpretation of Jacob isn't too far away from the real thing. He's just shorter. Just as whiny and irritating *insert long Jacob hate rant that has no facts backing it up here and move along* and that is why I can't stand Jacob Black. **

**So, um, this is my obligatory plug moment. Tumblr account for Blood Solstice, blah, blah, blah. OC business, requests for oneshots, yadda, yadda. You know the drill. This is just in case you don't pay attention. Or if you just choose to ignore me. Or whatever.**

**Blood Solstice sequel news: don't expect the sequel to be posted for a while. I have other stories (one posted already) in the works beforehand. You'll still get your Blood Solstice fix, but part of it actually has to do with YOU (the reader) and your suggestions or requests or other stuff like that. **


	67. Scent

**Disclaimer: I don't own Twilight, but I do own all OCs and ideas. Come to think of it, can you take claim for an idea? Is that even allowed? Huh. I wonder.**

**Scent**

Leah moved briskly through the forest, darting past trees with relative ease and jumping over rocks like it was nothing. Her speed wasn't as fast as Alice's, but it was still faster than a normal human's pace, which didn't surprise me much. I rested my head on her shoulder, rather enjoying the warmth in her body compared to Alice's cold. The only downside was the on-and-off stench emanating from her, which was fairly annoying.

Eventually Leah came to a halting stop and gently set me down. I looked around at our surroundings, noticing the unfamiliar-ness that came with them. There were a variety of bushes, brambles and a few pretty flowers here and there, but this was a part of the forest that I had yet to see before. I felt a little lost. She stood there silently for about two minutes before her nose crinkled and she furrowed her brow in disgust.

"You stink," Leah grunted, frowning at me. Leaned in and sniffed my shoulder, as if she were double checking her nose. She pulled away, waving her hand in front of her nose dramatically and sticking out her tongue in disgust. "You _really_ stink."

I stared at her for a moment, then rolled my eyes. "You stink, too, Leah," I replied snarkily, sticking out my tongue out her. The funny thing is that I probably meant it just as much as she p did, though I wasn't about to tell her that. She stunk. I couldn't stand the smell of wet dog and here I was being forced to breathe it in. Yuck.

Leah snorted. "But seriously, I can't understand why a human stinks this badly. It's like the bloodsucker stench has ingrained itself into your body." She waved her hand in front of her nose dramatically and smiled. "Ah well, I guess it's bearable. Not as stinky as your little girlfriend and her group are, so I'll manage."

I opened my mouth to respond when a thought crossed my mind. Curiously, I leaned in and sniffed Leah, getting a good whiff of her natural scent. It stunk, yes, but for some reason, it didn't stink as bad as the other wolves did. I wonder why that is. Is it because I'm closer to her than the other wolves? Strange…

"You don't smell as bad as some of the other wolves do," I murmured, cocking my head to the side in confusion. I immediately clamped my hand over my mouth when I'd said that, but Leah seemed to find what I'd said amusing. I nearly forgot that she didn't know that I was turning into a vampire, thus she stunk to me. I didn't need her finding that little bit out, either.

"Gee, thanks. Trying to sound like your little midget?" Leah asked.

I nodded and smiled humorously, hoping she wouldn't see through the façade. She didn't. Phew.

"But, actually, come to think of it, what do I smell like to you?" I asked. I was curious since I'd never gotten the chance to talk to a wolf like this for a while. Or ever, for that matter. Leah, yes, I'd talked to, but she'd been sharing personal stuff with me, so I held my questions in. Now, though, we were alone in a forest, so why not throw a few questions out?

Leah gave me a curious look before shrugging. "You smell sweet, like someone's sprayed a massive amount of perfume on you, mixed in with a very light, pleasant strawberry scent. It's like the super sweetness overlays the smell that isn't too bad and it really stinks. But your bloodsuckers…God, they smell worse than anything you could imagine."

I wanted to say something to that, but I held my tongue in. If she thought that my Alice could possibly stink, especially when her and the other wolves smelled they way they did, she had another thing coming. But I knew that it wasn't her fault that she thought that way, so I just shrugged, ignoring the smirk playing on her lips as she spoke.

"What do they smell like?" I asked. It had to be worse than I did. To her, at least.

"Try magnifying the super sweet stink to the one hundredth fucking degree," she replied with sheer disgust. "Only it's worse because they have that corpse stench added in. Trust me, Bella; they stink pretty damn bad to me, especially when I'm a wolf. That's another reason why I stayed in human form when I followed the others, I didn't want to smell them."

I couldn't help crinkling my nose up in disgust.

"Ew," I grunted, unable to keep myself from imagining that smell hovering in my nose. Talk about gross. "I can understand why you keep going on about the way they smell. That's pretty damn gnarly, Leah. I'm sorry you have to suffer through that."

"Yeah, my thoughts exactly," she grunted. "I'm amazed that you can handle it without a problem, but then, you're human, that's what's supposed to happen."

"They smell wonderful to me, especially Alice," I said. "I love her smell. To me, she smells like chocolate, with a little hint of vanilla at times. It's wonderful and I wish I could bottle her scent up because I would wear it every day of the week. I love burying my face in her neck and just breathing it in. It's so nice and soothing…"

Leah scoffed. "No wonder you stink so badly." I rolled my eyes again and smiled. Leah was funny, especially when she was making fun of the way vampires smelled. Even though I probably should have been insulted, I knew she was doing it as much as she was just to play around with me. And to help keep my mind off of my worries, I think.

Leah wrapped her left arm around me and together we started to walk toward whatever direction she had been running in. I was thankful for the distraction, but my underlying worry for Alice and the others was becoming more and more prominent. Leah seemed to sense this and let out a dramatic sigh to catch my attention.

"So what do _I_ smell like to _you_?" Leah asked. She paused and scowled for a moment, shooting me a look. "Wait a damn minute; I shouldn't stink to you to begin with." She paused and sniffed herself, which made me giggle at the amusing face she made. "Nope, I smell pretty damn good, if I do say so myself."

I breathed in her scent and felt repulsed by it. I made a face. "Trust me, Leah, you may not smell like a corpse or anything like that, but in all honesty, you really do _stink_."

"Like what, though?" she asked, clearly curious. The best part was that she had no idea that I was being dead serious with what I was saying to her. "And don't say BO, because I bathe every day of the week, sometimes more. I may be a wolf, but I like to stay clean. Or as clean as I can considering the fact that I have to spend time with a bunch of smelly boys."

I shrugged, deciding to play along with the idea that I was joking with her. I couldn't very well tell her that I was becoming a vampire, not now at least. That didn't mean I couldn't be serious, though. Leah frowned and lifted an eyebrow at me, which made me snicker in amusement.

"Are you going to tell me or do I have to do something drastic?" she asked.

I smirked. "You smell like a really filthy wet dog mixed in with a few more pungent smells like week old garbage and rotten eggs, with a side of old milk for good measure."

Leah stared blankly at me for a moment before she tilted her head back and burst into raucous laughter, clearly amused by my answer as if it were just a joke.

_Oh, if only you knew the truth of it all, my stinky friend_, I giggled to myself.

"Huh. Funny how wet dog never really bothered me, even back before I phased," she chortled.

I chuckled along with her and for a while we were both silent as we traveled with each other, each teasing the other for a variety of things. There was one point in time where I swore I smelled something other than Leah, but I knew it was just the trees and the environment.

"Hey Leah, where are you taking me?" I asked, looking around. I had no clue where we were, or even if Leah knew where we were.

"To our side over on the reservation," she replied. "At least until that fight can be settled. I imagine that your bloodsucker parents will get involved and Sam and Raina will, too. I don't see it ending for a few hours, though, knowing how stubborn some of the wolves are."

I bit my lip. "I hope they won't get hurt…"

"Oh, please. Your leeches can handle themselves pretty damn well. I'm sure they'll be fine, Bella, so stop worrying. You'll be kissing her in no time…" Leah trailed off and, again, looked fairly disgusted. "How can you stand kissing her like that? Or kissing her at all, for that matter? I wouldn't want some dead, icy tongue swirling around in my mouth."

I laughed. "It's not like that at all, Leah. Her tongue is amazing and flavorful and soothing. I love the feeling of having it in my mouth and I'm pretty sure she likes it the other way around, too."

"Still makes me cringe," Leah muttered. "Plus, there's her disgusting breath that'd bug me. But since she doesn't stink to you, I guess I can't really compare us, huh?"

"Nope, not really," I replied, appraising the taller, caramel skinned girl. "But you shouldn't worry about that type of thing. You'll find someone of your own one of these days that loves you for all your quirks. I'm fairly certain you'll be one of the next few wolves to imprint, Leah."

Leah scoffed. "I doubt that very sincerely, Bella. It's not that I don't appreciate the thought of me finding my soulmate, I don't see it happening any time soon, if ever."

I sighed. "Well, I think you will. Because seriously, why the hell wouldn't you?"

"What's the appeal?" she asked, scowling. "My attitude isn't exactly known to be the best, I'll admit, even though I am trying to do better with it. But really, why do you think so?" She clearly didn't have a very strong opinion of herself, which sucked. I knew what that was like and I didn't think she needed to have that, especially after everything she'd gone through.

"You know that you're beautiful, right Leah?" I asked, stopping.

Leah stopped momentarily, her eyes widening in surprise. She stared into nothingness for a few minutes, as if she were having trouble absorbing the words I'd just spoken. I meant them, too. I did think she was beautiful. When she looked at me, her surprise remained intact as she seemed to struggle with what I'd just said.

"You…you think I'm beautiful?" she asked in a whisper.

I nodded. "Yeah, I do. You might be a little cocky and bitchy, but you're incredibly beautiful. Hell, I'd kill to have a body like yours, minus the tan, I think. No offense, Leah, but I don't think tan would work for me, and I'm fairly certain Alice likes that I'm pale like her, too."

Leah was silent, running her fingers through her hair. "Er…thanks," she murmured. "I think you're beautiful too. I'm sure your little tick says it all the time, but I really do think you're a beautiful woman, Bella. Don't tell yourself any different."

"Thanks," I said, blushing. "Hey, I thought you were all gung-ho on calling yourself hot?"

"Well, yeah, but…" She trailed off and sighed. "I'm not used to _hearing_ it from someone else."

Now it was my turn to stop. I put my hands on my hips and gave Leah a questioning look, not sure if she was actually being serious or not. How could any sane person not say that Leah was drop dead sexy? She was. Not as sexy as my Alice, but I would definitely put her in league with Rosalie, Amara and Esme, three of the hottest women on the planet.

"I call bullshit," I said. "What do you mean you aren't used to hearing that?"

She sighed. "You do realize that I'm not one of the most popular people on the reservation, right? That whole Sam-Raina situation kind of fucked up what friendships I had. I lashed out at everyone during that time, even my own family. I mean, I've patched things up with Sue and Seth, but aside from them, Brandon and Serena, I don't have any friends."

I scowled and stepped forward to circle my arms around her waist. "I'm your friend."

Leah nodded, giving me an apologetic look. "You're right, I'm sorry."

We hugged for a while and I did my best not to let her smell bother me. The longer I was around her, the less strength it had, which I was pretty thankful for. When we broke away, she continued onwards with her arm around me. I didn't mind it. I trusted Leah.

"How long will it be until we're on the reservation?" I asked.

"Just a few more minutes," she replied. "I'll take you to my place so that we can wait until the fight's been settled. I can't say that I'm glad to be away, I was looking forward to something when I first chased after the boys. But then I smelled you and I saw how bad things were getting, so I decided it was best to get you out of there first."

"You sound like you want in on the action," I mused, giving her a sideways look to catch her bite her lip. I didn't want to think about the fight, personally. I was too worried about Alice and the others. I really hope that she was okay…

Leah shrugged. "Kinda. I mean, I think its wolf instinct that I want to go and tear some vampire apart and all, but seeing as how we're supposed to be keeping the peace with vampires, I can't go and do that. Plus, I know how much you love those bloodsuckers and all, so, you know, I don't want to go and do that and get killed by you in some angry rampage."

I pursed my lips. "Let's not talk about that, okay?" I asked.

"Sure," she replied. "My bad. But speaking of which, what the hell was all this started over anyways? What'd Jacob do or what was your little bloodsucker doing that pissed him off so bad that he went and attacked you?"

"Well, uh…" I bit my lip, hoping that Leah wouldn't get upset. "Alice and I were having a special moment with each other. We were kissing and she was near my neck, kissing it affectionately, which I was okay with. I guess that jackass Jacob thought that she was biting me or preparing to bite me, so he flipped his lid and kicked her off."

Leah was silent for a moment before snorting. "How typical of that ass, always jumping to conclusions. I'm not surprised either, especially since your bloodsucker was involved. He's really had it out for her since he found out that the two of you were together."

"I don't get what his deal is," I sighed, pinching the bridge of my nose. "He said that he was coming to apologize, but then he freaks out and starts shouting and insulting her? What the fuck. I thought he wanted to be my friend, but all he's turned into is a complete asshole. I don't like it. I miss the Jacob that I used to know, the one who was nice and funny, if a bit stupid."

"He's jealous," Leah stated. "And I mean _really_ jealous, of your little leech Alice. He wishes it was him that you were with and he isn't above making sure we all know that. It's a pain in the ass, the things he says, but the idiot won't shut up. He's on some kind of chauvinistic power trip, regardless of the number of times Raina and Sam have told him to shut the fuck up."

I gritted my teeth. "What kind of things does he say?"

Leah hesitated, glancing at my face to see if she was in any danger. I stopped walking and clenched my fists, waiting for her to answer my question. I wasn't going to be upset with her, but there was no guarantee that I wouldn't be pissed off.

"Leah, please," I urged. "I need to know so that I can put an end to them."

She nodded. "He says that you're his soulmate and that you're being brainwashed by the Cullens into living with them and that little one, your _Alice_." She paused when I narrowed my eyes at the way she said Alice's name. "I, uh, I didn't mean it that way. That's how he said it."

I twitched and took in a deep breath, clenching my hands into fists. "What else did he say?"

I had to fight the urge to snarl and punch something, Leah even, in my growing rage. Jacob was going to be a dead man if I ever saw him again, I knew that much. And if there was more, which I knew there was, that would just enforce my rage.

"He's been ranting about trying to find some way to bring you over to our side so that he can show you that he's "the best choice" and all this shit. I kept telling him that you're gay and that you have no interest in men, but he seems to think that he can turn you straight or bi at the very least. He's hell-bent on it, Bella. I don't know what's gotten into him."

My fists clenched tighter, so tight I thought that they might just burst, as I felt rage swirling within me at Jacob's words. First of all, how _dare_ he say that I'm his "soulmate"? There is no way in hell that I would ever want to be mated to someone like him. I felt completely disgusted at the thought of being with Jacob and had to shake away all the images that pulsed through the back of my mind dealing with him.

"That bastard," I growled under my breath. And he had the _audacity_ to say that I was being brainwashed by the Cullens? That he could change me from being gay? Fucking. Disgusting. I felt bile starting to form and swallowed it, not wanting to throw up.

Leah noticed this and shot me a sympathetic look. "I'm sorry, Bella. I didn't mean to make you sick. If you want, I'll punch him in his dick for you. Or better yet, I'll just rip it off. It's so damn tiny anyways, it's not like he'll feel much."

I covered my mouth. "Leah, you're making me sick…" I swallowed again. "Wait, you've _seen _it before? What the hell? Why in God's name would you want to?"

Leah was now the one to look disgusted. "Dude, I _didn't_ want to. When we phase into wolves, the clothes that we wear are instantly shredded, so when we phase back into human form, we're always naked. I don't mind the girls and a few guys, but I can't stand Jacob. It's…gross."

"Maybe we should just drop this conversation for now so that we don't get sick," I suggested.

"Yeah, that sounds like a good idea," Leah agreed, laughing.

We came to a large river. Leah smirked and scooped me into her arms before taking a few steps back, then sprinting toward it and leaping over. She landed rather gracefully on the other side and set me down, though her arms still remained. She hesitated for a moment before smirking and wrapping her arms around my face so that I was practically in her armpits. Gross!

"Leah!" I whined as she rubbed her disgusting pits on my face. She released me seconds later and burst into raucous laughter while I dunked my face into the cold water, wiping it furiously to get the stench away. Once I'd pulled my face up, Leah was still laughing.

"Holy shit that was good…" she guffawed, wiping a tear away for added effect.

I glared at her. "That was _disgusting_!" I snarled. "And you _stink_!"

Leah just laughed harder. She eventually calmed herself down and walked over to me and enveloped me in a hug. I huffed and refused to hug her back, but then she gave me a sorrowful pout with puppy dog eyes. Oh God. Alice could make me melt with hers, and since Leah was technically a dog, she had familiarity with it. Damn it.

"Oh, fine," I grumbled, hugging her back.

Leah smirked. "See, I know how to push your buttons to get what I want. I'm _that_ awesome."

I rolled my eyes when she released me. "You're as arrogant as Alice is," I murmured. Leah seemed to find that both amusing and insulting at the same time. "But you still stink. And if you ever put my face in your disgusting armpits again, I swear to God I will neuter you and your little brother, you got that, dog girl?"

Leah's eyes widened in horror at the word "neuter" and actually looked terrified of me for once.

"You wouldn't dare," she whispered.

I smiled devilishly. "Oh, you bet your ass I would. Carlisle's a doctor, after all. He might not be a veterinarian, but he sure as hell knows how to use a scalpel."

She gulped. "Um…I'll, uh, be good, then."

"Good. Now, if you don't mind, I'm kind of hungry," I let my voice trailed off as Leah smirked and scooped me into her arms before dashing forward, heading to the reservation once more at a much faster speed. I mentally patted myself on the back for managing to actually frighten Leah a bit and wondered if being around vampires really was rubbing off on me. That was awesome.

"Fucking little smartass bitch," Leah grumbled under her breath, likely thinking I wouldn't be able to hear her. I snickered quietly, pleased with myself. Alice would be proud of me.

Alice…

I hoped that she was okay. No matter how hard I tried, I couldn't help worrying about her. I knew she could take care of herself, but with such a big mess and so much chaos and the fact that she wouldn't be able to use her gift to her advantage…

I sighed morosely and rested my head on Leah's warm shoulder. Leah pulled me closer to her, cradling me in her arms. It was rather comfortable, despite the smell. The connection that I had with Leah was really developing. I considered her to be one of my friends, maybe even more than just a friend, a best friend, if we were able to get closer without the hatred that the wolves had for vampires getting in the way.

"It'll be okay," Leah whispered, brushing her lips through my hair. "I promise." A few minutes of silence later, Leah slowed her pace down. I noticed several houses in the distance through the trees surrounding us and realized that we were near the Quileute reservation, at which point Leah set me down. I frowned and looked at her confusedly, only to see her smirking.

"My arms are getting tired from carrying you so much," she teased. "Plus, you stink, and I can't stand having to smell that in my arms anymore. So, I decided that we would walk from here since we're on the reservation and it'll only be a few minutes till we get to my place. Try not to trip on any roots or rocks or the air, okay?"

I flipped her off and ignored her snickering. "Whatever," I groaned.

"Oh, that reminds me," Leah said, reaching into her pocket. She pulled out a lighter and stuffed it into my pant pocket before I could react. "Keep that with you. Just in case you ever feel the need to set one of those leeches on fire." I gaped at her for a moment before growling. She laughed and held her hands up defensively. "Chill, Bella, I was playing around with you. I mean if those other bloodsuckers show up, not your precious family."

I glared at her. "Not funny, Leah."

Leah snickered again and patted my head. I continued to glare at her, but then I sighed and shook my head at her antics. Suddenly she stopped laughing abruptly and froze where she stood, her nostrils flaring as her body tensed up.

"Leah?" I asked, concerned.

"Get behind me," Leah commanded, all the humor gone from her voice. I didn't hesitate in doing so, standing behind her as her nostrils flared and her head darted around worriedly.

"What's wrong?" I whispered.

"Bloodsuckers," she spat, eyes narrowing into slits.

My eyes widened in terror. Don't tell me…

In a split second something blurred from out of the forest and collided into Leah, sending her flying through the air and smashing into a nearby tree. I yelped in surprise as Leah grunted loudly, trying to get up in order to phase. In an instant a familiar cackle filled the air and I watched as Leah's face was slammed into the ground by a foot. James.

"That was too easy!" James laughed, grinding Leah's face into the dirt as she struggled beneath him, clawing at the ground.

My heart skipped a beat in terror, but I threw that aside and glared at James, summoning all the vampire instinct that I could.

"Get the _fuck _off of her!" I snarled. James actually stopped for a moment, but then he laughed and grabbed hold of Leah's arms. Leah growled and thrashed about as James sneered and started to pull her arms backward. "No!" His sneer grew and in a brisk motion I heard the sound of her arms snapping as she let out a loud scream of pain. Her body slumped and she groaned as James snickered and walked off of her, wiping his feet on her back.

"Bastard," I hissed.

James grinned. "Aw, did you miss me, Bella? I know I missed you. And I happen to know someone else who did, too."

A snarl tore through the forest and I was violently pinned to a tree by my throat in an instant, staring back into the heated glare of Sarah, who licked her lips ominously.

"Hello, bitch," she growled.

I gulped. "S-S-Sarah…" I whimpered. "Please…"

She hissed, then crinkled her nose. "You stink." Her nose crinkled even more and she turned to look at Leah, who was slowly trying to rise up. "Your friend stinks, too."

James glanced at Leah and smiled as he lifted a foot and slammed it down on Leah's neck. I screamed again when the snap echoed through the clearing and Leah fell unconscious, lying there, sprawled on the ground in an injured heap. James seemed amused and licked his lips, only to be cut off by Sarah, who hissed at him.

"Forget that stinky _thing_, we got what we came for," Sarah growled, increasing the strength of her grip around my throat. "I've been waiting to get my hands on you again, Isabella Swan. I was just waiting for the right moment when you weren't with your little girlfriend. To think, the girl I want dead is a damn lesbian of all things!"

James snickered. "Don't let Victoria hear you say that."

"Fuck Victoria! She abandoned us!" Sarah snarled. He didn't respond to that, merely smiling on as Sarah returned her gaze to me. "Now then, shall we get going? We have a special little evening of our planned out for you, dear _Bella_."

She threw me onto the ground. I skidded for a moment and grimaced, standing on a reflex and looking around worriedly. Remembering that we were on wolf territory, I realized that it would be near impossible for Alice to see me with her visions. That, of course, meant that I was on my own, here with two vampires that wanted to kill me and an injured Leah.

"Bella…" Leah groaned out, her voice raspy and strained.

James kicked her in the head, sending her into the same tree. "Stay silent, mutt. I've dealt with your kind before, back when I hunted one of you. Disgusting scent, but fairly amusing game, I must admit. You, however, are of no interest to me right now. Maybe later, dearest, and we can play around a bit." He licked his lips and smirked rather amusedly.

"You're sick," I muttered.

James shrugged. "Yeah, a little bit."

"Enough talking," Sarah interjected.

In a flash I watched as she sneered and lunged for me. The last thing I saw was her fist flying toward my face. Then I felt a very sharp pain, but it didn't last long because darkness soon overtook me, pulling me into unconsciousness. I only managed to utter out one word.

"Alice…"

**A/N: Aw man. Poor Leah. And poor Bella. And poor Alice. And poor you because it left off at another MOTHER****ING CLIFFHANGER! That's my interpretation of someone who's (or is it whose?) getting fed up with my cliffhangers. Because I KNOW that some of you are like "damn you and your evil cliffhangers" and such. Sorry folks, can't help it. It just ends up coming out that way and then, well, you get what you get and you gotta wait until whenever I decide to post it to get your next fix. Blood Solstice is your own person brand of...um...well, you know what I mean. Wait, that makes me a dealer. o.O **

**I hate when I try to be funny and it just blows up in my face. Which is frequent. Sigh.**

**Back to business, James and Sarah are back! Yay! I mean boo! Villain screen time, for the win. Get ready to get your James fix on, peeps. Because the next few chapters...well, they might be a little bit creepy. A little bit? Hell, a lot. Just ask one of my betas. ;) **

**Onward!**

**Oh, and by the way, does anyone know have any idea how I should work this "Do you want a oneshot with Amara kissing Bella" and the "Should Katie come back for seconds" and stuff like that? Should I do this in polls or is it fine if I just ask it here? I mean, I know most of you probably skim my notes, but do people fully read them? Yes, my attempts at humor fail, but still, I would hope so, because there's good points here. Just saying. :P**


	68. Prey

**Disclaimer: I take no claim for anything belonging to Stephanie Meyer, just my own ideas and my own characters. Original twists included. ;)**

******This is a little Halloween gift. I don't celebrate it anymore, but whatever. Happy free-candy day!**

**Prey**

My face hurt. No, not just my face, my whole body hurt. Everything was throbbing in pain as I slowly came to, the pain becoming more pronounced as my consciousness fully kicked in. Once my eyes had fully opened, I realized that I was in a very dark place. With further inspection, I found that it was a warehouse of some kind, large crates and boxes as far as I could see.

It didn't take me long to remember why I was here: James and Sarah.

I looked around, listening intently, but there were no noises. Just silence, save for my heart, which pounded in my chest. I swallowed and tried to calm it down, not wanting to alert them that I was awake anytime soon.

I was lying on the cold, hard floor. I looked down at my body and saw that my arms were covered in bruises and guessed that the rest of my body was too, hence the throbbing pain surging throughout every inch of me. I winced when I tried to move, and felt that I might have even had a few broken bones. I didn't know for certain. I didn't _want _to know, either.

Slowly I tried to stand up, nearly falling when my knees buckled under me. I used a nearly crate for support and stood up after a few attempts, wincing in agony. I held in my grunts of pain, however, because I couldn't risk being heard. Deep down, I knew that it wouldn't matter in the end, but I had to at least try to escape, to get to Alice.

Alice…

Oh how I wished she was here with me. I hated that I needed to be rescued all the time, I truly did, but I was scared. Yes, I'll admit it to myself, I was fucking terrified. I was in the clutches of James and Sarah, two beyond psychopathic vampires who enjoyed the idea of torturing me, in one place. There was no way in hell I would be getting out of here alive.

I needed Alice seeing this and coming to save me.

I hated it, but it was the truth. I was weak. I needed to be protected. And right now, I didn't know where my protector was or if she was hurt or not and that thought frightened me just as much as the things that my captors could and would likely do to me.

I started to walk forward, not knowing where I was exactly, but at the moment, I didn't care either. All I knew is that I needed to keep moving and get out. I moved, slowly but surely, past boxes and crates, left and right, knowing that I was going in circles, but not stopping. For about five minutes I kept at it, making it into a large clearing where I could see a door in the distance.

That was my ticket out. But there was one very big problem. The space.

If I knew anything about movies, it was that whenever someone started walking toward their way to escape in a wide open area, the bad guy would always end up showing up. So I knew if I started towards it, whether walking or running, James or Sarah or both would end up appearing and I would be fucked. Well, I was fucked anyways. So why bother delaying the inevitable?

"It looks like our little plaything is finally awake." Yup. I saw that coming.

James and Sarah both appeared, James with a smirk, Sarah with a glare, several feet in front of me in a matter of seconds. Sarah's hand was at my throat in seconds, slamming my back roughly into the crates behind me. I whimpered under her crushing grip, which caused her lips to curl into a devilish sneer. James remained standing where he had been, amused.

"I hope you've enjoyed your little free time," Sarah cooed venomously. "Because you sure as hell won't be escaping here alive, Bella. You've eluded us for far too long now and I won't make the same mistake twice. This time you'll die. And I'll enjoy ripping your pretty little head off."

"Now, now, Sarah," James snickered, coming to place a hand on her shoulder. "Keep it together for a little while, why don't you? We should make this fun. With her precious little Alice elsewhere, away from her, we have all the time in the world. So let's not rush it, hm?"

Sarah released my throat, hissing at him. "She killed my family, James! I don't _want_ to wait before I end her miserable life!"

James' face grew serious and he sighed, pursing his lips together. "Must I go over this with you again and again? Your family doesn't matter anymore, Sarah. They are gone. Forget them."

Her eyes narrowed. "That's easy for you to say. You weren't there when—"

James silenced her by swatting her aside rather viciously. Sarah flew into and subsequently destroyed two nearby crates as I slipped down to the floor, amazed. Sarah grunted loudly while James merely snickered, the amusement back in his face. He then turned to face me and licked his lips, making me shudder. I did not like the look of that.

"You must forgive my partner," he said. "She's an idiot, you see. Full of pointless revenge schemes and whatnot, which is rather annoying. I kinda wish Victoria hadn't told her all that crap, but hey, it was fun at the time. Now it's just an irritation and she won't shut up about it."

"You don't even care about her, do you?" I asked. He merely smirked.

Sarah stood up from the rubble, dusting herself off. Her eyes were black as she slowly made her way back to James, glaring at him.

"What the _fuck_ was that for?" she snarled.

James shrugged. "You were being annoying."

"What?" she snapped. "How can you not understand my rage?"

"It's irrelevant," James replied, shrugging again, his face innocent. "Stop wasting our time on pointless revenge schemes, why don't you? If you want, go out and be useful and make sure that her little friends don't show up. That will give us some more playtime with our little toy here and I know that you would love to have a bit of fun with her, no?"

Sarah was utterly speechless. She just stood there, staring at James as if he'd slapped her in the face, which he did, only this was worse. Sarah's mouth opened and closed a few times, but no words came out of it. James didn't seem to care either way and dismissed her as he crouched down, smiling kindly at me.

"Now then, Bella," he began, grabbing the cuff of my shirt and pulling me close. "How shall we begin our game, hm? I was thinking we could strip you down to your undies and have you run around for a little while, what do you say? The internet would love that, don't you think?"

My eyes widened in horror and he started laughing, releasing my shirt.

"Only kidding!" he guffawed, clutching his chest for added effect. "I'm not_ that_ heartless. Well, I guess I am since I don't have a working heart anymore!"

My body started to tremble and I wrapped my arms around myself for support, hyperventilating at how terrifying the situation really was for me. All the things that he could do…oh God. Alice. I want Alice. I need my Alice. I could feel tears starting to form, which only furthered James' sheer amusement and made him laugh even harder.

"Oh, this is priceless!" James cackled.

Sarah finally moved from her statue-like position, walking up to James with a confused face.

"James, dear," she said, ending his fit of laughter. "Perhaps we could finish the little whelp off together, as a meal, and then we can go and find some new humans for you to play with. I'll even join you in your games, if you'd like."

I sputtered and hugged my body as tightly as I could manage, curling into a cowardly ball. I felt so utterly helpless right now that I didn't know what else to do.

James seemed to consider this. "There's an idea. That could be fun. Besides, hearing her scream would be fairly amusing. Hang on a second, I have a better idea. Go ahead and have a little fun with her, but don't break her too badly. I want this as a memoir for myself."

He turned and sped off, leaving Sarah and I alone. Sarah watched after him, her eyes narrowing into slits as she scoffed out loud before facing me. Her lips curled into a sneer and she strode toward me, stopping a foot away and leaning down so that her cold lips were inches away from my ear. I felt her icy tongue dart out and lick it, making me shudder again.

"You're going to die here," she purred, lightly sucking the earlobe. I whimpered again. "You're going to taste so good, Bella. I can't wait to have that delicious blood in my mouth, to hear your beautiful screams as I break you, bone after bone. I look forward to each sound and I will savor it as your heart ends the same way that of my family's did."

I took in a shaky breath. "Sarah, please. Why would I want to kill your family?"

Her lips pulled away from my earlobe and I felt her icy breath on my neck.

"Because you enjoy causing trouble and ruining people's lives," she replied, circling the tip of her tongue on my neck. "Mm…your sweat _does_ taste good."

I swallowed and forced back the tears. "Listen to me, Sarah. I swear to God that I didn't kill them, I swear it. I couldn't. I could never take someone's life, not like that. James and Victoria, they tried to make me shoot them, but I couldn't. Why would I want to, though? What would I gain by killing people who took me in the way they did?"

Sarah's tongue continued to circle around my neck as her hands pinned me down. She moaned as her tongue lapped up my sweat and I gulped again, cursing my body for being so fucking alluring to vampires.

"Why should I believe you?" she asked, pulling her tongue away. I stared into her eyes and saw the hunger in them; for my blood, my pain.

"Think about it, Sarah," I said. "Think. Remember when we talked? We both had a lot in common and you were so nice. I told you then that I wasn't sure if I could stay and you insisted that I did. I couldn't stay because James and Victoria were after me, Sarah. Why else would they magically be there the moment your family was killed? Because _they_ did it."

Sarah twitched. "That's not true. Victoria…she told me that it was you."

"And?" I asked. "How would she know that it was me? Besides, why would a vampire who feeds on human blood not want to kill a human? How does that work, do you think? C'mon, Sarah, I know you know the truth in there."

"But…James loves me…" she breathed. To my surprise, I could see her resolve fade, even if it was by just a tiny bit. There was hope for me.

"He doesn't," I said, shaking my head. "Would he treat you that way if he did? Would he hit you like that if he did? He doesn't love you, Sarah. He doesn't care. You're just a pawn for his game, just like I am. He wants you for your newborn strength and so that he can manipulate you through your anger. That isn't love, Sarah. It's manipulation."

Sarah stood up, clamping her eyes shut. "Shut up, shut up, shut up!" she cried, running both hands through her blonde locks. Her face was twisted into one of anger and torment, but I could see that my words were having an effect on her.

"Stop lying! I know you're lying! Victoria, she said that you like to manipulate people, to get into their heads with your words. I won't fall for them…I…I won't…" She looked at me with a pained face, staring into my eyes. "He really does love me…he said it…he…" She trailed off and slammed her fist into a nearby crate, destroying it instantly.

The tears streamed down my cheeks. "Sarah, I swear to you that it's the truth."

She seemed to struggle with believing my words and shook her head, mumbling under her breath. I heard a noise and saw James returning, slowly strutting over to where we were with a video camera in his hands and a smirk on his twisted face. My eyes widened at the sight of the video camera and I could only begin to imagine the horrors he had in store for me.

"I want this to be a souvenir," James cackled as he neared me. "It's going to be a trophy of sorts, of my prey that nearly managed to stay away from me. I have to admit, our game was fun this whole time, Isabella. You were a good pawn, even if Victoria was too soft on you. But I'm beginning to grow bored with you, and now that I've found the other girl who escaped me in the past, I believe I have some unfinished business to attend to."

I twitched when I recalled that he'd mentioned Alice before. But how did he know her? As he started to turn the video camera on, I thought of something. Two things, actually. If I could get James to start talking, I could find out about Alice's past, the thing she doesn't have. Not only that, but I could get him to waste his time. And that could buy time for Alice to come.

I needed to do it. I needed to try. For Alice's sake and for mine.

Would this work, though? Would he fall for it?

"Gah, infernal piece of junk," he growled as he struggled with turning it on. Yeah, I think so.

"Wait," I said, causing him to stop. I took in a brisk breath. "Before you kill me, I have a request for you first."

He cocked his head to the side, amused. "A request, eh? And what might that be?"

"I want to know how you know Alice," I replied. "I want…I want her to know about herself, so that she won't be in the dark anymore on where she came from or who she was. Please, just…record it for her. That's all I ask."

"Ha! That wasn't what I was expecting," he mused. He tapped his chin in thought as he finally managed to get the video camera on and pointed it at me. I noticed Sarah was standing completely still, staring into space, lost in her own thoughts.

"Will you do this one thing for me?" I asked.

He smiled. "Sure, why not. I'll be nice and leave it for her to watch. Then I'll just pick it up when I come for her next," he replied, taking a step back. He looked into the side panel of the video camera, smiling. "Now then…lights, camera…action."

I hugged myself tight again, staring into the camera emptily. James snickered and began.

"So you want to know how I know your little girlfriend, eh? It's a fairly entertaining little story if I do say so myself, other than the part where she got away from me. You see, Bella dear, I have hunted a wide variety of humans, male and female alike, over the past years of my existence as a God amongst men. It's so much fun and so addicting that I can't get enough of it."

He sounded awfully proud of himself as he spoke and I shuddered at the thought of all the innocent lives he'd taken during his little "games".

"It's funny, women have often been my preferred target," he mused. "There's something about the delicateness behind them, about the way they scream and the way their bones break that just gets me _excited_. Plus, their scents are so much more mouthwatering and superb. Human males, not so much, though I've had a bit of fun with a few in the past. Like this male, I remember, who tried to fight me off with his bare hands. It was fun watching him break his fists and fun watching him cry like a little girl. Stripping male humans of their figurative manhood has always been rather amusing to watch."

He chuckled and shook his head. "Ah well, but back to my story and your precious little request. I met your precious Alice, or rather, found her, many years ago, back in the early 1900s. I forget the year, exactly, but that doesn't matter. I remember it fondly because I'd recently finished feeding an exquisite woman who smelled divine. I'd had a lot of fun with that one."

He paused to smile again, clearly proud of himself. His ego was as big as the warehouse…

"I was wandering around in a town called Biloxi when I first smelled her scent. She was with her parents; I assume it was, at the time. I immediately wanted her right then and there. She smelled heavenly, even better than you do, which is saying something. Ah, but then before I had a chance at going after her, her parents took her and threw into some asylum."

"_Asylum_?" I breathed.

He shrugged. "I don't recall what it was, and I don't quite care, either. But it put a dent in my initial plans of kidnapping her and dragging her away to have some fun with her, that's for sure."

I twitched and felt a surge of rage beginning to build up inside of me as I gritted my teeth. He saw this and chuckled, angling the camera closer.

"Keep that pose, that's beautiful," he purred. "Let me zoom in…there, perfect."

"You bastard," I growled.

"Ooh, feisty," he chortled. "Do you want me to tell you more or what?"

I clenched my jaw tightly. "Yes."

"Good, then keep your mouth shut and I'll continue," James said, licking his lips. "Back to the topic at hand, I was less than thrilled by what her precious parents did to her. They ruined my chance at her, or at least, I thought they did. Then I decided to get some information on the girl and her family and found out some rather interesting facts..."

He took a few steps forward, angling the camera differently again.

"It's a sad fact, really. Parents abandoning their children to their fates," James sighed. My heart wrenched in my chest for Alice as he stopped and, for once, he didn't have a sadistic grin on his face. "I somewhat know the feeling well myself, oddly. Hers, though, they were worse. They threw her into that asylum like garbage and left her there. I remember being out at night, hearing the screams of pain and torment because of the shock treatment. _That_ was beautiful."

My breath hitched in my throat and an image of Alice, alone in some dark, stinky cell being shocked by cruel doctors flashed in my mind, making me sick to my stomach and sad at the same time, the pain of seeing my beautiful Alice hurting pissing me off.

"It's kinda funny; I wondered why they would put someone like her in there. In fact, I decided to ask them myself one night. I stalked them, watching them laughing and enjoying themselves. I found it funny, and found it even funnier when I followed them and killed them that night. The mother's screams weren't as good as hers, but it was still fun. I even discovered that she had a sister, but I decided to be nice and let that one live. No sense in killing everyone, hm? What better way to ensure that their bloodline continues, maybe even making more delicious smelling children for me to use in my games. That was a prospect I couldn't get rid of."

I blanched at his words as his smile dropped and a look of anger formed.

"Despite all the careful planning, all the waiting and watching, I didn't count on one thing."

"W-w-what was that?" I asked.

His scowl deepened. "Another vampire; some old fool named Dunstan. He took a liking to the little girl, my prey, and he knew that I was after her. So he stole her away one night, trying to get her away from me and her confines, apparently. He managed to bite her and change her by the time I ended up catching up with him. She was in day two by that point in time."

"I was pissed, so I fought the bastard. We battled for the remaining day she needed to turn. He got me a few times, actually." James stopped and pulled his shirt up, exposing a series of bite marks on his lower chest and a long scar on the left side. "He was pretty good for a vampire who looked like he was in his thirties, but not good enough. I tricked him into thinking I was going after his precious little friend, then I tore his head off and burned him to a crisp."

He sighed. "My fun was ruined. She awakened shortly after, a newborn full of vigor and rage, beautiful, yet insane and deadly. For a moment, I actually considered hunting her still, but I decided to just sit and watch. I wanted to see what she would do, what she was capable of. So I watched her go into the nearby town and, rather impressively, I watched her kill her first human for blood. Then she killed another, and another. It was so much fun to watch."

I felt my heart skip a beat, the thought of Alice killing people without a care. It wasn't something I wanted to think about, even though I knew she'd admitted to feeding from humans before. I couldn't blame her for it, though. It had to be hard for her back then.

James continued, staring up at the ceiling fondly. "I stalked her for a few days, keeping my distance from her because of her senses. It was fun, watching her lash out and seeing the chaos going on in her mind. Her reaction to being a vampire was utterly priceless and so were the screams at night. The wailing, not so much, but I didn't disturb her. I stopped watching her after she slayed three humans for food in one sitting. Delicious to watch, yes, but the thrill was gone."

He stopped, then and smiled kindly at me, licking his lips once more.

"And there, dear Isabella, is the story that you so desperately sought to know about your precious little Alice. She was a worthless little runt as a human and now, funnily enough, she is a rather formidable vampire with an obvious gift in her hands. I must commend her for being able to survive after all these years, but that won't last for much longer."

I took in a sharp breath. "Why do you want her? She's a vampire. She'll kick your scrawny ass and tear you to shreds. Then she'll go after Victoria. Trust me, James, I wouldn't advise it, it isn't worth your life. Of course, if you kill me, you'll already be signing your death warrant."

He laughed rather enthusiastically. "Is that so? That's rich to hear, Bella. But tell me, do you honestly believe that that whelp can kill me? Or Victoria, for that matter? She might be a bitch, but she's one of the most ferocious bitches I've ever met. She'd wipe the floor with your precious Alice, hands down."

I was the one who started laughing then, catching James by surprise. Even Sarah, who had stood as if she were frozen in place, moved a little, her eyes moving to appraise me in silence.

"You really are stupid, James," I said, shaking my head. "If you think that you could possibly beat my _Alice_, you've got another thing coming to you. She'll kill you. She'll wipe that smug grin off of your face and tear you apart, one ligament at a time. And even if you did somehow manage to defeat her, my _family_ would step in and finish you off."

He seemed to consider that fact for a moment, tapping his chin in thought.

"Perhaps," he mused. Then he blurred over to me, his foot pressing down on my right leg. "But then again, I'd rather just hear you scream." He smashed down on my leg, shattering the bone instantly and I screamed out in agony. James, smirking, smashed down on several different parts of my leg, earning more screams of pain from me as he laughed on.

Eventually he stopped and pulled away. I clutched my throbbing leg, gasping and whimpering as the tears flooded down freely onto the cold cement floor. James was moving around at a human pace with the video camera, changing the angles as he caught my crying on camera.

"Marvelous, simply marvelous," James cackled. "The lighting in here isn't the best, but the acting is utterly superb. I do so love a dramatic finish, don't you, Bella? I suppose this isn't the ideal place, but it was vacant and it's hard to find under normal circumstances. The rain outside helps in erasing our scents, too, which is even better in keeping this our little secret."

He winked at me. "But don't worry, Bella. I'll send your corpse to your "family" so that they can mourn their loss for a few hours before they forget about you and move on with their immortal lives, because let's face it, you don't really think you matter to them, do you?"

"I…I know I do," I choked out. "They love me. And I love them."

James laughed and kicked me in the ribs. I lurched forward in pain, a bit of blood escaping from my lips and dripping down to the floor. James stopped and leaned down, brushing his fingertip into my blood and putting it to his nose. He breathed in and smiled.

"It smells quite good," he purred. "I wonder…" He licked his finger, sucking it dry. "Mm. Tasty. Victoria was right after all; your blood _is_ rather exquisite tasting. My mouth is watering by the prospect of tasting even more of your sweet liquor. In time, though. I want to have some more fun with you first. Now then, what else to do to you..."

Even in the pain that I was in, I needed to do something. I needed to buy more time for myself, to keep him talking. I couldn't count on getting Sarah to see the truth, she wasn't moving or speaking, lost in her own thoughts as if I wasn't even here right now. I had to think. Think.

As I moved, I felt something, a bump in my left pocket. The lighter. I still had the lighter that Leah had given me, conveniently, might I add. I couldn't get to it now, though, not with James watching on like a hawk. I needed to get him talking, to try and get his attention drawn elsewhere, because if I did, I had a shot at it.

What do I do, though? _What_? Damn it. God, it hurts so badly…

I remembered him saying earlier that he'd had a similar experience with his parents. That was my key, my ticket to buying time. Get him to talk about himself. There was no way that someone like James wouldn't want to do that. He'd be more than happy to brag about himself, if anything, so I could use that as my chance to distract him. Yes…that would do.

Once my stomach stopped throbbing, I slowly sat myself up, wincing at the searing pain running through my now-broken leg. I touched it lightly, which was a horrid idea because it sent the pain shooting through me and caused me to yelp loudly. Ow. Ow, ow, OW. Damn him. Damn him and his stupid super strength and this weak, brittle body to hell. Damn.

I sucked it up, though, because I had a job to do.

"I have one more request," I groaned out, straining myself.

James stopped in his tinkering with the video camera and gave me a curious look.

"Another one? You're full of questions, aren't you? This isn't some sad attempt at getting me to spare your life, is it? I do so hate those. They're always so dull and unoriginal. I've heard every one in the back, in fact, a good number of them from my prey. I remember sometimes I would make it seem like I was about to spare them, then go in for the kill. Their faces were priceless."

I felt sick to my stomach, repulsed and angry, too, but I forced those emotions down. I had to, otherwise I'd just be giving him what he wanted from me.

"That's what I wanted to ask about," I interjected.

James lifted an eyebrow. "How I kill my prey?"

"N-no, no. Not that. I…I wanted to know…about _you_," I said shakily. His dementedness was already plain as day, I didn't need to know more about that.

"About me? Now that's different. You certainly are full of surprises, aren't you? What do you want to know in specific? There's a lot to know about me, dear Bella. Many, many tales of hunts and fun that I've had since I was turned."

"That," I stated. "I want to know how you were turned. How you came to be a vampire, how you became a…_great_ hunter." I tacked the "great" on in order to try and goad him into falling for my trap, knowing he was a sucker for praise.

James pursed his lips in thought, looking away from me as he considered it. Then he sneered and knelt down, angling the video camera differently once again.

"Alright, I'll be gracious to you," he said, smirking. "I'll tell you about myself, the greatness that you know as James."

**A/N: ****Hmm. Sarah turning good? Or will she remain evil? The struggle continues for the poor, misguided girl. Can't help but pity her.**

**So, I decided to sort of throw in some original elements to how James first "met" Alice. And a bit of sadistic/creepiness too, for added measure. I really enjoyed writing this chapter and I kind of channeled a bit of the Joker into this (Heath Ledger's Joker, RIP dude). Did ya like it? Giving James some much needed screen time, especially since the details were never really gone into in the Twilight books. He deserved more than what he got. Seriously. Poor James (book James, not this one).**

**A word of warning, the next chapter...it might be a bit unsettling to some. So don't eat before reading it if you have a weak stomach. It's pretty morbid, or at least some parts of it are, and I don't need you to get on me because I didn't put a warning beforehand. Other than that, I do so hope you enjoy as I weave a befitting backstory for James, who has become a bit of a favorite villain of mine (aside from Victoria) in this series. Twisted, psycho characters are fairly fun to write, truth be told. **

**Until next time. Stalk away! Wait, no, don't. Just, uh...oh never mind. **


	69. Predator

**Disclaimer: I don't own Twilight. I kind of wish I did, but I don't. I do own all OCs and ideas, and that, thankfully, includes James' backstory. Which you might see again some day...**

**Predator**

"Where to start…" James mused, tapping his chin with his free hand while he kept the video camera on me with the other. "There's _so_ much to cover and I don't want to waste too much time talking about myself, fun as it will be. Hm…ah, hell, who am I kidding? I'll start from the beginning and tell you the whole damn story. When it's as important as me, I can afford to kill a couple of extra minutes. I'm such a distinctively interesting topic, after all. And crazy. Crazy good."

He stopped and glanced at Sarah, who still remained immobile.

"Hey, Sarah, stop standing there like a statue and go be useful. Wait outside and make sure that no one gets in. I don't need any disturbances for when my tale is done. Don't worry; I'll let you have a taste of her afterwards. But I get first dibs. She was my target before yours, anyways."

Sarah didn't even respond as she slowly walked away from us and went outside. I could hear the sound of rain falling outside when the door was opened, but the moment it closed it became deadly silent again, the only noise the sounds of my breathing and heartbeat.

James smirked. "She's so damn slow, I'm starting to wonder why we even keep her around anymore."

"She thinks you love her," I grunted out, narrowing my eyes at her.

James started to laugh, clutching his chest with his free hand and shaking his head.

"As if I could ever _love_ that stupid bitch!" he guffawed. "She isn't anything near my standards, that's for damn sure. If she really thinks that we're mates, she's even more brain-dead than Victoria and I thought! Hilarious!"

I gritted my teeth together. "You're a monster. You don't even care about her! You're just using her because she wants _me_ dead."

"Pretty much," he replied nonchalantly, smiling as if it were no big deal. "Messing with her little head is fun, though. And she ain't too bad in the sack, if ya know what I mean." He winked at me and I felt the overpowering urge to vomit, but I swallowed the bile that threatened to escape my mouth and cringed at his words.

He laughed again and sighed. "You humans are such amusing creatures, I swear. You're all annoying and whiny at times and so incredibly weak, but amusing nonetheless." He paused and smiled. "Ah, yes, I promised you that I would tell you about myself, didn't I?

I wasn't sure I wanted to know about him, but I didn't have a choice at this point.

"Yes, please," I replied.

He snorted at my manners and licked his lips before beginning his tale.

"To start with, I wasn't born here in the "great" America. I was born in Europe. I'm pretty sure my birthplace was Soviet Russia," he said, speaking in an over-exaggerated Russian accent. "No, wait, it was Ireland. Or was it England?" He seemed to mull it over in his head for a moment, acting as if he didn't remember. Then he smiled. "Only joking, I was born in Germany."

That surprised me a little. He didn't have the accent for it. James snickered at my reaction.

"You're obviously stumped. "How can he be German, he has no accent" must be the question running through that feeble mind of yours. In all honesty, I never had a need for it once I was changed, so I did away with it. We vampires can learn how to talk in many different ways at an accelerated rate, so it wasn't that hard." He grinned and started to slowly circle around me. "I'm technically only half-German, anyways. Go figure."

He glanced down at the video camera and fixed it before continuing.

"My birth-name was James Isidor Witherdale, the second to be precise, since dear Father held the same name as I did, for whatever reason. If you really wanted to get technical, my home was in Saxony and I was born in 1799, I believe it was. I can't fully recall. Too much time has passed since the dear old days of my humanhood." He chuckled at his made up word. "It wasn't a fun time, let me say. My dear old parents…they made sure of that fact."

"What'd they do to you?" I asked, wincing at the pain in my leg. Damn, I wish I could heal fast.

His smile grew wider, the most twisted I'd ever seen from him. And that was saying something.

"Father dear was a man of faith, or so he claimed to be. I think he was only saying that so that people would think something of him. He was never right in the head, you see, so most people stayed away from him. I suppose taking one too many blows to the head as a child can do that to you, not that _I _would know anything about that."

"His two favorite things were drinking and hunting. He _loved_ to hunt. Loved the surge of adrenaline he got from _tearing _into flesh and watching the helpless little creatures scream and try to fight their way out of his hold. Oh how he enjoyed those moments, ending their existence the way he did. He loved to make it slow and painful. Said it helped relieve unnecessary stress without breaking the law, since animals weren't humans and didn't matter to him."

James shrugged. "When he wasn't hunting, he was drinking. And when he wasn't drinking, he was usually beating Mother. He did that quite frequently. Always found an excuse, saying things like "God made you to serve me!" or "you worthless lout, how dare you". It was quite loud. I remember being a child and listening to her whimpering at night and him cursing at her, saying how weak and pathetic she was and that she didn't deserve to be in his presence."

I felt a surge of disgust and rage at the man that no longer existed. People who beat their spouses sickened me; there was no reason for that. It was cruel and heartless. Those people were monsters, not unlike the being standing a few feet away from me.

James sighed, almost like he was recalling a distant memory of his childhood.

"And then Mother turned around and beat _me_." I sputtered. _What?_ James grinned, his perfect teeth glinting. "She said that it was _my_ fault that Father hated her so, that I was the son of the Devil trying to ruin her perfect life and her perfect marriage and blah, blah, blah." His face twisted in distaste. "I used to go to sleep with bruises all over my body. Told that they would heal when I was good. So I did what I could and tried to be good. Whatever the hell that even meant."

He started moving slowly in the opposite direction, keeping the video camera on me.

"The cycle continued for years. Father beat Mother. Mother beat me. I beat myself, trying to get "the Devil" out of me and did everything I could to please them. Mother said I was worthless and Father just didn't care. He never even wanted a child to begin with, I don't think. Didn't seem like he did, at least not to me. But I remained the son that always tried to suck up to his parents."

Something clicked in the back of my mind. He had a mother that treated her child like they were worthless and abused them in some way, a father that neglected them and didn't even bother acting like they cared. That sounded familiar. That sounded…like me.

James' laughter broke my out of my train of thought. "Oh, it was priceless. I remember one time I actually took one of my father's guns out and went into the woods. I wanted to kill something so that he would be proud of me, so that he wouldn't beat my mother and then I would finally get some praise from them. All those attempts of mine often failed, so I had nothing to lose."

I twitched and clenched my hands into fists.

"I ended up killing a bear cub!" James exclaimed, almost sounding like a little child. "Shot the damn thing right in the center of the skull. I felt so happy and excited, I shot it again and again and again, using up every bullet that I could. I felt exhilarated. I then knew why Father loved shooting things so much. It was fun! But then I brought the dead carcass with me back home and Father was displeased that I'd taken his gun and gotten blood over it. Not a pretty sight."

James sighed. "Double the beatings that night. Father said to "take it like a man" and then threw me in my room. Stayed there for a few days without food, they said that they were "teaching me a valuable lesson". I learned never to touch my father's stuff again." He smirked. "And let them find out about it, at least. I stayed good for the most part for the next few years of my life and for a while, I was a good boy. Sure, I still got beaten, but not as much or as badly."

He stopped walking around and shook his head.

"I'm sorry," I whispered, not knowing why I was saying it. I felt, not bad or sorry or remorse or sympathy or any of that towards him, not in the slightest. But the fact that he and I shared so much in common…maybe not the same level of abuse, but similar treatment overall. It was like he was somehow a parallel of me or of what I could have been. And that scared me.

James seemed amused and cocked his head to the side. "You're sorry? For dear little me? How sweet of you, wasted and silly as it is. If only my dear parents had been sorry for all the torture they put me through, I might have made their deaths a little less…_violent_. I still remember that night, almost like it was yesterday." He licked his lips and smiled pleasurably, a little too pleasurably in my eyes. "I can remember vividly the sounds they made as I tore their skin off bit by bit. The screams, the blood..._d__elicious_."

My stomach heaved and I spun my head around and vomited. The revulsion and sick feelings churning through me at the images that popped into my head made the bile return in force and I had to force myself to move over before I fell into it. I felt sick to my stomach and clutched it to try and ease the nausea away. James' laughter did little to help ease me.

"Ho! That's rich! And disgusting, might I add, but fucking hilarious regardless!" he cackled, shaking his head wildly as he laughed.

I gagged and cupped my mouth. "Y-you're sick…" I groaned out.

"Oh, I know that," he smirked. He tapped his skull with his index finger. "I've known that for many, many years now. It wasn't until I was changed that it all came together for me, but up until that point I was sane. Well, mostly. I did have a habit of drawing pictures of my classmates and knifing the pictures, wishing it was them. They bullied me when I was in school, you see, for my pale skin and because I wasn't a "full German" and things like that. Not fun, those days."

The sickening feeling in my stomach only increased when I remembered that I had been bullied when I was younger, teased and taunted left and right for my clumsiness, _my_ skin, my nervousness and bad luck. The more I had in common with James, the worse I felt and I was beginning to wish that I wasn't here right now. I wanted to be home, in bed, with Alice.

"Ah, but anyways," James continued, completely unaware of what was going through my head right now, not that he'd care. "I was about seventeen when things started to change. My father, who was older now, still drank and still hunted. But he actually started to see me as more than a nuisance, amazingly enough. I think it was the alcohol, or maybe those pills I slipped him when I was a few years younger, but either way, he decided to take me hunting with him one day."

"Dare I say it; a bond was formed that day." He stopped and held his hand up dramatically, whishing it through the air. "Father and son, out in the wilds, hunting animals and bonding like they should, right?" he asked. He smiled kindly at me. "Or not, since he didn't give me a weapon to use and instead made me hunt using my bare hands. Said that I was undeserving of a weapon, but if I could catch something noteworthy, he'd give me something."

James licked his lips. "I remember being taken to the hospital three times during the next two years of my life, once after I'd been attacked by a wolf, once when I'd fallen into a river while trying to chase something and a third time because I got in the way of a bullet belonging to someone else's gun. All of them were _my_ fault and I was ridiculed for it, but then one day, when I was nineteen, I _finally_ did it. I killed a young lion using just my hands."

He clenched his free hand into a fist and sighed contently.

"Smashed its head with a rock, in fact. Big mess, but for once, I got a reward. My father _praised_ me for the first time in nineteen years. Oh how happy I was, a nineteen year old acting like a little child being given a balloon. I was so happy and excited that I had finally earned my father's respect that I jumped and gave him a hug. Happy ending, no?"

I gulped. His sadistic grin showed that there was much more to come.

"And then he threw me off of him, calling me a queer for hugging him. I lost my balance and slipped, falling down the hill that we'd been standing on. Down I went, scraping, bruising and breaking bones as I screamed, eventually stopping once I hit the bottom. My consciousness faded and the last thing I could remember was looking up at the place where Father stood, guzzling down a beer in one sitting and walking away. Such a good Father!"

James stopped altogether. He didn't smile or blink, he stood completely still, lost in thought.

"When I next woke up, I was in a cave of some kind. I remember the darkness. And I also remember the incredibly painful burning feeling that pulsated through my veins, as if my insides had been set on fire. I recall a voice that was rather eloquent in some language I didn't understand speaking to me, but I ignored it as the pain overtook my body. I remember wishing I could die and wanting to die. Then my heart stopped beating and everything faded to black."

"Then I awakened as what you see here, a bloodthirsty newborn vampire," he smiled, showing his white teeth. "I kind of feel bad for the hiker that discovered me in the caves, thinking I was dead. What a surprise for him when I woke up and tore into him, making him my first meal. He was fairly good, I'll admit. His screams weren't the best, but the taste made up for that."

James licked his lips. "So now comes the part in my story that you will likely love to hear. After I finished my meal it didn't take long for me to realize that I had become something other than a normal human being. I think I spent about two days, roaming around and experiencing the thrills brought by becoming a vampire. I crushed animals into pulp, destroyed the nature around me and then, when I discovered my acute senses and my invincibility, I decided it was time for revenge."

"All the years of abuse that I took from my ever-loving parents flooded through my mind and, due in part to my vampire instincts, I felt the urge to make them pay. So that is precisely what I did, I snuck into the house one night and…well; I doubt you want to know all the details about their rather unfortunate deaths. It was rather messy in there afterwards, so I had to burn the house down in order to avoid anyone making a big deal about it. Not like they were missed."

He titled his head back and laughed again, enough to make me shudder.

"In the end, it wouldn't have mattered much. There were too many pieces to be put back together, so I doubt that any human could have managed it. There was no Dr. Frankenstein in that day and age, though I admit it might have been entertaining to see the faces of any person who walked into that house once I'd finished with it. Alas, I didn't consider it at the time because I got hungry for a snack, so I left it a burning heap and went looking for my next meal."

He turned to face me and held out his arms dramatically. "There you have it, how I came to be a vampire and how I came to be, well, me. If you're wondering when I started to hunt humans, it wasn't long after I was changed that I found my enjoyment in hunting had increased. But hunting animals is boring and there's no challenge to it. Humans, on the other hand? Much more variety and much more fun, especially when they lose the will to live. Always priceless faces."

He took a few steps forward and crouched down. "Now, if you're all well and done, I'd like to get to the grand finale, if you please. I'm becoming a little hungry." He licked his lips. "Well, more so that your scent is becoming increasingly delicious and I would very much like to quench my thirst with it once and for all."

_Shit! Not yet, it was too soon! Think, Bella, think!_

"How'd you meet Victoria?" I blurted out. It was the first thing I could think of.

James paused to reflect on my question, his smirk dropping into a neutral expression.

"That was about seventy years ago," he deadpanned. "The bitch killed a human girl that I had intended to start hunting, which pissed me off. I ended up fighting her over it and lost to her, though I _know_ she cheated to beat me. Stupid bitch always did love to cheat during her fights."

The thought of James losing to Victoria surprised me. But then, considering what her gift was and how ruthless and strong she truly was, I guess it didn't surprise me all that much. I only wondered why James had ever started to travel with her. All he ever did was seem like a slave.

"Why'd you start to travel with her?" I inquired, further urging the topic.

James sighed. "A stupid mistake on my part since she always took the fun out of everything. I don't know why I started to travel with her. We fought on several occasions beforehand and she kept taunting me, as if she were driving me to work for her. In the end, I did it out of sheer boredom and I sometimes wish that I had broken away from her sooner. Her and her overzealous plans, I swear, they irritate the crap out of me sometimes."

I furrowed my brow, but I decided to continue with the questions.

"Why was she so obsessed with me?" I asked. That was something I'd wanted to know for quite some time and it was driving me nuts.

"She wasn't just _obsessed_ with you," he snorted. "She wanted you because she thought that you might be her mate."

I gagged again and hugged myself. Me, Victoria's _mate_? What the fuck? Why in God's name would I want to be that twisted bitch's lover? Hell no! I'm Alice's!

James shrugged. "She found her mate about two months ago, actually. Once that happened, her reason for getting you is because she just likes you a lot." He grinned. "Okay, I honestly have no idea why she wanted you so badly. She actually had a mate years before you came around, so really, your guess for her obsession is as good as mine. I just wanted to see the look on your face when I said that she wanted you as a mate. Kinda funny, actually."

"I disagree," I grunted.

"Aw, don't be that way, Bella," James said, pouting. "We've had so much fun together, don't you agree? I mean, granted, you were usually screaming or crying your little head off most of the time, but I did enjoy chasing after you. I always wondered "where would she go" or "what would she do" while I chased after you. It was fun for those few months."

"Then you went and did the impossible, you found more vampires! Even better, one became your mate and they fought to protect you. That fight in the forest was most amusing and I really do need to go after that hot redhead. She's even more powerful than Victoria. I bet she'd be lots of fun to play with, so long as I kept her away from fire. And that blonde girl was hot too, so she could always be next. I wonder if they have any more…"

I growled, the anger from before returning. "You stay the fuck away from my family you heartless pig, or else!" I snarled, baring my teeth at him. Stupid, yes, but the vampire instincts within me told me that it made me sound more threatening. He just laughed at me.

"Or else what? What are you going to do about it? You won't be alive for much longer, so I wouldn't be tossing out threats like you're so high and mighty," he sneered, smacking me across the face in half a second.

I winced in pain and rubbed my bruised cheek as James pointed the camera at me and snickered out loud, thoroughly pleased with himself. I glared hatefully at the cruel vampire and wished that I wasn't so weak. Then I could tear him to pieces without a second thought and I wouldn't have to deal with this stupid broken leg. But I _was_ just a weak little human.

"Enough with the questions," James grunted, losing all traces of humor from his voice and taking a step back. "I'm getting tired of all the needless distractions. I want to savor this moment and finish you off before the chance is ruined. So be a good little girl and stand still so I can get one final shot of you before I begin the coup-de-grace."

I grimaced and reached into my back pocket, slowly pulling out the lighter that Leah had given me, hoping that I could be fast enough. I just needed him to turn around real quick so that I could fling it at him and, hopefully, it'd be enough to catch him on fire.

"Are you sure you want to do this?" I asked, lifting an eyebrow and trying not to let my voice crack too much. That was a waste of time.

James scoffed. "And why not? Who's going to stop me from killing you? I don't see your little girlfriend here, now do I? Or anyone else for that matter. It's just the two of us, Bella. There's no one else around to help you for miles, we made sure of that. But please, do keep hoping, it makes for a good dramatic scene when it all comes crashing down on you. I know, I've seen it myself quite a few times in the past. Be good, I have to check something real quick."

He paused and turned his head around as he examined the video camera he'd been holding his hands, studying it for some reason. I snapped, seeing this as the chance that I'd been praying for and grabbed onto the lighter from my pocket.

With James' attention turned, I whipped the lighter out, flicked it on and thrust my arm forward as fast and powerful as I could to throw to lighter directly at him. James turned at the exact second that I'd thrown it and seemed surprised. Before it could hit him, something swatted the lighter down to the ground, causing it to slide away.

My heart sank. The only hope I'd had, my only chance, was gone. I bit my lip and looked up to see that Sarah was standing near James, glaring at me. She looked like she wanted to say something to me, but she turned and looked at James instead, staring intently at him.

"Do you love me, James?" she asked, her face softening.

James blinked. "Huh?"

"Do you love me?" she repeated. "Tell me you love me. Tell me this hasn't been some twisted little game of yours, that this isn't a lie. Please…"

James lifted an eyebrow at Sarah, pursing his lips as he did.

"I don't have time for this right now, Sarah. I'm trying to deal with my prey." He turned to appraise me and smiled. "Carrying a lighter with you, eh? That's quite sneaky of you and you might have succeeded. I would've dodged it, regardless. I could hear it the moment you clicked it open and smell the fire. Smart, but I'm afraid it wasn't smart enough."

I bit my lip, cursing in the back of my head with every curse word I could use.

Sarah grabbed James' shoulder, growling. "Forget her, I asked if you love me." She hissed out, glaring at James. "Don't fuck with me, James. I want answers."

James pinched the bridge of his nose. "Sarah, dear, I do love you, now please, shut up."

Sarah blanched and removed her hand. "That's it? You call that meaningful?" She stared at him, clearly hurt. Her eyes flickered to me, then back to him. I watched as the gears started turning in her head as she growled. "I don't think this is going to work anymore, James. Not if this whole time it's been nothing more than a lie."

"It's not a lie," James smoothly said. "I do care for you, Sarah dear. I've told you that time and time again, how many more times must I say it?" He stroked her cheek and gave her a smile so fake that Sarah needed to be mentally ill to not see that. She just stared blankly at him. James' face hardened and he grabbed onto her shirt. "Besides, what would you do without me?"

"You don't have anyone else. You have no family. No friends. You're alone in this world, Sarah, and the only person you have any attachment to aside from me is leagues away doing her own thing. She wouldn't want you, anyways. You're pretty damn weak for a newborn. If you were a _real _vampire, you would forget about your petty feelings and learn to have some fun, like right now, for instance, we can both enjoy finishing off dear little Bella here."

Sarah clamped her jaw tightly, struggling to make a decision. James sighed.

"Hold this," he growled, thrusting the video camera into her hands. "And don't drop it."

Sarah held the camera, but she didn't speak. Her eyes narrowed as her anger built. James smirked and blurred over to me, grabbing me by the shirt collar and lifting me up. His smirk was both kind and mocking in the same as he placed a finger on my other cheek and quickly dragged his nail through it, causing pain and warmth to trickle down my cheek.

Sarah's nostrils flared at the sight of my blood and she instantly dropped the video camera to the ground as James released me. James growled in irritation and went to grab the camera as Sarah crouched down, her eyes turning black. Whatever inner battle she had been having was gone within seconds as hunger became her primary instinct.

I whimpered as she licked her lips in anticipation, though I could see that she was still trying to somehow fight herself, if only for a moment.

"Sarah…" I breathed out.

Sarah curled back her lip and attempted to crouch, but James held her in place.

"Hold on a second. I want to videotape her face," he commanded.

Sarah snarled. "I. Want. Her. Blood!"

"I know that. You can have a taste, but only when I finish," James growled. He turned and set the camera on the nearest crate, pointing it at me. He then walked over towards me, standing over me with that insidious smirk of his. "Any last words, Bella?"

I took in a deep breath and looked at the camera. Then I looked at him.

"Fuck you, scumbag. I'll enjoy watching Alice rip your pansy-ass face off," I snarled.

James laughed throatily. "Snarky little bitch, aren't you? Oh well." He bared his teeth, still smiling kindly. "Later." He started to lunge, but he stopped and snarled in agitation, shaking his head. Sarah snarled too, but she kept her eyes glued on me. "Son of a bitch, I thought I took care of this damn problem. Shit. There goes my plans…"

The sound of glass shattering erupted in the warehouse and I whipped my head in the direction.

"Typical," James grunted. "Always has to be someone who ruins my fun. Sarah, go deal with them and you'll get some of her blood. Now."

Sarah glared at him. "No. She mine. She DIES."

James snarled and violently cracked her across the face with his fist, sending her flying backwards several feet away.

"Do as you're told," he barked.

A loud growl resonated throughout the warehouse that was neither Sarah's nor James'. He cursed under his breath as Sarah stood and turned around. I stared into the darkness of the warehouse and, by focusing; I could make out a single figure standing there, teeth bared and a pair of pitch black eyes glaring down Sarah and James. I _had _been saved.

**A/N: Damn.**

**Reading what I wrote, I really DID go (almost) all out on the psycho backstory. I wanted to be as original as I could, but I wanted to sort of explain James' craziness and his obsession with hunting and where that came from. The whole "you take with you stuff from your human life" thing helped in giving me the idea to make him a hunter, and since he was forced to hunt with his hands, that added to the enjoyment it brought him. I think it played out rather nicely in the end, and hopefully, you'll be staring at the computer screen with your mouth hanging open ever so slightly as you read this, trying to absorb what you just read. I would hope.**

**Sarah's struggle continues. The newborn in her wants the blood. But the human in her...well, she's starting to think. Newborn, however, beats out the human right now. And damn, I really feel bad for poor Bella. Sucks for her right now, I tell ya. I may have loved writing James' backstory (maybe a little too much), but hurting Bella like that, not as much. It adds to the drama and the moment, yes, but still.**

**Now the question remains, who is the owner of the black eyes that has come to save Bella? Is it who you THINK it is? Wait and see...**

**Random notes, I just discovered that my story is on a site called Twilight Awards. Which is neat. And they have contests there, which is also neat. Crossing my fingers, maybe my fans have put in some nominations for stuff of mine. That'd be sweet. If not, either way, it's still cool.**

**Oh, and should I get a Twitter account? That's the random question for this chapter.**


	70. Repercussions

**Disclaimer: Stephanie Meyer owns Twilight and all it's characters. I only own my OCs and my own random, crazy little ideas.**

**Repercussions**

I watched as the black eyes glaring down both James and Sarah started to move and I was surprised to see a head of long blonde hair standing there. Rosalie. I hadn't expected it to be her that would save me, but I was beyond glad to see her regardless.

"Rosalie," I breathed, feeling relieved.

Rosalie's eyes briefly flickered to meet mine and I saw pain flash across her face. That pain quickly transformed into anger as she let out a guttural snarl and flung herself at James with her teeth bared, almost as if she knew it was him that had hurt me. Sarah blurred in front of her and the two violently collided, creating a powerful shockwave that caused the ground beneath them to crack. I would've gone flying had my back not been pressed to a crate.

The two both snarled and fought each other with flying fists and gnashing teeth, destroying a good portion of the crates, boxes and floor of the warehouse while they were at it. I'd never seen Rosalie that angry before and watched on, distinctively aware of James looming over me. I whipped my head up and saw him smirking at me, that twisted, hungry look in his eyes.

"It would seem that I have to cancel our little plans prematurely," he sighed. "No more theatrics, I'll just kill you now and flee while Sarah fights your…what do you think she is? Your sister? If that isn't a laugh, I honestly don't know what is. I can't understand what it is about you humans that my kind find so fascinating aside from your scents. Oh well."

He shrugged and started to lean in when something smashed into him. Sarah. The two vampires rolled around several times before getting to their feet and hissing angrily.

"You stay the fuck away from her," Rosalie snarled, appearing to stand in front of me in seconds.

"Rosalie," I murmured, feeling tears of joy starting to form.

Rosalie turned and knelt down, her nostrils flaring when she caught sight of the blood that was trailing down my face. She covered her nose up with her left hand and tore a piece of her shirt off to quickly wipe my cheek, tossing it to the side. Sarah lunged for the bloody fabric in a hurry while James merely seemed amused, though I could faintly catch a hint of frustration.

Once Rosalie had finished, she uncovered her mouth and kissed my forehead, her dark amber eyes smoldering with sorrow.

"Are you hurt?" she asked.

"I'm just peachy," I replied, wincing as another burst of pain shot through my broken leg.

Rosalie gave me a small smile. "You're starting to act more like me. Good." The smile didn't last long, though. "I'm sorry that you were hurt like this. I knew that trusting that damned mongrel with your safety was a bad idea. Guess I can't blame her too much, though." Her eyes turned pitch black as she glared at James, who smiled back.

"What happened?" I asked quietly.

"Those filthy, stinky mutts were stopped by their Alpha while Carlisle and Esme came and stopped us. That idiot boy that Alice wanted dead got smacked by his sister and she dragged him back to their territory. Then that girl that seems to like you appeared, injured and whatnot, and said that you had been captured. Alice got pissed, punched her in the face and flew out of there faster than I'd ever seen before. The rest of us followed suit. We've been searching nonstop."

A few stray tears fell. "Oh Alice…"

Rosalie gently stroked my cheek. "Don't worry, she'll be here soon. I can guarantee that. We'll tear these fuckers apart for what they did to you, Bella. I vow that." She kissed my forehead once more and stood up, turning to face James and Sarah, who had returned to his side, her feral instincts still flaring up as she hungrily gazed at me.

"Big words coming from someone who got her ass kicked the last time around," James scoffed, smiling playfully at Rosalie.

Rosalie didn't flinch. "We made mistakes. We don't repeat our mistakes. This time you and your mentally ill bitch won't be fleeing here," she growled.

James snorted. "And just what are you gonna do about it, hit me with your hair?" He paused and cocked his head to the side, smirking. "Actually, I kinda like your hair, it looks like it smells real nice and the shine is rather breathtaking. What do ya say, sweet stuff, why not forget the human baggage and come have some fun with greatness?"

Rosalie's face curled in both rage and disgust and she hissed at him again. James seemed amused until Sarah backhanded him across the face, sending him cart-wheeling backwards. She curled her lip back and growled at him, then whipped around and crouched down, ready for another attack. Rosalie braced herself and crouched down as well, waiting.

The two lunged at each other again and collided once more, creating another shockwave. I watched on, hoping that Rosalie would be okay. But the one thing that remained most important in my mind was that Alice would be here soon. I wanted nothing more than to be in her arms right now, instead of here, hurting and watching as my sister battled against a girl that I knew wasn't truly evil, just confused and manipulated.

A growl tore from the area where James was as he stood up, cracks on his face from where Sarah had hit him slowly piecing themselves together. James looked pissed off now as he started moving, towards me once again. The sound of shattering glass echoed throughout the building and James whipped his head around as something crashed into him. I recognized the spiked hair and was once again relieved to see Edward standing there, clutching James by the throat.

"You disgust me," Edward snarled. "I'll be more than happy to erase those thoughts from your head when I rip it clear off for what you've done, you bastard."

James jabbed his fingers into Edward's eyes and kicked him away, smiling smugly as Edward growled in disdain. Edward quickly recovered, however, and charged again as James crouched down defensively. I watched on feeling a surge of hope swell up within me as I watched two of my siblings fight off with my captors, silently praying for their victories.

I felt a strange sensation come over me, tearing my attention away from the fighting going on around me. It wasn't pain, but rather, the electric feeling that I got whenever I knew that Alice was close by. It was…like my heart just knew that she was near me. Call it a sixth sense or whatever the hell the right term would be, but I knew that she was close by. Instinct, I guess.

My head whipped around wildly as I tried to search around for any sign of my Alice, my heart pounding in my chest as I looked around hurriedly. I caught sight of something to my left and turned to look and then my heart skipped a beat as the figure of my beautiful pixie appeared before me. The black circles under her eyes were more pronounced than I'd ever seen before, like she'd been crying for days, and I noticed that her physique appeared more ragged than usual.

I don't know how I did it. I leapt into her arms from where I was sitting, forcing my body up even with my leg broken. Alice met me not even halfway, her arms around me before I could get even an inch into the air. She hugged me tightly, tighter than she'd ever hugged me before, but it still wasn't enough to cause me pain. She even minded my leg as she curled her arms around me.

"Bella," she whispered, so quietly that it sounded like a sob. "My Bella. My sweet Bella."

"Alice," I choked out, squeezing her as tight as I could.

Her body trembled as it clutched at me, her fingers kneading into the fabric of my shirts.

"I'm so sorry," she whispered, pulling away to press our foreheads together. The look in her eyes made tears start to fall from mine. "I've failed to protect you again. You got hurt again and it's all because of me and—"

"Alice, stop," I interrupted, kissing her sweetly. I didn't care if there were fights going on at the time; I trusted that Rosalie and Edward would be fine. "It's not your fault. I have shitty luck, remember? It was bound to happen one way or the other, so don't go blaming yourself."

"It doesn't matter," she murmured, shaking her head. "I still didn't protect you. I still couldn't find you until now, after seeing you get hurt. I tried, but no matter what I did, I couldn't find your location. I was so scared…"

"You're here now, Alice. That's what matters."

"How hurt are you?" she asked, noticing the cuts on my cheeks and the obvious bruises.

"Well, my leg…" I indicated it and saw the look in her eyes. "You noticed already."

Her lips twitched and she turned over her shoulder, watching James smoothly dodging one of Edward's attacks. Alice's jaw clenched tightly as she gently laid me down, her eyes turning pitch black and full of rage and hate as she glared scathingly at James, who continued to fight Edward. Her lips curled back and she let out a snarl that tore through the entire warehouse, even making me shudder in fright as her body shook violently.

"I'll make him pay for what he's done to you," she hissed. "_**I vow it**_."

The venom in her tone made me cringe and I hugged myself tightly, practically able to see the waves of anger emanating from her body as she gritted her teeth in fury as James turned and smiled smugly at her. She sped forward and rammed into James, sending him flying backwards.

One thing I knew for certain; I'd **never** seen her this angry before.

Edward grimaced. "Alice, I—"

"_**Shut up**_," she snarled. "_**He's mine to kill**_."

Edward didn't say a word and stepped back as she lunged for James again with her teeth bared, successfully sinking them into his upper chest. He screamed in pain and thrashed his arms wildly about to throw her off of him, gritting his teeth at the chunk of flesh that she'd torn from his body. She spat it aside and crouched down, preparing to lunge again. James hissed.

"You little bitch," he growled. "You'll pay for that."

Alice snarled again and the two collided into each other in a frenzy. Edward, who had been watching on concernedly, was quickly thrown into the fight with Sarah when she threw Rosalie directly into him, catching him completely by surprise.

"Damn it!" Rosalie cursed. "She's too strong!"

"She's a newborn, what were you expecting?" Edward snapped.

Rosalie growled at him. "Don't snap at me, damn it! I'm as pissed off as you are!"

"I know," he grunted. "Sorry."

"It's fine. Let's just kill this bitch so we can tear that scrawny shit into pieces," Rosalie growled.

Edward nodded once. "Let's."

The two charged forward at Sarah, who roared in a ravenous fury. My attention was split between watching them fight with Sarah, who's superior strength and endurance proved to be a good enough match for the two, even with Edward's gift, and watching Alice and James trying to kill each other. James was being smug while he fought, but that didn't do much to help him out.

Alice easily dodged his teasing attacks and rammed her knee into his gut. That caught him by surprise, but he wasn't able to react because Alice was already in mid-spin by the time he started to erect himself. Seconds later, the impact of her left foreleg smashing into his crookedly grinning face sent him careening into the ground.

Alice pounced into the air before James could even try to get up. She was not having it and speedily began pounding into him with a flurry of punches, causing the ground beneath them to start to crack. Even with her shorter stature, Alice was kicking ass. And I had to admit, it was exciting to watch, a thrill almost, to see her get revenge for me.

That didn't last long, however, because James roared and threw Alice off of him. His face was messed up beyond all recognition as he staggered to his feet, his fists balled into tight fists. Alice recovered and was immediately lunging at James again. He dodged it as his face started to heal itself and I could see the seething glare in his blood red eyes. He bared his teeth at Alice and blurred forward and in a flash I could no longer see either of them as they fought on.

I turned my attention back to the fight going on between Sarah, Edward and Rosalie. Rosalie and Edward looked to be winning their fight, for once. I noticed that they'd both bitten Sarah several times because she was limping and her body was sagging as she continued to struggle. I watched her eyes, which were pitch black, yet still smoldering with emotion.

I thought to myself. Did Sarah really deserve to die?

_She hurt me. She tried to kill me. She hurt my Alice. She hurt my family._

Those things were all true. She had done all of those things, but the more I thought about it, the more I reminded myself that it wasn't all her fault. James and Victoria had manipulated her, twisted their words and used her newborn conscious to make her think that I was the one responsible for killing her family, when it had been Victoria and James who had done it. It wasn't fully her fault and no matter how pissed off at her I was, I didn't hate her for it.

How could I hate someone that was manipulated and used the same way that I was?

I bit my lip. I imagined what Sarah must've gone through waking up and finding that her family was gone. I never had a family of my own until now, but I knew that if I had been in her position, the same thing would have happened to me. I would've been just as pissed off and hell-bent on getting revenge for what happened to them as she was and is.

But if someone showed me proof that everything I thought to be the truth was a lie...

I took in a deep breath. _Edward, I know you heard all of that. You have to believe me, I know that there's still a chance that we can show her that James has been using her. I could see the doubt in her eyes before you guys came. Can you try and reason with her?_

Edward turned and stared at me as if I was insane. Rosalie and Sarah were wrestling on the ground, Rosalie getting the advantage rather easily. She tore out a piece of Sarah's hair, causing the other blonde to scream in agony as Rosalie wrapped her arms around her neck. Now I knew why Alice had said that Rosalie fought like a snake.

"Edward, please," I begged. I couldn't just let Sarah die. _Call it insanity or stupidity, I don't care, just do this for me, damn it! She's just like me, for fuck's sake. I could've become that if I hadn't met Alice and the rest of you. Please!_

Edward grimaced. "Rose, stop."

Rosalie, who had started to constrict around Sarah's neck, halted. "What?"

"Stop," he repeated, sighing. "Don't kill her yet."

"_What_?" she hissed. "Why the hell not?"

He shook his head. "You're not wrong, you know, Sarah," Edward said. Sarah, who struggled under Rosalie's hold, looked up at him and growled. "What Bella said to you was the truth. She had nothing to do with your family's deaths. It was your so-called mate over there and his friend that killed them. You know deep down that that's what happened."

"How do I know?" she hissed.

"Think back," he replied. "Think back to when you were a human. What do you remember seeing before you were changed? Think. I know it's hard to remember your human life, but if you concentrate hard enough, you'll be able to remember."

Sarah seemed to struggle with his words. A loud snarl tore through the silence and all of us turned to watch James and Alice fighting. James threw her backwards into a crate, though she was able to recover while still in mid-air and landed lithely on her feet. I noticed that a good portion of her clothing was gone now, torn off by James no doubt, and that she had two new bite marks on her body, one on her left forearm, the other on the right side of her neck.

James was missing his shirt now and was looking more ragged than before. Pieces of his body were gone, like holes on a statue. His body was littered with bite-marks as well and it looked like part of his arm was about ready to fall off, yet at the same time it was still attached.

"Pesky bitch," he growled. "You're more trouble than you're worth. I should've just killed you back when I had the chance." He licked his lips.

Alice didn't respond and merely sped towards him again, lunging at his throat. Sarah watched on as Rosalie growled and grabbed the top of her head.

"Listen, you and you damn well listen good. Either you die now or you see that you're wrong and that we're right. There's no fucking in-between here, so make your damn decision or I'll make it for you," Rosalie growled. I could tell that she didn't like the idea of letting Sarah live., I was honestly more surprised by the fact that she_ hadn't_ just killed Sarah yet.

Sarah looked like she couldn't decide. She was still fighting with herself over what to believe.

Edward suddenly whipped his head around. "Alice, no!" he shouted.

My head flew in the direction where Alice was to see her already in the air, James smirking. He dodged her attempted attack and thrust his left arm forward. Alice saw this coming and ducked under it, but she was immediately hit in the face by his knee. In a flash James had his hand around Alice's throat and sneered as he slammed her down into the ground.

"Gotcha," James crooned. "I didn't see it until now, but I figured that you had some kinda gift, which would explain why you were always able to dodge my moves. I gotta say, it's pretty nifty, but not nifty enough now that I've figured out your weakness."

"Alice!" I shouted.

Edward was already there by the time I'd shouted her name, tackling James to the ground. He opened his mouth and went for James' throat, but Alice was there before he could, grabbing the back of his head and throwing Edward off.

"_**I**_ will kill him!" she snarled.

Edward hissed. "Fool! You're too clouded by your anger—"

James was on his feet and used the distraction to sink his teeth into Alice's right wrist and in a flash tore it off. I screamed her name as James spat her severed hand aside and Alice clutched the area where her hand had been, crying out in agony. Edward snarled loudly and immediately collided into James and tore a piece of his shoulder off as he pinned him to the ground.

On the other side of the warehouse, Rosalie hissed in agitation, clearly wanting to go check on her sister, but she wasn't sure whether or not she could release the newborn in her grasp.

"Damn it, Sarah! Stop being worthless and kill her already!" James barked. "Then come and finish these two fools off!"

Sarah twitched. Rosalie released her and smacked her in the back of the head.

"Is that the kind of thing a lover would say to you?" she asked.

Rosalie didn't wait for an answer. She sped over to Alice and crouched down to whisper into her ear as Edward and James fought. Something I noticed as the two vampires fought, both looked to be more tired. I hadn't realized it until now, but both Edward and Rosalie were actually almost as ragged looking as Alice was. That meant that they probably hadn't fed and that they were both running low on power. James, he clearly hadn't fed either because he'd aimed to feed on me.

I had to help them, though. Somehow, some way, I had to help. Alice was hurt and even with Rosalie and Edward working together, they were still unable to get an opening on James. I recalled a moment when I'd been told that human blood made vampires stronger, too, which only made it worse for them. Damn it!

That's when I remembered; the lighter! I saw the lighter lying a few feet away from me. If I could just reach it, I might be able to give it to one of the others so that they could kill James once and for all. I grimaced, knowing it would hurt, but I didn't care at this point.

As fast as I humanly could, I started to drag myself on the ground, crawling toward the lighter at a painfully slow pace. My leg throbbed and my body ached, but I ignored the pain, hard as that was to do, and pushed myself. I needed to get to that lighter. I needed to help.

_I needed…to protect. My Alice. Had to protect my Alice._

At last I reached the lighter and wrapped my fingers around it. Yes! Now I just needed to give it to either Edward or Rosalie or Alice. I looked up and saw that Alice had picked up her detached hand and was putting in place, infuriated because she wanted to be the one to kill James. But she was tired and weakened, and even with her gift, I didn't think she really could.

James blasted Edward through a series of boxes, his breathing heavier than it had been earlier and his body littered with holes, cracks and scars. I noticed that he was missing two fingers on his right hand and that there was a small chunk of his right shoulder gone. Rosalie lunged at him with her teeth bared, but missed when James barely ducked under her. He grabbed her legs and spun her around before throwing her full force.

I didn't fail to notice that Rosalie's right arm was severed as she landed roughly on her knees and feet, growling angrily.

"Piece of shit," she ground out.

James sneered. "You're too weak, princess. You and your brother over there can't kill me. You might have the numbers advantage, but I'm still stronger than you are. It looks like you haven't hunted in quite a while, either. So I would give up and die now. Or you could join me and feast on that little human over there. You have to admit, she _does _smell quite good, doesn't she?"

I blanched when I realized what he was trying to do and looked at Rosalie.

Rosalie clenched her jaw tightly. "I don't give a damn how good she smells. She might be a bit annoying at times, yes, but she's still my sister. And I'll be damned if I'm going to let the likes of you go anywhere near her."

"Why are you being so serious, sweet stuff?"James asked, cocking his head to the side. "Can't you take a joke?"

"Fuck off, pig," Rosalie spat.

James gritted his teeth, the humor gone in seconds. "No thanks, I'd rather just _kill_ you." He looked like he was about to lunge for her when he noticed me, holding the lighter in my hands. I cursed in my head and wondered if I could throw it to Rose in time. Nope.

James already had his hand around my throat and was lifting me into the air, sneering.

"BELLA!" Alice roared, dropping her hand and lunging for James.

"Don't," James hissed turning so that I was in her way. She immediately froze, as did Rosalie and the reappearing Edward. "Move and I will rip off her head." He moved his other arm and wrapped it tightly around my neck, nearly choking me. "That's good. Now, Bella, be a good little girl and drop that lighter. I wouldn't want you to hurt yourself with it, now would I?"

An idea popped into my head_. Lighter. James. Next to me. Dead._

"Don't, Bella," Edward warned. "It won't work."

I noticed that Edward was standing limply, both of his legs looking injured, the right one especially as he clutched it as if to hold it in place. And now that I was in James' clutches, the situation wasn't looking good. I couldn't help but wonder; where the hell were the others at during all of this? Shouldn't they have gotten here already or what?

I didn't get the chance to verbally ask the question. Sarah blurred directly in front of James, her eyes reflecting something that I couldn't quite place as she stared down James.

"Put her down, James," Sarah commanded.

James seemed surprised. "Excuse me?"

"You heard me," Sarah growled. "I said put her down."

Alice snarled at Sarah and looked like she was about to attack her, but Edward kept her back.

"Just wait, Alice," Edward whispered.

Sarah stepped forward so that she was in James' face and I watched in surprise as her hands shot out and grabbed his wrists, pulling them away from me and letting me drop. Alice was there in seconds, wrapped her arms around me, even with only one hand to support my body, as Sarah pushed James backwards with all her might into the nearby group of crates and boxes.

Alice clutched me tightly as I curled my arms around her, clinging to her as if she were the only thing keeping me from being sucked into the fight.

James stood up from the debris around him and dusted himself off.

"That wasn't very nice, Sarah," he grunted, his voice seeping with irritation.

She ignored him and spoke up. "Tell me the truth, James. Do you really love me?"

James sighed and shook his head. "You're really beginning to annoy me, Sarah dear."

"James, I need to know the truth," Sarah said, staring at him as if a part of her wanted to believe that he did care for her. It was gone shortly after, though, as she clenched her hands into fists and growled a low, rumbling growl. "Tell me, James. My family. Bella didn't really kill them, did she? How could she have? She's too clumsy and there's no way that she's crazy or heartless enough to hurt a person, let alone kill them." She glanced over her shoulder at Alice and I.

She pointed her finger at us. "That's love, James. That's true love. Not this." She waved her finger between the two of them. "You don't love me. You never loved me. You were just using me because of my power and nothing more. Is that it? Am I nothing more than a tool for you to use and then throw away when I no longer work right?"

James seemed amused. "How sweet, you think I actually care to know what love is."

Sarah's body shook violently. "So it's true…"

He smiled. "You want the truth? Yes, we killed your family. We tried to make Bella do it, but she was too whiny and weak and wouldn't. So we did it for her. We killed them one by one, enjoying their screams of pain and torment. We even did the same to you, yet somehow you ended up surviving. I was going to kill you myself, but then Victoria decided to make you into our minion. Low and behold, you were far easier to manipulate than I'd have ever imagined."

Sarah's body stopped moving. I could hardly see her face as she stood completely still for a few seconds before letting out a guttural roar. She immediately lunged toward James and tore his right arm completely off, causing him to howl in fury. She then proceeded to pound into James with her fists, destroying a good portion of the floor as she did so. Alice moved backwards with me still in her arms. I noticed both Rosalie and Edward were gone, now.

Edward reappeared shortly after holding Alice's hand in one hand. He looked to be in pain because he was limping, but he wasn't clutching his leg anymore. Rosalie reappeared shortly after, holding her right arm in place so that it would heal.

I looked at Alice, whose black eyes were focused in on the fight. I didn't need to be a mind reader to know that the moment that James got up, she would be there, tearing him into pieces herself rather than letting Sarah do it.

Sarah finally stopped, breathing heavily as she stared down at the mess that had once been James, though I could tell that he was still alive. Sarah turned after a moment and slowly walked over to where we were, her eyes focusing in on me. Alice's body tensed as she neared us and she let out a warning growl, baring her teeth at Sarah.

Sarah stopped a few feet away. I was wary at first, but when I saw her face, I couldn't help gasping a little. Her eyes, her face, everything about her…they looked _broken_. She looked like her whole world had just been turned upside down and shattered, which, in truth, it had. Sarah looked like she wanted to scream, cry and kill something all at the same time.

"I don't know what to say," Sarah whispered at last. Her eyes didn't meet mine, they stared down at the floor beneath her feet. "These past few months, the only thing I could think about was revenge for what had happened to my family. All this time, that's all I cared about. But then as time went on, I started to think about it all. I just couldn't bring myself to believe that the people who I thought were my friends were lying to me and using me. But they were."

No one spoke.

"I'm a fucking moron," Sarah sputtered. "There's no excuse for what I've done or said or wanted to do…I just—" She didn't get a chance to finish because James was there, snarling savagely as he sank his teeth into her waist. Sarah screamed, James wrapped his arms around her and pulled. I was the one screaming next as Sarah's body was completely torn in half.

**A/N: So...yeah. Ouch.**

**What to say...well, I don't know. Some of you might like what happened, some of you might not, you know, I just went with what I felt was a good way to go. Take it however you feel like taking it. I've posted a new chapter of Broken Aurora, I have a Twitter account established (link's on my profile) and this story is coming to a close very soon. There's still a few chapters to go, of course, so don't worry about that.**

**The next chapter might be a while before you see it, merely because school has been a hassle as of late. I'd say a few days, maybe three to four, before you see it. Other than that, I hope that most of you enjoyed this chapter (maybe not the Cullen family pain part, but at least they're winning this time around). Oh, and it was funny how some of you guessed Victoria as the one who showed up. Didn't expect Rosalie, did you? Ha ha.**


	71. Endgame

**Disclaimer: I take no claim for anything belonging to Stephanie Meyer. That's hers. I only take claim for my own characters and ideas. That's it.**

**Endgame**

The room was filled with the sound of Sarah's ear-piercing scream as James savagely threw her severed halves away, one to the left and one to the right. I stared on in horror at the sight, Alice, Edward and Rosalie staring on too, surprise etched onto their faces. James, looking more wild and crazed than I'd ever seen, snarled gutturally and glared down the upper half of Sarah, which to my surprise, was still moving.

"You _**bitch!**_" he roared, clutching the stump where his right arm had been. "_**I'll tear you into pieces for that!**_"

Sarah groaned in pain. I couldn't look, though, and turned my head into Alice's shoulder, trying to keep myself from vomiting at the sight. I mean, seeing someone torn in half…fuck. I know I probably needed to get used to the sight, but I hadn't expected it this time. Poor Sarah…

"Ow…" Sarah whimpered.

James hissed and let out a demented cackle. "But first things first…"

"Alice, move!" Edward shouted.

Everything that followed was a complete blur, happening so fast I could barely figure it out until I was lying on the ground, a sharp pain shooting through my leg. I looked around and saw James attacking Edward, Alice and Rosalie in a frenzy with just one arm, swinging wildly and gnashing his teeth at their throats in an attempt to kill them.

Even with their injuries the three were able to avoid James. He continued his assault regardless, though I could tell that he was starting to see how futile it was. Edward and Rosalie both landed powerful blows to James and Alice nearly tore his head off, but he was able to slip away from her and stumbled back, his body quivering as he glared them down.

"It's over, James," Edward growled. "You're finished."

"Stand still so I can rip your face off," Alice snarled, crouching down.

James whipped his head around, growling. "No. No, no, no! I am _not_ done yet. I am _still_ going to kill you all!" he hissed. "Nobody beats James. Nobody beats me. I am greatness, elite! I'm stronger than all of you, smarter, faster! I. Will. Not. LOSE!"

He spun around, his crazed black eyes zeroing in on me. Alice snarled and pounced into the air, but James was faster and was by me in seconds. He sneered and opened his mouth, but Alice was able to get there, sinking her teeth into the back of James' neck. James bellowed and writhed around in her grip, slamming his one hand into her to fight her off of him.

He managed to grab her and slam her down to the ground, threateningly growling at Rosalie and Edward who both looked poised to attack him. Seeing Alice pinned down, growling wildly in an attempt to protect me upset me. How _dare_ he lay his hand on her? That _bastard_!

I felt that strange feeling inside of me and, with all of my might, thrust my hands forward. Doing so created a powerful shockwave that sent James flying backwards. He hit the back wall roughly and landed on his feet, stunned, but there wasn't much time for him to react. Somehow Alice managed to get from the ground over to where James was and sank her teeth into his left arm, tearing it from his body with a blood-curdling roar.

James screamed again, higher pitched than before, and collapsed onto the ground, squirming about as Alice stood tall over him, glaring him down.

She licked her lips and smiled wickedly. "Now you die."

Amidst his kicking and screaming, James thrust a leg out and smashed his foot into Alice's face, knocking her back. He struggled to move away without arms to help lift himself up as Edward went to check on Alice. Rosalie looked like she was about to finish James off, but I remembered that Sarah was still alive. Not to mention in two pieces.

I turned to see Sarah lying on the ground completely still, her eyes glazed over as she stared up at the ceiling. Her face was pained and her mouth was moving, but there were no words coming out. I felt…pity for her. Sorrow, too. She'd been through hell because of James and Victoria and now she must be in excruciating pain no thanks to her "mate".

"Rosalie," I croaked. "Can you help her?"

Rosalie turned, glancing at Sarah, then at me. "Are you out of your mind? I'm going to kill this little shit. He's got no arms and no prayer of getting out of here alive. Let me kill him."

"He can't bother us now. Rose, she helped us. Please," I begged, wincing.

Rosalie continued to stand still, staring at me as if she were trying to figure something out. After a moment of hesitation, Rosalie sighed and grumbled under her breath as she strutted over to where Sarah was. She grabbed Sarah's top half and dragged it over to her bottom half and pressed the two together, muttering the whole time.

"Lousy stinking human has to make me feel bad," she complained. "Can't believe I actually think of her as a sister."

I couldn't help smiling a little to myself at her comment. I knew that she cared for me, but it was nice to get a verbal confirmation, even if she didn't mean for me to hear it. My thoughts were broken when I heard the sound of growling and turned to see Alice struggling in Edward's grasp.

"Let me go, Edward!" Alice growled. "Let me kill him!"

"Forget him, Alice. He's trash now. Go to your _mate_," Edward grunted, making sure to stress the word "mate" as he forced her head in my direction.

That seemed to dawn on her and she immediately tore from his arms, speeding over to me and pulling me into her arms in a heartbeat. Alice hugged me tightly, pulling me into her neck. My arms were around her just as fast and I squeezed her as tightly as I could, breathing in and out deeply to absorb her scent and calm my nerves.

"I want to go home," I breathed into her shoulder. I felt tears starting to form in the back of my eyes and I struggled to keep them back. I just wanted to go home, to lie in bed and cuddle with Alice and forget about everything that had happened.

"I know, sweetheart," she murmured, her voice seeping with sorrow. "I'm so sorry. This is all my fault..."

I kissed her neck several times in order to try and make her feel better. I hated when she was sad and I didn't blame her for what happened. I blamed James, not Alice He was the one responsible for capturing me, not her or Leah or anyone else. Well, maybe for Jacob jumping the gun the way he did, but even still, with my luck, this could've happened anyways.

"You have nothing to be sorry about, Alice."

She shook her head furiously, but she remained silent, choosing not to respond. I sighed and just held her, content with being in her arms once again. Alice's body suddenly froze and I worriedly pulled back to look at her. Her eyes had glazed over. A vision. Once it ended she shook her head and growled quietly under her breath.

"It's about damn time," she grunted.

Seconds later I heard movement and turned to see the door open and five figures blur into the warehouse hastily. The rest of the family had arrived at last. Alice looked at them disdainfully, clearly upset by the fact that they hadn't been here earlier. Regardless of that fact, I was just thankful to see them all again, especially Esme, who I wanted badly to hug.

Five pairs of golden eyes darted around the room, looking first at Rosalie, who was busy holding Sarah in place, then at Edward, then at Alice and finally at me. Esme and Carlisle blurred over to where Alice and I were. Both of us were enveloped into a tight hug from Esme, who focused especially on me, cooing in my ear and pulling me as much into her arms as she could without taking me out of Alice's arms. Alice didn't budge, but she didn't complain either.

"Her leg is broken," Alice told Carlisle. "It needs to be looked at immediately. She can't walk."

Carlisle nodded. "I understand. I'll look at it when we get home." He rubbed my back and gave me a sorrowful look. "I am sorry, Bella. I have failed you as a father."

"And I as your mother," Esme choked out.

Seeing them sad and on the verge of tears—though they couldn't cry, I knew that—made me feel horrible inside and I hugged Esme tightly.

"Please don't apologize," I whispered. "It's not your fault."

"It is. We're your parents, it's our job to protect you and we didn't," Esme sighed. She looked down at my leg and then turned to shoot a look at Rosalie, Edward and finally Alice. Esme's eyes widened when she noticed Alice's missing hand. "Alice, your hand!"

Alice glanced down at her wrist and shrugged. "It's fine, Esme. Edward has my hand."

On cue, Edward speedily sauntered over to us, no longer limping. He briefly said something to Jasper and Amara, then turned and pulled out Alice's hand from his pocket as if it were no big deal before handing the severed limb to Carlisle. Carlisle took it and placed it onto the correct location, twisting and pressing it on as best he could. Alice winced as he did.

"Damn that hurts," she groaned. I looked at her sympathetically, which earned a warm smile in return, though it didn't reach her eyes. "It's okay, sweets. I'm used to it." I frowned, not buying that bit in the slightest. Alice rolled her eyes. "Bella, seriously, it's okay. It's not the worst injury I've ever sustained and it probably won't be the last one, either."

_It will if I have anything to say about it_, I muttered to myself.

"Where is that bastard at?" Esme snarled, whipping her head around. "I'll kill him for hurting my children like this!"

The mentioning of James made me jump in realization. We'd been so caught up that we had completely forgotten that James was still alive! Shit! I whipped my head in the direction where James had last been and gasped, internally smacking myself for not thinking about it beforehand and telling the others. He was gone. I don't know how he'd managed to do it, but James has somehow fled, along with both of his severed limbs.

What. The. Hell.

"He's gone," I whispered.

Alice hissed and spun her head in the same direction that I was looking in.

"Bastard! How the hell did he get away?" she growled.

"He must have escaped while our attention was drawn," Edward offered, scowling.

"_You_ were supposed to take care of him!" Alice growled. "You let him get away!"

Edward blanched. "I'm sorry. It's been a while since I've fed and that makes it harder for me to keep all of the thoughts around me at a lower volume. You try having so many chaotic thoughts running through your mind, it isn't pleasant. But I am sorry, regardless."

"Perhaps it's better that way," Carlisle mused. "Everyone's temperaments are on edge and none of us have hunted for a few days now…"

I gaped. "What? A few days? Just how many days have I been missing?"

"Two and a half days," Alice replied. She clutched me tighter, her eyes burning.

Amara and Jasper both walked over to where we were. Amara knelt down and pulled me into her arms, ignoring the light hiss that escaped Esme's lips. I sighed and rested my head on my taller sister's shoulder as she whispered encouragements into my ear and rubbed my back. Jasper sent out a strong wave of calm to help ease the tension in the area, too, which I was glad for.

Peering over Amara's shoulder, I noticed that Emmett was standing near Rosalie, checking to see if she was alright. His eyes were black and occasionally darted over to where the rest of us were for a few seconds before returning his attention to Rosalie. Rosalie waved off his concerns.

"It's fine, Em. Just forget it. I have this to attend to," she grumbled, shaking her head.

"Why is she putting that girl back together?" Esme asked, shooting a glare at Sarah.

Amara growled. "Isn't she that bastard's mate? Shouldn't we be torching her, then, and _not _putting her back together? Hello?"

"There's a lighter on the floor here," Jasper said, picking up the lighter I'd dropped.

"Bella doesn't want us to kill her," Edward interjected.

Amara and Jasper both seemed surprised. "Why the fuck not?" Amara asked.

"Because she helped us," I replied. "Even though she did hurt Alice and she did try to kill me, I don't think she's as evil as we thought. Besides, it's not all her fault. James and Victoria are the ones responsible for making her think that I killed her family. They took advantage of her when she was vulnerable and manipulated her. And…"

I bit my lip, remembering how I could've ended up in that very same situation.

"That could have been me," I whispered.

"What do you mean?" Carlisle asked quietly.

He had finished reattaching Alice's hand moments earlier, which was a relief to me. After giving her father a brief thankful look, Alice pulled me back into her body with her good hand and started running her fingers through my hair. Her eyes smoldered with love and warmth and I could tell that she didn't like what I was implying. It was true, at least to me.

"She thinks that if she hadn't found us, she'd be in the same position as the girl," Edward stated, answering Carlisle's question for me. Not that I minded.

"Bullshit," Alice growled. "I wouldn't have let that happen. One way or another, we would have been brought together and I would've made sure that you were treated right. I know I've done a lousy job of it so far, but I'll do everything I can to prevent it ever again."

No one said anything to that. The firmness in Alice's words spoke enough.

"There!" Rosalie announced, breaking the silence. She stood up and crossed her arms. "She's in one piece now, so we can leave her and go back home finally."

"We can't just leave her here," I protested.

"Why not?" Rosalie huffed. "What is she to us?"

I bit my lip and glanced at Sarah. She was lying completely still with her eyes clamped shut and her face twisted up slightly. She'd been that way ever since Rosalie had started pulling her back together and she hadn't spoken or moved since. I couldn't help wondering what was wrong with her and turned to give Edward a questioning look. Was she…dead?

"No," he replied. "Her body has shut down in order to heal itself. It's common for whenever vampires are drastically injured that they "turn off", if you will, in order to allow the venom time to patch up all the wounds. It's the closest thing to sleeping that we can have."

"Will she be okay?" I inquired.

"If given blood, she will be," Carlisle answered. "But if left here, then I don't think so."

I thought about it. Sarah didn't deserve to be abandoned, and I certainly didn't think she deserved to die, not after all she'd been through and not after she'd helped us like that. I took in a deep breath and faced Alice, staring into her eyes as they gazed back into mine. It didn't take long for Alice to see what I had planned and she immediately scowled.

"Absolutely not," Alice hissed, shaking her head. "Bella, we need to get you home so that Carlisle can fix your leg. We don't have time to help some vampire that we hardly know who you think might be good just because she attacked our enemy. If anything, she's a newborn still and she'll be dangerous to have around. And considering everything that's happened to you already, that's a risk I'm not willing to take."

"Alice, please. I know that she's a newborn and I know it could be dangerous, but I think that, with all of you keeping an eye on her, she could change. She could become a vegetarian and remember who she used to be. Heck, she could maybe even join the family."

"And if she refuses to do any of those things?" Alice asked.

"Then we let her go and make sure she leaves the area and doesn't come back," I replied.

Alice bit her lip and sighed. "You aren't going to let this go until you get your way, are you?"

I smiled. "Nope."

"Pain in the ass," she grumbled under her breath.

Amara snickered. "Now who does that remind me of?"

Alice glared at her for a moment before hanging her head. "Fine, fine! Can we at least get you home and vote on this after you've been looked at?"

I nodded and gave her a thankful smile. Alice rolled her eyes and stood up with me in her arms, muttering to herself about hunting first. She pulled me close as the others stood as well. I noticed that Emmett was the one carrying Sarah, looking torn between wanting to help and being reluctant about doing so as he lifted her up.

"I hope you know what you're doing," Edward mused.

"Does she ever?" Amara asked.

"Sometimes," Jasper replied, shrugging.

I glared at them. "Screw you all." Something hit me, then. The camera. James had recorded what he'd said about Alice. I could actually use that.

_Edward, will you take that video camera? Please don't show it to anyone and please give it to me later on. It's important, okay?_ I asked. He nodded once and blurred over to grab it, merely shaking his head when Carlisle gave him a curious look.

"Let's get Bella home," Esme interjected. Her voice smoldered with concern. "She needs food, water and a bed immediately. We'll hunt once she's been taken care of."

There were no arguments to that and in seconds we were off. I buried my face in Alice's shoulder as she sped ahead of everyone, not speaking as she ran. I knew by the way that she was holding me that she was still upset about everything that had happened and I had a feeling she'd be bringing it up later on. I didn't want her to feel bad, but nothing I said would change her mind. She would feel guilt until she felt that she'd made it up to me. That was just how she was.

My mind started growing hazy and before I knew it, everything went dark around me. As I drifted into unconsciousness, I thought about Sarah and what must've been going through her head, about James and his escape and about Alice.

My Alice, sad because she felt she'd failed me and sad that I'd gotten hurt. I thought about how weak and helpless I'd felt and how I hated it so. I thought about my body slowly dying as I changed into a vampire, about the possibility that I could end up dying before I was able to fully change and at the slight chance in needing someone to bite me again to speed it up.

So much struggle, so much pain and injury caused by my humanness. I cursed my humanity. It was the blame for most of our problems. If I wasn't human, none of this would have happened, and if it did, I could've done something. So because of that, I made a mental promise. I promised that I would be stronger the next time around, that I would be useful. I promised that I would look into this gift of mine and learn how to tap into it. Maybe then, I could do something.

No. There were no more "maybes". I _would_ do something. I wouldn't be the weak, useless human that needed saving all the time because I couldn't do anything for myself. I'd be helping my family the next time there was a conflict, not sitting on the sidelines. I vowed it, for my sake and everyone else's, especially for Alice.

Eventually I came to and opened my eyes to the familiar sight, smell and feeling of my bed in the room that Alice and I shared. I blinked several times to dispel the haziness from my eyes before looking around, noticing first off that there was a cast on my right leg. I didn't fail to notice that my cast had already been signed by everyone in the family, Alice's signature the biggest, written in pink and red with hearts surrounding it. Corny as it was, it made me smile.

"Hey beautiful," a familiar voice greeted. My smile widened.

"Hey Alice," I replied, turning to see her sitting on the edge of the bed. That didn't last long.

In seconds Alice had her arms around me, sitting on my left as she gently pulled me as close to her as she possibly could without moving my leg. She kissed everywhere from my neck up and I did the same, overjoyed to be in her arms once more. I know I'd just been with her before I blacked out, but it felt like an eternity since I'd seen her. I guessed that was part of what it was like to be a human mated to a vampire.

"Oh Bella," she whispered, nuzzling into me. "I love you so much."

"I love you too, Alice," I replied, squeezing her tightly.

She pressed her forehead to mine and we gazed into each other's eyes. Her eyes were back to the beautiful golden color, but the shadows beneath them were still just as pronounced.

"Alice…you don't look so good," I murmured.

Alice scoffed. "I think I'm sexy, thank you."

"That may be true, but I was referring to the circles under your eyes," I said. "You look so sad, Alice. It breaks my heart to see you like that, even when you're supposed to be happy. What's the matter, pixie feet?"

Alice sighed. "I'm just…upset with myself. I should have been there. There's no excuse for letting you get captured like that, none at all. I'm sorry. It's because of me and my negligence that you're in this condition." She shook her head and sighed. "I won't let it happen again, though. I can't. If I fail you again…"

I cupped her cheeks. "Alice, stop. You didn't fail me. I really wish you'd stop beating yourself up for something that wasn't your fault."

"But Bella, if I hadn't—"

"I swear to God if you blame yourself for taking me out so that we could have some quality time with each other I'll have Amara smack you. That was the greatest time I've ever had with you, Alice, and up until Jacob's stupidity, I was really enjoying it. I'm glad we did that. If anything, it's _my_ fault for being so weak and defenseless."

Alice rolled her eyes. "Not this again. Bella, you are a human. What in God's name do you expect to do against a vampire? It's not your fault that you're human, Bella, so don't give me that bullshit and don't you _dare_ start blaming yourself."

I sighed. "Alright, fine, but I don't want you blaming yourself either."

"Can we just agree to disagree?" she asked.

"Not if you're being stupid about it," I grunted.

Alice narrowed her eyes. "_Me_ being stupid? How is my worrying about you being stupid?"

"No, I don't mean that!" I said. "Alice, what I mean is that you blaming yourself for something you didn't have any control over is stupid. James would've found some way to get me one way or the other, it was pure convenience for him that I was on the Quileute territory and that I only had Leah with me at the time. That made it easier for him to strike and you wouldn't know."

"That stinking mutt wasn't very useful in the end," Alice growled. "I shouldn't have trusted her with your safety. I didn't have a choice at the time, though. _That _was stupid."

"I don't blame Leah either," I sighed. That did remind me as to how she was doing. I'd have to check at some point in the future. "I just…" I bit my lip. "I can't help blaming myself. It just feels like if it wasn't for me, we wouldn't have to deal with the wolves or the crazy vampires who seem obsessed with hunting me down. If I—"

Alice silenced me with her lips and I was glad she did. I was babbling anyways. Alice cupped my cheeks and re-situated herself so that she was on top of me and started to tenderly kiss me, moving her icy lips against mine in sync with the beating of my heart. After several minutes we broke apart, Alice running the fingers of one hand through my hair and stroking my cheek with the other hand, cooing sweetly as she pecked my lips several times in a row.

"I love you." Kiss. "I love you so damn much; I couldn't even begin to express it. Bella, you are the world to me and I don't ever want you to think that you're the cause of all of this. It's not your fault and I never want you to think those horrid thoughts again or so help me God I will do whatever it takes to show you that it isn't true. So please, don't think that way anymore."

"I can't help it," I sighed.

"Well you'd best start to," Alice stated, kissing me again. "I mean it, Bella. Please. For me, stop feeling responsible for things that you don't need to feel responsible. And I promise to do a better job at protecting you and making sure that nothing like this ever happens again."

We laid there silently for a moment. Her golden eyes burned with conviction as she made her promise and I knew that she meant every word.

"Promise me, Isabella," Alice whispered.

I closed my eyes for a moment before leaning in to kiss her.

"I promise that I'll work on being more positive and not blaming myself. Not just that, though. I promise that, from here on out, I'll do everything that I can to not be a burden on you or the others." Alice scowled, but I quickly cut her off. "I promise to spend more time with you just being with you, and to spend more time with the rest of the family, too."

Alice clamped her jaw shut and let me continue.

"I promise not to be the cowardly, fragile human. I know that what I did before is some kind of gift type thing and I aim to try and learn more about it. Maybe then I won't need to be protected all the time. And if I can somehow learn how to tap into my vampire powers, like what I did when we were in the forest that day, I could use that to help whenever trouble strikes again. I mean, let's face it, with me around, there's bound to be danger just around the corner."

Alice was silent for a moment.

"I can't argue with you on that logic," she said at last. "I can and will argue with your earlier statement, however. You aren't a burden on us. I don't understand why you seem to believe that you are, Bella. No one in this family has ever said you're a burden, have they?"

"No."

"Then cut those ideas out of your head," Alice said, kissing me once more. "It isn't true and it will never be true. We are Cullens; we look out for each other because we love each other. It's what we do. It's what a family is supposed to do. So whether you like it or not, we're going to protect you, Bella. You might as well get used to it."

I guess, with that logic, I had to. I still didn't like the idea of needing protecting all the time. It wasn't that I didn't like that I was being protected. There were just sometimes that I felt like I needed to protect myself. Maybe I was looking at it wrong, though. Maybe I should look at it from their perspective, from the point of view of a sibling wanting to keep their little sister safe or from a parent wanting to make sure their child was alright.

"I…I'll try to," I murmured, shrugging.

"I suppose that's the most I can ask for," Alice sighed. "It's not like there aren't going to be bumps on the road with our relationship. We've only just started tapping into where we can go with our love, Bella. There will be things we aren't used to and things that will happen suddenly, including stuff about the vampire world that you still don't know about. But in time, we'll conquer each of those things whenever they come, together."

I nodded and smiled at her. She smiled back, her eyes shining.

"So how long was I unconscious for? A few days?" I asked, lifting an eyebrow.

"Actually, you've only been sleeping for a few hours. Carlisle checked on your leg and fixed it into the cast, which, as you noticed, we all signed, and we've been taking turns keeping an eye on you and tending to our…uh, _guest_."

"Sarah," I breathed. "How is she?"

"Still unconscious, but her body's healing fast," Alice replied, pursing her lips. "That's one of the graces of being a newborn, as you know. Honestly, I don't like that she's still around because you're here and I still don't trust her. We're going to have a family meeting in a while to determine what we'll do with her. I asked that we hold in our room so that you could be a part of it since you can't walk just yet."

"I see. Thanks, Alice. I really appreciate it, even if you don't want Sarah here," I said.

Alice sighed again. "The things I do for you, Bella. The things I _would_ do for you. I think I really _am_ as whipped as Emmett, if not more so."

We both heard a loud "hey!" from downstairs, followed by several laughs. Alice and I giggled silently and cuddled up more. I glanced down at my cast and glared at it. I hated casts. I'd gotten more than enough in the past and I was ready to not have to deal with them anymore.

"How long will I be in this?" I asked.

Alice giggled. It was nice to hear her laughter again. "Carlisle theorized that, with the way your body is healing combined with the injection he gave you—" I blanched at the word "injection", but Alice calmly stroked my cheek to reassure me. "It will likely be about a week or so before your leg heals enough for you to walk. Which stinks because I wanted to take you shopping this weekend for prom dresses."

"Oh darn. I bet Amara's real sad about that," I chuckled.

Alice beamed. "She's safe for now, but once your leg heals, we're all going shopping." There was a knock on the door, breaking my attention away from Alice. When I looked at her again, she smiled. "Come on in, Carlisle, Esme."

The door opened and in walked our parents. Esme immediately was by my side and pulled me into a tender Esme-hug, kissing my cheeks as I nuzzled into her. Oh how I missed the almighty Esme hugs. She gently released me after a few silent minutes, smiling warmly at me.

"How are you feeling?" Carlisle asked, gently squeezing my shoulder and giving me the same warm smile that Esme did. I smiled back at each of them, just as warmly.

"Alright," I replied. "A bit stiff, but otherwise fine."

"That should wear off soon," Carlisle mused.

"So what's up?" I asked, cocking my head to the side.

"We came to see if you girls were ready for our discussion," Esme replied, looking at each of us.

Alice and I shot a look at each other and nodded in unison. "We're ready."

**A/N: ****Violence, sorrow and emotions galore. And what's this? James escaped! Again. I know most of you were all "kill James, kill James!". Well, I didn't. I never planned on it. I know the escaping thing might be getting old (give me a break, I want him to live and come back later :P), but eh, I think it works.**

**This story is coming to the end soon. It's just...wow. It's been a long, rather crazy journey since I first started this story way back in...what was it, May? Jeez. You know, I never once expected this story to get the amount of praise and love that it's gotten. Never would have expected it and it still surprises me every time I look at the number of reviews it has and the number of people who have it in their favorites list. And aside from a few insults, just about every review is positive in some way. **

**I'll save all the big sappy "I love you girls/guys" stuff for the final chapter. So until then, you're sap free. Wait...**

**Other news, again, Twitter account open and the latest chapter of Broken Aurora is out. Until next time.**


	72. Aftermath

**Disclaimer: I take no claim for Twilight, as it belongs to Stephanie Meyer. I do, however, own all OCs and my own ideas and whatnot.**

**Aftermath**

Alice helped prop me up, moving her pillows so that I could lean against them. She then gently lifted me up and curled her arms around me before placing me on her lap, being mindful of my leg, which, thankfully, wasn't hurting. I relaxed into her arms as she pressed her lips to my left shoulder, her body vibrating as she purred contently.

It didn't take long for the others to enter the room. Carlisle and Esme both stood, hand in hand, near Alice's window while the others filtered in. Edward was the first and Emmett was the last, gently shutting Alice's door behind him.

"Thank you, Emmett. If you broke another one of my doors, I'd have to kill you," Alice said from behind me, flashing him a dangerous smile.

Emmett snorted. "Yeah, sure you would, little pix."

"Do you want me to test that theory?" Alice asked, lifting an eyebrow.

"None of that, Alice," Rosalie grunted. "I'm not in a good mood right now. When are we voting on getting rid of that newborn downstairs?"

"Patience, Rosalie," Carlisle said gently. "We'll get to that momentarily. Before we do, are there any other orders of business that we should attend to while everybody is here?"

"Banning Alice from going shopping for a few years?" Amara offered.

Alice scoffed. "Nobody bans me from shopping, Amara. Just for that, I'm making you try on a frilly pink skirt when we go prom dress shopping."

Amara looked horrified and cringed. Then she seemed to ponder something and smirked.

"If you plan on doing that, then I'll show Bella those videos we taped of you when you were drunk a few years ago," she sneered. Alice's eyes bulged. "Oh, so you do remember that. Good, because I happen to have it stored away with my collection of memorable moments in this family, several of which you might find…embarrassing."

"You wouldn't dare," Alice hissed, clearly not amused.

"You _know_ I would and will," Amara replied, snickering.

"Fine!" Alice huffed, pouting adorably. "I won't make you try on any un-Amara dresses. But you're still going shopping with Rosalie, Bella and I once Bella's leg heals. I don't care what excuse or threat you come up with, it's non-negotiable. You're going and that's that!"

Amara narrowed her eyes at her sister. "I get to choose what I end up wearing."

"Deal," Alice replied, huffing again and kissing my cheek.

Both Esme and I giggled while a few of the others chuckled at the exchange. Carlisle, whose eyes were full of mirth, cleared his throat.

"Well, now that that debate is settled, is there anything else of note?" he inquired.

"The wolves," Jasper said. "They broke the treaty again when they attacked Alice in the woods."

Alice snarled and I grimaced, remembering what had gone down. In truth, it had been Jacob who had overreacted and phased. Only then had several others arrived on the scene, likely believing that Alice had been trying to bite me no thanks to Jacob.

"It was that idiot chief's idiot son," Alice growled. "He's the one to blame."

"I think we should just wipe them all out," Rosalie hissed. "They've broken the treaty twice now, and I don't see a point in keeping it around anymore, especially when we all know that they'll probably end up attacking us soon anyways."

"It would seem that a conflict with the Quileutes is unavoidable in the future," Carlisle agreed, pursing his lips.

"But not all the wolves want us dead," I pointed out. "Some of them don't want anything to do with what their elders want. Most of them just want to live in peace and protect their land and families, not get into a big battle."

"Don't protect them, Bella," Rosalie sighed. "Isn't it because of your little "friend" that you were hurt in the first place? Had Alice not entrusted you to her, you probably wouldn't have been captured in the first place." Alice hissed and Rosalie held her hands up. "I wasn't saying that it was your fault, Alice, I'm merely saying that she was a bad choice."

"The question remains on what we should do about it," Edward spoke. "Do we ignore it and go about our business, choose to act upon it or what?"

"We can have a vote on it," Esme suggested. "We vote to decide how we go about dealing with the wolves. Either we leave them be and hope that things are settled, we choose to act upon their breaking of the treaty or another alternative." Everyone nodded silently in agreement, though Rosalie did so reluctantly. "I'll start then. I believe that we should look at this as a misunderstanding and, suffice to say, call them for some form of reimbursement."

"What kind of reimbursement?" Alice asked, narrowing her eyes. "You mean payment for what happened to Bella?"

"Yes," Esme replied, twitching slightly. "They owe us since it is that boy's fault that any of this happened and, should they refuse payment, then we will be forced to act."

"I hope they refuse, then," Amara crooned, pounding her fists together. "I want to rip something in half because I missed out on the fight."

"Ditto," Emmett agreed.

"_If_ it comes to that," Esme pointed out.

"Esme's right," Jasper interjected. "Not only do they outnumber us, but we can't be fully sure that those that claim to want peace truly mean it. Plus, with them obeying the orders given to them by their council, it seems unlikely that they would have a choice if they were told to attack us. In the end, it'd be pure chaos and there would be nothing we could do to change that."

"Unless we could convince Raina to take over," I added.

"What is your obsession with wanting to keep the mongrels alive?" Rosalie asked, scowling. "It doesn't make sense! You're going to be a vampire soon, Bella, and since there's no avoiding that little fact, you need to start getting used to the fact that werewolves are our enemies by nature and nothing can ever change that. You'd think their stink was enough to point that out."

"So we're supposed to hate them just because they stink?" I asked.

"Wha-no!" Rosalie groaned. "Damn it, girl, will you try and understand?"

I sighed. "Rosalie, I know that you don't like them and I know that most of them don't like vampires, but there has to be more to it than just "nature" and their smell. And your own personal bias, since, let's face it Rose, you are a little biased."

"I'm _not_ biased," Rosalie huffed. "It's not my fault you just want to protect your smelly little mutt friends!"

"Your attitude stinks, Rose," I snickered.

Rosalie glared at me. "_You _stink, you little—"

"Hey! Only _I_ can tell her she stinks, not _you_, Rosalie," Alice interrupted, glaring at her.

"Girls, girls!" Carlisle interjected calmly. "Please, calm yourselves. This isn't helping."

Both Rosalie and Alice stopped bickering and glared at each other for a moment. I rolled my eyes and squeezed Alice's arms as they tightened around me. Rosalie crossed her arms and huffed indignantly, though I swore I could see a hint of playfulness in her eyes for just a moment before she turned away, as if deliberately to prevent me from seeing.

A brief moment of snickering from my siblings later, Carlisle spoke.

"I agree with Esme," he said simply.

"As do I," Jasper replied.

"Same," Edward agreed.

"I don't like it, but I guess I'll agree," Amara sighed. "Damn mutts better be ready for an ass whooping if they start anything."

"I'm with Amara on this one," Emmett grunted.

"So am I," Alice said. "I want that boy's head on a platter."

"You know where I stand on the issue," I murmured, shrugging.

Rosalie scoffed. "Yes, another mongrel sympathizer. Whatever. I don't care; I just don't want them anywhere near here so they can stink up our land. Besides, I just got finished eliminating the dog stench from my hair, I do_ not_ want to do it for the fifteenth time this month."

"Then that's settled," Esme said, clasping her hands together. "I'll contact the wolves later on in order to speak with their elders."

"You should talk to Sue Clearwater," I suggested. "She seems to be the most reasonable."

"I will, thank you for the suggestion, Bella," Esme replied.

"Is there anything else of note for us to discuss?" Carlisle asked.

No one said anything at first. I wanted to ask Edward about the video camera, but I decided to wait until everyone was gone. And that included Alice. If anything, it could wait until my leg was healed up, since using it would require me being able to actually walk.

"How's about we get to the main reason why we're all in Alice and Bella's room?" Rosalie offered, snorting. "Our _guest_."

"I don't like having her here," Amara hissed.

Jasper nodded curtly. "She's dangerous."

"I heard that she helped," Esme murmured, glancing at me for confirmation. I nodded.

"She…well, she _kind_ of did," Rosalie admitted begrudgingly. "All she really did was get his attention and beat him up. Then she turned her back on him like an idiot and got herself torn in half, which is entirely her fault."

Funny how Rosalie didn't mention that James had me in his clutches and would have probably killed me had Sarah not stepped in. Though I knew that Alice would have done whatever it took to get me free, I didn't think she would have been able to in time. I was thankful that Sarah had saved me and still felt a bit sad for her.

"I still don't think she's evil," I whispered.

Alice sighed. "Bella, you are far too loving and kind for your own good. You have to understand that newborns can't always be reasoned with. She might be a few months old, but as you clearly saw, her control still isn't the best right now. She could snap at any given moment and I don't want to risk seeing you get hurt or worse because of that."

"I know, Alice."

"I can't help but feel bad for the poor girl," Esme said. "She's been through quite a bit. Losing her family, being lied to and manipulated, nearly dying at the hands of someone she truly thought loved her. It's sad. I know that she tried to kill Bella and I have no intention of letting her live that down, but I don't feel that we should abandon her just yet."

"I think that if we were to allow her to stay that we would need to keep an eye on her to make sure that she did not try anything we wouldn't want her to," Carlisle mused, stroking his chin in thought. "Can I count on the rest of your cooperating with this if we ultimately decide on it?"

Rosalie grunted, Emmett shrugged and Amara hissed. Jasper and Edward both pursed their lips in thought and glanced at each other. Alice remained silent, though I knew that she was less than thrilled with the idea of Sarah being here.

I turned around. "Please, Alice? Just give this a chance? For me?"

Alice scowled and clenched her jaw together. I smiled inwardly and proceeded to puff out my bottom lip in the same fashion that Alice did, knowing full well that it wouldn't take long for her to cave. And I was right. Seconds later, after trying her hardest, she cooed and pulled me into her arms, kissing my lips sweetly. I smiled against her lips, pleased.

"I hate you," she grumbled.

"No you don't," I said, rolling my eyes. Alice pressed her nose into my hair and breathed in, sighing contently as she began to purr again. That made me smile.

"Whipped," Amara snorted.

"Shut up," Alice growled, huffing petulantly.

I tried not to smile, but it didn't work out too well. I couldn't help it. She was so damn cute; it always made me smile, especially whenever she acted like this. And, deep down, it felt kind of good knowing that she was a bit whipped. I had a vampire wrapped around my finger. There was no way that that idea wasn't the coolest ever. Not that I'd ever tell her.

"Shall we vote, then?" Carlisle inquired.

Just about everyone sighed.

"If it gets too out of hand, we'll figure something else out," Esme stated, shaking her head.

"Fine, she can stay," Rosalie grumbled. "But she'd better behave."

"How do we know she'll willingly accept our lifestyle?" Amara asked, scowling. "I don't think anyone has asked her for _her_ opinion yet."

"Perhaps she will, perhaps not," Carlisle said. "We will see when she awakens. She did display rather good control over herself, considering the fact that she was able to suppress her thirst when she attacked the other nomad. There is hope for her, clearly. But the fact remains that we cannot force her to do something she doesn't want to do."

"Do you know how long she'll be unconscious for?" I asked curiously.

Carlisle tapped his chin in thought. "I would say another few days. Our bodies take time to heal injuries of that depth, even newborns. We'll have to see, though."

The room fell quiet then. No one seemed to have anything else to bring up.

"I think that's all there is to discuss at the moment," Edward said at last. "Am I right in assuming that Bella will be staying home until her leg heals?"

"Damn straight," Alice replied. "I don't want her falling and hurting herself worse." I turned my head around to peer at her and she gave me a soft smile. "Sorry love, I know you don't like it when I'm too protective, but…well, we've been over this. I don't want you to get hurt worse."

"Will you be going to school?" I asked.

Alice bit her lip. "Well, I…" She glanced at Esme. "Can I stay with Bella?"

Esme just stared at her. "Alice, that is by far one of the most ridiculous things you've ever asked me, other than that time you asked if you could get a tattoo, which you know is physically impossible to do for a vampire. Of course you can stay home with Bella, silly girl."

I cocked my head to the side and appraised Alice. "You wanted to get a tattoo?"

She shrugged. "I was curious and a little intoxicated, what can I say?"

I furrowed my brow. "Wait, wait, wait. You were drunk, Alice?"

"A tiny bit," she sighed. "I know, it might not make sense, but alcohol is one of the few things that humans have that we can actually enjoy. But I was only a little buzzed, that's all."

"Only a tiny bit? It was _so _more than that, Ali!" Emmett guffawed.

"She was so tipsy she actually _fell_ when she tried to dance," Jasper snickered. "In fact, she fell more times than any of us had ever seen before. It was quite amusing to watch, actually."

"Don't forget that she broke Esme's table, too," Rosalie added, smirking.

Emmett burst into laughter that echoed throughout the room. It didn't take long for the others to join in with him, even Carlisle and Esme, though Esme scowled at the memory of her broken table. Nonetheless, they all laughed and I couldn't help joining them, much to Alice's dismay. She glared at all of us and huffed petulantly, feigning removing her arms from me. She didn't, though, because I gave her a look not to, so she didn't.

The mood in the room was much different from when everyone had first come in. It made me smile because for once I didn't have to worry about any psycho vampires. With Sarah's change of heart and James' disappearance—a fact that worried me, but I didn't intend to ruin the mood by bringing it up—I hoped that things would be better for a little while.

"Is this "gang up on Alice" day or something?" Alice groaned.

"Don't be that way, Alice. You do the same thing all the time," Edward snorted.

She gritted her teeth. "You know what, screw you! Get out! Out, out, out!"

The others laughed, which only made her more annoyed. Carlisle cleared his throat, which caused all their laughter to subside and everybody turned to look at him.

"I do believe that, since we have nothing else to discuss, that we should vacate Alice's room and go about our business as usual," he suggested.

"Aw, but teasing her is so much fun though," Emmett whined.

"So would be castrating you, Emmett," Alice sneered.

Emmett's eyes bulged and he speedily covered his groin up before removing himself from the room faster than usual. Rosalie rolled her eyes and, after glancing at my casted leg, walked out after him. Jasper and Amara soon joined, snickering amongst themselves as Alice glared them down and dismissed them with her hand. That left Edward, Carlisle and Esme.

"I'm going to go make you something to eat," Esme chimed happily before departing.

Carlisle chuckled. "I'll go and see to our guest. Be well, Bella."

That just left Edward, who was leaning near the doorway.

"Beat it, jerk," Alice commanded, dismissing him with her hand.

Edward rolled his eyes. "You have no authority over me, Alice."

"I beg to differ. I'm better, sexier _and _older than you, so that gives me full authority to tell you what to do. And if you don't start listening, I might just have to do something drastic to that precious piano of yours. You wouldn't want that, now would you?"

He narrowed his eyes. "You _do_ realize that its Esme's piano, right? And you do realize that Rosalie plays it and that you play it, yes? So your plan automatically fails, because you'd end up being yelled at _and_ you'd have to use your "shopping money" to buy a new one. Case in point, you can't tell me what to do."

"But I can rip your head off," Alice growled.

"What's got you in such a bad mood?" Edward inquired, lifting an eyebrow. "Upset because the shoe was on the other foot this time around?"

"I don't know what you're talking about," she grumbled, resting her chin on my shoulder.

I giggled. "You're upset because they were making fun of you, silly." She huffed and moved so that her nose was buried in my hair. "It's okay, Alice. You know they were only playing with you, right? There's no reason to be too sensitive about it."

"It's not that," she sighed. "I'm just worried."

"She's concerned about you and about our newborn guest downstairs," Edward informed me.

"Alice…" I sighed, shaking my head.

She shrugged. "I can't help it, Bella. You're hurt and that hurts me. I won't say anything more on it, I promise, but I can't help worrying."

"What am I going to do with you?" I asked, leaning back to kiss her. She immediately deepened the kiss and pulled my face in closer. We broke apart moments later, smiling giddily at one another as Edward rolled his eyes and excused himself from the room.

"You could do that some more, for starters," Alice said, licking her lips. "You could also let me give you a foot massage once your leg has healed up."

"Maybe…" I tapped my chin teasingly.

Alice smirked and pulled her shirt up partially. "I'll let you have some fun with this," she purred.

"Deal," I said, imagining the fun we'd have once my leg was healed.

"That reminds me, after prom, we're going to have a redo of our special day together. Only this time, I'll see to it that no mongrels ruin our moment with each other." She winked. "I'm going to set up some traps around the area that we were in. That's our area, no one else's, and I'll be damned if anyone is going to ruin our special time together."

"Fine by me," I replied, kissing her cheek. I glanced down at my leg. "It really stinks that I have to be cooped up in bed for a week, though."

Alice laughed musically. I hadn't heard that wondrous sound in so long; I was stunned for a moment, feeling as though I'd never heard it before. When the music stopped, Alice was smiling brightly at me as she leaned in to capture my lips in a tender kiss.

"Silly Bella, you know that I'll be here with you the whole time," she pointed out.

"True, but then we'll both be bored. There's not a whole lot that I can do with a broken leg," I said, laying backwards into her arms. Alice lay back onto the pillows and started to run her fingers through my hair, gently massaging my scalp as she did.

"It doesn't matter. We can just lay here all day and talk and hug and kiss and cuddle. With the way your body works, your leg will probably be fine within a few days, so you won't have to wear that God awful cast anymore. I do want you to keep it, though."

"Ew, why? It'll be all stinky and gross," I said. "Plus, why would you want me to keep something that symbolizes that I had my leg broken by a psychopath that ended up getting away somehow when there were so many of us?"

"Gee, thanks for bringing that up. As if the others haven't been doing that enough," she groaned.

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean it like that," I murmured sheepishly.

She sighed and kissed my forehead. "I know, Bella. I'm just mad that he got away. I don't understand how he did it, though. He had his arms torn off, yet he was somehow able to escape there alive and without anyone, Edward and myself included, noticing!"

I nuzzled into her neck and reached down to squeeze her hand reassuringly.

"It's not your fault. Maybe he has some kind of gift that we don't know about and he used that to escape, you never know," I offered.

Alice shook her head. "Edward said that his only "gift" was his powerful senses. That isn't it."

"Can we not talk about him right now?" I asked. I didn't want to think about James and what he'd done to me. More importantly, what he'd done to Alice. I still remembered how he'd described his stalking of her and I didn't want to imagine that any time soon. "I'd rather just focus on what's important, and right now, _you're_ what's important."

"True," Alice replied, smiling. "I agree, though. In fact, let's not talk at all." She gently moved so that she was on top of me, her sweet breath breathing directly into my face. I moaned as she pressed her lips to mine and curled her arms around me again.

We spent the next few hours kissing passionately, breaking apart three times for me to get my much needed oxygen and for Alice to calm her ever-growing instinct. I knew that the more we kissed and the more heated we became, the harder it was for her to keep her thirst for my blood down so that she didn't lose control. But she did it. She forced herself too.

Eventually we stopped kissing altogether, though Alice didn't move from her position. She was nuzzling into the crook of my neck affectionately, purring with a delighted smile on her face. I held her tightly, my nose buried in her soft, delicious smelling hair.

"This is nice," I murmured, running the fingers of my left hand through her locks.

Alice sighed contently. "I agree."

"What time is it?" I inquired.

"Six seventeen," she replied. "Esme will be bringing you food shortly. She was going to earlier, but Edward told her not to because we were having an intimate moment together. Now that we're done, she'll be here soon. You know how she is when it comes to you being fed."

I giggled. "I appreciate that, too."

Alice looked at me and pouted. "Hey, I've cooked for you before."

"Once, Alice," I pointed out, smiling.

"Shut up!" she whined. "I can't help if I keep burning your damn food!"

"You're adorable when you pout, you know that?" I asked, kissing her. "Of course, you're always adorable, so I guess it's a moot point."

She didn't respond and merely snuggled into me. The door opened seconds later and in walked Esme holding a plate with a sandwich and a glass of milk for me. She smiled warmly at the both of us as she handed me the plate. Alice took it from her and set it on my lap, crinkling her nose up in disgust at the smell of the food in a playful manner.

"Oh, stop that," I grumbled.

"Can you blame me?" Alice asked. "It stinks!"

"I don't see how my food can smell bad compared to the wolves," I mumbled, reaching down to grab my sandwich. I took a brisk bite, chewed and swallowed before smiling at my mother, who smiled back happily. "Thank you, Esme, I really appreciate it. Actually, I _always_ appreciate it."

Esme leaned down to kiss both my cheeks. "Thank you, sweetie. It's nice to know that at least _one_ of my daughters is well-mannered."

"I have manners!" Alice protested. "I just don't use them that much…"

"That's an understatement," Esme snorted. "You're almost as bad as Amara."

"Am not," Alice huffed.

Esme giggled and kissed Alice on the forehead. "There, there, Alice. I love you just as much, even if you _are_ a stinker most of the time. I'll leave you two girls alone now so that Bella can enjoy her meal. Do let me know when you finish and I'll take the dishes."

That said, Esme gracefully flitted out of the room. I immediately started eating the sandwich, ignoring the disgusted faces that Alice was making as I did. Once I'd finished, I took my time drinking the milk, drawing it out just to tease Alice, who stuck her tongue out at me. When I was done altogether, Alice called for Esme, who blurred into the room and happily removed the dishes from my lap so fast that I was barely able to follow.

"Jeez," I whispered, more to myself.

Alice started giggling, the entire bed shaking from the musical noise. I looked down at her to see her eyes swimming with mirth and amusement as she covered her mouth in an attempt to quell her giggling, which, as I expected, didn't help at all.

"What's so funny?" I asked.

She pointed to her upper lip, which confused me. What?

"You…you have…" She paused and tried to calm herself. "You have a milk mustache."

I scowled for a moment before I realized what she meant and grumbled to myself as I wiped my mouth with my sleeve. She continued to giggle and I wished that I could do something to her, like tickle her, but I knew that vampires weren't ticklish. So I crossed my arms and closed my eyes in an attempt to ignore her, knowing full well that Alice did _not_ like to be ignored.

And it worked, too, because Alice's giggling subsided a few seconds later and I felt her press her forehead against mine.

"Don't you ignore me," Alice muttered. "Look at me, Isabella. Now." I opened my eyes to see her giving me a serious look—or at least trying to—as her eyes bored into mine.

"I'm looking at you," I replied, mimicking her serious face.

"Good."

"So now what?" I asked.

"Now you be a good girl and stay still while I kiss you," she replied.

She leaned in and connected our lips once more. Both of us smiled against each other's lips and we began to passionately kiss again, Alice pressing me into the bed further as we did. We spent most of the remainder of our day kissing, just content with being together. I pushed away thoughts of James and of all my other troubles for the day, vowing to not let them ruin my time with Alice. Alice was all I wanted to concentrate on, nothing more.

I didn't know what was going to happen in the coming days. I wasn't too concerned with the wolves, but I did wonder about Sarah and how she would react to everything. I planned on trying to get a chance to talk to her at some point once she'd come to, in fact. Plus there was the footage on the video camera that Edward had, which I wanted to use for myself in the future. So much craziness in such a short amount of time, and now it was over. And yet, I couldn't help thinking to myself…this was going to be a very long week. I only wondered whether or not that was going to be a good thing.

**A/N: A bit of lighthearted humor and fluffiness with a small amount of plot development to sort of tone things down. The action is pretty much done for this story, but there's still a bit that needs to be said and done. Call this a transitional chapter, if anything.**

**I announced this on Twitter, but since I only have a few people following me there (that is so totally not me trying to get more followers, honest), I figured announcing it here would be a good idea too. Blood Solstice will, for those of you who love it, now be a bit longer. And by a bit, I mean a few chapters worth. I got a few ideas for some stuff that I felt would really help bring a sense of closure to certain parts that were present in this story. It will be ending soon, but I thought I'd let everyone know. And for those of you wanting more Broken Aurora, I do apologize, but hey, you get some more Blood Solstice, which (I hope) is a good thing. **

**Random closing note. There was an interesting comment made in a review I got not too long ago and, though I know it's pointless to bring up, I couldn't resist it. Blood Solstice totally needs an audiobook. Don't you agree? That'd be awesome. I'd put that on my iPod in a heartbeat, definitely. The only problem is that there's no way that anyone would ever have the time to do that. If they did, that'd be epic. Ah well, I can dream, can't I? And, you know, put some ideas into people who have a lot of free time and love my story's heads. It'd have to be a female (for obvious reasons), but otherwise...(I know it won't happen, but I can't help myself, meh).**


	73. Guest

**Disclaimer: I take no credit for Meyer's Twilight characters. I take credit only for my own characters and ideas.**

**Guest**

I ended up spending most of the week in bed, kissing and cuddling with Alice. It wasn't as bad as I'd originally thought, since besides the on and off pain in my leg—and the soreness leftover from my James ordeal—it wasn't a bad week at all. The others often visited throughout the week, including Edward, Esme and Carlisle playing cards with me, Jasper playing me chess, Emmett bringing in some of his comic books and Amara performing some really cool tricks to entertain me. Rosalie even visited on several occasions, which I thought was sweet of her.

By the third day my leg started to feel better and wasn't as sore as it normally was. I tried to move it a bit, but Alice stopped me, adamant on making sure that I rested my body and refused to let me move unless it was direly necessary. Her stubbornness was cute and I did appreciate her concern for me, even if there were occasions when she acted a little too protective. Alice caught herself whenever she did that and apologized afterwards, but I didn't mind it much.

When Saturday rolled around, my leg was no longer as injured. Carlisle did an x-ray on it—apparently Alice had suggested that they have an x-ray for my sake because of my being accident prone—and saw that it had healed as expected due to the venom inside of me. He removed the cast from my leg Saturday night, which was awesome because it gave me the chance to take a long awaited shower and it allowed me to finally move around.

It was Sunday now. I was relaxing on our bed, curled into Alice's arms as she stroked my head, running her fingers gently through my hair. Alice was purring as she nuzzled into the top of my head and breathed in my scent, sighing happily.

"I think this bed has become my third home," I murmured.

"What're the first two?" she asked, smiling.

"This house and your arms," I replied, shrugging off the corniness.

Alice giggled. "In that order, eh?"

"Not necessarily," I chuckled.

"Well that's good to know," Alice said, kissing the top of my head.

"What are my chances of being allowed to leave the house?" I asked curiously.

"You make it sound like I'm forcing you to stay," Alice grunted, scowling.

I looked at her. "That's not what I meant, Alice. It's just…well…"

"I know, I know," she sighed and gazed into my eyes. "I'm sorry about that. I didn't mean to make it seem like you had no free will. I wanted your leg to fully heal first before you could go out and about. Carlisle and Esme both agreed that it was for the best, so it's not like I'm the culprit behind keeping you inside."

"I'm not mad, Alice. I understand, really, I do. I was just trying to make a joke," I said.

"Oh." Alice bit her lip. "Man, I must be more out of it than I thought."

"It's been a long week, Alice," I pointed out. "Maybe not to you, but having to wear that stinking cast for so long made it feel that way to me. I'm glad it's gone, honestly. It was starting to itch like hell, even with Jasper around to help, and I can only imagine how horrid it must smell."

Alice chuckled. "Actually, Esme washed it out and is storing it for you. I know you said you didn't see it as a good symbol, but it could be if you looked at it from a different perspective. If anything, you should keep it for having all of our signatures on it, since that's the first thing we've signed in forever."

"I guess broken bones aren't something you've ever experienced," I teased.

"Not as a vampire, no," she replied, shrugging. "It's possible I might have broken something when I was a human, but I can't recall."

Hearing that reminded me of the video camera where James had talked about Alice, conveniently recording it as he did. I had yet to speak to Edward about where he'd put the camera, but I intended to when Alice was gone from the house. I wanted to look it over for myself. And maybe, just maybe, I could use that information and do something special for Alice.

For now, though, I kept it to myself. I didn't want to get Alice's hopes up, especially if James had been lying merely for my benefit and his own entertainment. I didn't think he was, but just in case, it was best to keep quiet on the subject altogether. I did feel bad for Alice whenever she mentioned her lack of memory of her human life.

I _would_ do something about it, one way or the other.

"So what do you want to do today?" I asked.

"I don't know, what do you want to do today?" she asked back, smirking.

I rolled my eyes. "Don't start that, Alice."

"Aw, you're no fun," she pouted at me and I turned my head. I was _so_ not going to fall for the Alice pout, not today. "Bella…"

I shook my head. "I'm not looking at the pout, Alice. Take it away and then we'll talk."

"You stink!" she huffed, grumbling under her breath.

She reached over and gently cupped my cheeks, forcing me to face her. I smiled at her, but she quickly crashed her lips to mine and slipped her tongue into my mouth, making me moan instead. We kissed for several minutes before breaking apart, me panting as my heart pounded in my chest and Alice staring back at me with black eyes and a smile.

"Is that better?" she asked, somewhat groggily.

"Much," I breathed. "What was that for?"

"Because I can," she replied, capturing my lips once more. "And because I love kissing you."

"Amen to that," I agreed, grinning like a fool at her.

Alice looked like she was about to say something, but then she froze as her eyes glazed over. I waited patiently, nuzzling into the crook of her neck as she had her vision for a few moments before she came out of it, her jaw clenching tightly.

"Our guest is about to wake up," she announced.

My eyes widened. "Sarah's conscious?"

"Yes," she replied, sighing. "She will be shortly. The others are going in there in order to make sure that she doesn't go newborn on the house. Carlisle has some blood with him that she can drink, but they're not sure how that's going to go."

"Should you be down there with them?" I asked, lowering my voice.

Alice bit her lip. "I should be, but I'm not going to. Amara and Jasper are there, so if anything gets out of hand, they can deal with it. My main concern is keeping you safe, which is why I'm not letting you go downstairs until they've sorted this out. I'm sorry, Bella, but I'd rather you think of me being controlling for a short moment than for you go down there and tempt her."

"I understand, Alice," I said, kissing her cheek. "I'd rather be here with you anyways."

"Oh?" She lifted an eyebrow. "I seem to remember having a vision of you wanting to go and speak to Sarah a bit later."

I blushed. "Er…well, I was going to ask about that possibility later, you know, after Sarah's fed and whatnot so that she wouldn't want to kill me."

Alice furrowed her brow and looked at me quizzically. "I get that you want to talk to her, but do you mind me asking what about? And you do realize that there's no guarantee that you'll be safe around her even after she's gotten blood into her system."

"I know, that's why I'd want you there with me," I said. "And as far as what I'd like to talk to her about…well, a lot of things. I just want to see where her heads at…"

"If that's what you really want," Alice sighed. "And you're damn right I'm going to be there with you. I don't trust her. I know that she's been through a lot and I can and do sympathize somewhat with her, but she's tried to kill you and she's hurt you, neither of which I intend to forgive any time soon. So yes, I'll be with you, for precaution's sake. And for some answers."

"Alice, please, give her a break," I murmured.

Alice looked at me with a hint of remorse, but she shook her head. "No. I'm sorry, but after all that she's done, there had to have been some level of control established. If she had been as ravenous as most newborns are, she wouldn't have been able to think and react at the level that she did when we fought her. She's still a newborn, but I'm guessing what those other two did to her helped her achieve a level of consciousness quicker."

I blinked. "Do you think that she was fully aware of what she was doing, then?"

"Yes," Alice replied. "She might not have known that she was being manipulated because she was so focused on you, but in all likelihood, she knew damn well what she was planning and what she was doing. That's what I hold against her, especially since she was stupid enough to actually believe that _you_ could ever openly kill someone."

Her eyes narrowed into slits as she bared her teeth at nothing in particular. "I can't forgive her for that. It's disgusting for _anyone_ to say that MY Bella is a _killer_."

I blanched at the mentioning of that and swallowed the revulsion down. I didn't want to remember what had happened that night and instead kissed Alice. That caught her by surprise, but she was quick to revert back to the sweet, playful Alice instead of the vengeful one.

We broke apart a few minutes later, Alice licking her lips.

"That was nice," she said, rubbing her nose against mine. "So tell me, Bella, how would you like to go to the beach with me sometime this week?"

"The beach?" That surprised me. "What about the sun, though?"

"It wouldn't be an issue," she assured me. "In fact, we have a special spot that we go to even when the sun is out. No one ever comes around, yet it's out in the open. It's wonderful Bella, we simply must take you there sometime."

I smiled. "Sounds like a plan to me."

"Oh! Even better, we can go shopping this week!" Alice squealed delightedly, hugging me tighter into her body. "Ooh, I can't wait. I'm gonna buy the sexiest dress I can find so that I can blow the roof off the school and knock you out of your socks." She paused. "That's the right way to say that, right? I don't want to get it mixed up or anything…"

I blushed at the thought of Alice being in a sultry dress and giggled at her silliness.

"Yes, that's the right way to say that," I replied. "I will say that it isn't too common to say those phrases in particular. They aren't really hip anymore."

Alice giggled. "Neither is saying "hip", Bella." She kissed my forehead. "But I love you no matter how cheesy you are."

I rolled my eyes. Downstairs I could hear a few growls and froze, worriedly glancing at the door, then at Alice, who pursed her lips.

"Is everything okay?" I whispered, stupid as it was since they'd still hear it.

She hesitated for a moment, then nodded. "Yes. Sarah just awakened and was taking in her new surroundings, likely confused and afraid. Jasper's calming her down now while Carlisle fetches the blood for her to drink."

I let out a sigh of relief. "I was worried for a moment."

Alice sighed. "So was I. You should be glad you can't hear everything that's going on."

"W-wait, what else…?"

"Never mind, it's nothing, I swear," Alice said, holding her hands up.

"Damn it, Alice, why do you have to do that to me," I grumbled.

She gave me an apologetic look and kissed my forehead again. "My bad, I didn't mean to."

"Fine," I grunted.

Alice froze again. I frowned and watched her face. Another vision? That was odd. Usually Alice only got one vision and then that was it; she wouldn't get another for a good while. Or at least, that's what I saw. It was possible that she had more visions and I just didn't know about it, but either way, it struck me as odd that she would have a second vision so soon after her first.

This time when Alice came out of her vision, her brows knitted together and an irritated look crossed her beautiful face. Her upper lip curled back some and her teeth glistened dangerously as she slowly and smoothly pulled away from me and stood up, clenching her hands into fists.

"Alice, what's wrong?" I asked, sitting up and staring at her worriedly. "What's the matter?"

She gritted her teeth. "She's requesting to speak to you."

"Really? Did she drink the blood Carlisle gave her?" I asked.

Alice nodded. "She did, yes. But…" I waited patiently for her to continue. "I don't like it. I don't like that _she's_ the one that's requesting to see you."

"What do you want to do?" I inquired, moving so that my feet were touching the floor.

I glanced down at my right leg and tested it for a moment. I'd walked a minimal amount since I'd had the cast removed, so I wasn't sure if it was healed enough. Alice walked over to me and offered me her hands for help, which I gratefully took in order to lift myself. I was able to stand without much problem, my leg only bothering me slightly. Otherwise, it was fine.

"I suppose that you would like to see her now," Alice said, already knowing the answer.

"If she wants to see me, then yes, I would," I replied.

"Alright, let's go," Alice said, looping one arm around me.

I was fairly surprised that she was agreeing with this so soon, but I shrugged it off as we made our way out of the room and down the stairs. I could hear some of the others debating quietly amongst themselves about Sarah as we reached the bottom of the stairs. Amara, Rosalie, Edward and Emmett were all bickering amongst themselves, each with a different viewpoint.

"I don't think it's a good idea," Rosalie said. "She's too dangerous."

"You haven't been in her head, Rose," Edward replied. "She's sincere when she says that she has no intention of hurting Bella. She just wants to talk with her."

"But what if she attacks?" Amara asked, scowling. "I don't like it."

"Maybe we should all be there, for support," Emmett mused.

Alice hissed, which grabbed their attention. "I can protect my mate fine by myself, thank you."

"Yes, you did a great job of that alone the last time," Rosalie countered. She immediately cupped her mouth while Amara smacked her and Alice blanched. "I…I didn't mean…Alice, I'm sorry. I didn't mean that, it was a slip of the tongue, I swear."

I squeezed Alice's hand to reassure her. She glared at Rosalie for a moment before glancing at me, her eyes smoldering. Then she pulled me closer to her and brushed her lips against mine, sighing once she pulled away slightly.

"I don't appreciate that, Rose. I know it was an accident, but still. You think I don't know that I fucked up? I do, trust me. I haven't been able to stop thinking about it for the past few days. It hurts, knowing that I wasn't able to do what I'd sworn I'd do and I can't take back that I failed in keeping Bella safe that time."

"Alice," I breathed.

She touched my cheek with her left hand and used her thumb to stroke it. "Never again, Bella. I vow that, on my life and on my undying love for you, I will _never_ fail you again."

I wrapped my arms around her and kissed her with as much passion as I could, knowing full well that she meant what she said. Alice smiled against my lips and kissed my cheek as we started walking together to where Sarah was. None of the others said anything; they just went back to talking, though I could tell that they were concerned.

We walked into the other room that Alice had said was considered a "second family room", where I saw Sarah sitting on the couch, her face in her hands. Carlisle and Esme were standing a few feet away, watching her. Carlisle's expression was mostly calm, but Esme's eyes smoldered with wariness and uncertainty. They only increased when she saw me walk in.

Sarah's head whipped up and her eyes locked onto mine. Jasper, who was leaning near the doorway, straightened up slightly, his brows furrowing slightly.

"Bella," Sarah whispered. Her crimson eyes narrowed slightly, but it was brief.

"Hey," I replied quietly. "How's it going?"

She pursed her lips and looked down at the floor. "Okay, I guess."

"That's good,' I said. The tension in the room was making me feel awkward. I swallowed and licked my lips nervously. "You, uh, wanted to talk to me about something?"

Sarah nodded. "Yeah, I did, if you're cool with it."

"Of course."

Carlisle and Esme took that time to excuse themselves from the room. Carlisle did so casually, smiling and nodding to both Alice and I as he left. Esme, though, was much more reluctant in doing so, though she did everything she could to not show that. Her eyes gave it away, however, and I could tell she still didn't fully trust Sarah. But she left without a word, leaving only the three of us and Jasper, who politely bowed and exited seconds later.

Sarah stood up slowly and moved to a nearby chair so that Alice and I could have the couch to sit on, which I thanked her for. Alice was quiet as we sat down, her arm firmly wrapped around my waist, though she did give me a bit of space when we sat. I knew that Alice wanted to protect me, but she still wanted to give me some breathing room. I was thankful for that.

The awkward silence still hovered about the room. Sarah was leaning forward, her hands clasped together and her chin resting on top of them as she stared with somber eyes at the floor a few feet in front of her. I wasn't sure whether I should be the one to talk or not.

At last, Sarah spoke, her eyes flickering from Alice to me.

"I know that this won't mean much to you, given everything that I've said and done, but for what little it's worth, I wanted to apologize to you for all that I've been a part of for the past month and a half, Bella. I also wanted to apologize to you…Alice, is it? I want to apologize to you for hurting you and for endangering the woman you love. I know you can't forgive me. I'm not asking for forgiveness, either. I just want you both to know that I am deeply, deeply sorry."

She paused and sighed. "I thought I had all the answers. I don't know why, but I did. I was stupid to think that James loved me. Stupid, blind, moronic, every single word that can mean something like that can be attached to me. I can't even begin to fathom it all." She shook her head and I swear that she looked like she wanted to cry. "I'm such a fuck up. I've done so many terrible things without a care in the world, killed so many like they were nothing but food. But now…"

"Now, looking back, I'm horrified by what I've done. I can't believe it…I just…" Sarah ran her fingers through her hair. "I'm sorry. I'm getting off topic. I didn't want to talk to you just to drone on about my mistakes and whatnot."

"Why did you want to talk to her?" Alice asked, her voice surprisingly neutral.

Sarah sighed. "Well, aside from saying how sorry I am, I also wanted to thank you."

I blinked. "You want to thank me? For what?" I asked.

"Well, for one thing, you snapped me out of my stupid fantasy," she replied. "If it hadn't been for you, I would have never been able to think and see that James was just using me. I would have remained his puppet and I'd likely be dead now, too. Which brings me to the other thing that I wanted to thank you for…letting me live."

Alice tensed up next to me. I glanced at her and I could see her eyes darkening. I placed my hand on top of hers and squeezed it to calm her down, which it thankfully did. I looked back at Sarah, who had watched the exchange and nodded her head sullenly, understanding written all over her face as she gave me a small smile.

"This must be hard for you," she whispered, looking to Alice. "In fact, I'm honestly surprised that you haven't torn my head off. I'm surprised that no one in this house has killed me or even tried to, for that matter. I would."

"Don't tempt me," Alice warned.

"Sorry," she murmured. Her eyes then returned to mine. "I have to ask…why did you want me to stay alive so badly? After everything that I've said and tried to do to you…it doesn't make sense to me, Bella. You should hate me. You should want me dead. I should _be_ dead."

I bit my lip. "I didn't see a point in having you killed. I know that you tried to kill me, Sarah, and I certainly don't plan to forget that any time soon. But…you were being manipulated by James and Victoria this whole time. And as crazy as it sounds, I feel like that that could've been me, if I hadn't found Alice." Sarah furrowed her brow, confused. So I explained.

"Before I met you and your family, before I met Alice, I was a nobody. I was living in Arizona with a foster family that barely had the time to pay attention to me. I had no friends and no life whatsoever. Then one night, when I was out on my own, trying to run away because I was fed up with it all, I ran into them. They lured me in and I became their pawn in a game they liked to play with random humans, which basically meant that my life was forfeit."

I pulled away from Alice and stood up. "For four months, including during the time that I first met you, they chased me around, claiming that if I could escape them, I could live. They always ended up catching me, though, and they tortured me and manipulated me whenever they did."

I lifted the sleeve of my right arm up and showed Sarah the bite marks. Her eyes widened when she saw them and a look of pain flashed across them.

"This is what I have to remember what they did by, aside from the nightmares," I said darkly, glaring down at the marks.

"I had no idea…" she breathed.

I pulled my sleeve back down and sat again, Alice immediately curling her arm around my waist the moment I did. I rested my head on her shoulder and wrapped my arm around her, pulling her closer to me as I appraised Sarah.

"They kept more from me than I thought," Sarah sighed, grimacing. "I guess I shouldn't be surprised, though."

"If I hadn't met Alice and the Cullens when I did, I'd probably have ended up the same way that you did, a pawn for them to use and abuse however they saw fit. Either that, or they would have gotten bored and killed me." I shuddered at the thought while Alice hissed next to me. I knew that she didn't like me talking like that, and I couldn't blame her.

"I'm sorry," Sarah murmured again, her voice burning with sorrow. "All this time…God, I can't believe how wrong I've been." She shook her head. "I get it. But that still doesn't explain why you would want to keep me alive. I'm not worth keeping alive, Bella, not after all the terrible things I've done. It doesn't make sense to me."

"Bella isn't heartless," Alice said softly. "She's a loving person. She was willing to show you mercy when most of us weren't, willing to give you a chance to redeem yourself."

"But why?" Sarah asked, giving me a pleading look. She truly wanted to understand why it was that I'd convinced them to let her live, why I didn't want her dead.

"You've been through so much torment, Sarah," I replied. "You lost your family, you were nearly killed and then you were turned into the servant of two cruel monsters. No one should have to go through that and die without knowing what love is. I don't think that you should die, not after the hell you've gone through. And I knew that if you were killed, that'd be exactly what James would have wanted."

Sarah stared at me, speechless. She seemed to have trouble wrapping her head around what I was saying to her. It was the truth, though, so she'd have to accept it one way or the other. Alice quietly scoffed, but she said nothing. I could tell that she was trying to accept this as well and trying to find some reason to not hate Sarah, if only for my sake.

Alice turned and gazed into my eyes, her honey orbs shimmering. I smiled at her and, after a moment, she smiled back lovingly.

"Alice saved me," I murmured, staring into her beautiful eyes. Then I turned to study Sarah, who merely watched on in silence. "Her and her family were there for me when there was no one else in my life. They kept me safe and showed me what real love was, something I never experienced because I never had a real family. I owe them my life and more for that."

"Sarah, I know that we've had our rough spots, but I wanted to extend the same kindness to you that the Cullens showed to me. Maybe you don't deserve it. I can't say for certain because I'm not the smartest person around and I'm not one to pass judgment on anybody. But I do feel that you should at least be given a second chance, given all you've had to endure."

Sarah ran her hand through her hair again and leaned into the chair. "I don't know. I don't think I should deserve a second chance. And even so, what will I do? Where will I go? I'm not exactly welcome here, I have no family or friends and I'm a vampire that doesn't have the greatest control in the world. What is there for me in the world?"

I pursed my lips and glanced at Alice. Her brows were knitted together because she knew what I was going to say. And it was obvious that she wasn't the fondest of the idea. We'd talked about it beforehand, yes, and I had brought it up with Carlisle and Esme. The idea of Sarah staying here, in the house, wasn't the best considering I was here, but really, what else was there?

"We all talked about that while you were unconscious," I informed her.

Sarah seemed surprised. "You did?"

I nodded. "Yes, we discussed what we would do with you once you came to. You can imagine that there were a lot of mixed opinions on the subject. I, for one, tried to get them to understand that killing you would be a bad thing. I still believe that."

"I…I don't know what to say," Sarah whispered, stunned.

I gave her a small smile. "You haven't heard the decision yet, Sarah."

"Oh." She blinked and cocked her head to the side. "What did you end up deciding?"

"We—" Alice shot me a look that I ignored. "—decided that we would offer you the chance to stay here, if you wanted to."

Sarah whipped her head up and gaped, as if I'd just told her she was the new queen of the world.

"W-what?" she stammered. "_What_ did you say?"

"You can stay here, Sarah," I repeated gently.

At first, Sarah didn't respond. She just stared. Her eyes went downwards and I could tell that she was struggling with wrapping her head around what I'd just said. Alice, who had spoken very little throughout the conversation, shifted slightly next to me.

"If I might say something," she began, getting Sarah's attention. "Before you make a decision on whether or not to accept our invitation, there's something you should know, Sarah."

She looked at me out of the corner of her eyes before smoothly removing her arm from me and standing up, taking a few steps toward Sarah. Sarah flinched back, worry and caution in her eyes as Alice stopped a foot away from her, her hands at her side and her face neutral. Both vampires stared at each other in silence for a few minutes, the tension in the air growing with each second.

I swallowed nervously and, out of the corner of my eye, I could vaguely see Jasper standing near the opening to the room, his eyes dark and narrowed as he watched on, waiting.

"Alice," I whispered, worried. What was she going to do? Were they going to fight?

I thought about Alice lashing out. She wouldn't do that. Not unless Sarah attacked me, which she clearly had no intention of doing, at least not now. Still, I couldn't help worrying. The tension was so powerful that I was practically breathing it as the minutes ticked by. My heart was pounding in my chest. I couldn't take much more of it. I wanted someone to say something.

"Let's get one thing straight, Sarah," Alice said, speaking at last. "I can't forgive you."

**A/N: *insert the rage of another cliffhanger here* I didn't mean to! Not this time, anyways. I figured it was a good place to stop. Which it is. But really, I would have kept going, but I couldn't think of a good point to stop other than that. So, yeah, sorry.**

**Okay, so, let me just start by saying that I am surprised and truly touched by the number of people who are actually into the idea of doing an audiobook. I think I have like three or four people interested, one of which has already started to do one (big shout out to vamp-haruka/Alexandria1 on Youtube for that, you rock). It touches me that there are those of you who love this story that much to do it. :) I really don't know what else to say. Thank you to those that have offered and to those of you who actually intend to do it. **

**Other than that, there's still a few more to go. I hope that they're all to your enjoyment.**

**Until next time.**


	74. Sarah

**Disclaimer: I don't own Twilight. I own only my own characters and ideas. Twilight belongs to Stephanie Meyer.**

**Sarah**

Sarah blanched and sighed. "I don't expect you too," she murmured.

Alice stared at her, scowling. I frowned, not quite sure what to say. I understood Alice completely in her opinion, but to me, it felt like she was trying to get Sarah to leave. Or maybe she wasn't. I couldn't be sure with her, not with a subject as personal as this.

She pursed her lips. "This is hard for me. I don't really know what to say, how to express everything I feel the right way—"

"You hate me. I get it," Sarah interjected.

"You _don't _get it," Alice disagreed. "Don't pretend like you know how I feel."

Sarah narrowed her eyes, a bit of agitation reminiscent in them. She quickly discarded it, however, and took in a deep breath. I wondered if her anger was from her being a newborn or if Alice's words were really enough to get her riled. Alice didn't fail to notice it, either, as she took a step back and stepped over so that she was standing in front of me.

"Then say what you need to say," Sarah mumbled.

Alice pinched the bridge of her nose. "Trust me, it isn't easy."

"Alice," I murmured. "Come back and sit down."

"No," she replied, shaking her head. "I need to get this off of my chest. It's better for me to say it now so that it's out in the open and not keep it in and regret it later."

"Look Sarah, I know that you've gone through a rough time. You lost your family, you were turned into a vampire without wanting it and you were manipulated by two psychopaths that I want very much to rip into pieces. I can sympathize with what you've gone through. But after what you've done, I can't honestly stand here and say that I'm okay with you staying here."

Sarah nodded in understanding, remaining silent as she looked down at the floor.

"Maybe I'm being harsh," Alice whispered, running her fingers through her hair. "I think that I'm justified in feeling the way I do, though. Wouldn't you if you were in my position?" Sarah silently nodded, looking back up at Alice. Alice sighed again. "God, why is this so hard? I try to say what I want, but all I'm doing is rambling on."

"It's okay," Sarah replied. "I do understand. I hurt the woman you love. You don't trust me, you don't like me, and you can't forgive me right off the bat. And yes, I would feel the same way if I were in your position. You have to believe me when I say that I truly am sorry for what I've done. I'm not asking for forgiveness, just that you know how sorry I am."

Alice didn't respond at first and peered over her shoulder at me. Her eyes bored into mine as if she were trying to look for something. I stared back at her and for a moment, I felt like I could actually hear what she was thinking. Her eyes spoke the words that her mouth didn't, and I could understand them quite well.

Her eyes smoldered as she gave me a questioning look. _Are you positive that you want her here?_

I nodded. _Where else does she have to go, Alice?_

_There are other covens out there, Bella. It'd be away from here, from you._

_I know. But how do we know that they'd accept her?_

_Bella, why do you care so much about her?_

I let out a quiet sigh. _We've been over this, Alice. I feel bad for her. I know that we're not the best of friends and no, I don't fully trust her, but I know that there's still a person there and not a monster like James and Victoria._

Our connection faded as Alice returned her gaze to Sarah, struggling with what to do. Sarah, who had been watching on, furrowed her brow and looked between us curiously. She didn't say anything about it, though, and remained quiet.

"I can see that you're sincere with your apology," Alice said at last.

"You really don't want me here, do you?" Sarah inquired.

"Not really, no," Alice admitted, rubbing her neck. "Aside from the obvious, you're still a newborn and Bella is a human. I'm worried that you might slip and try to attack her, at which point I would be forced to fight you. And in all honesty, Sarah, I'm not sure I could do that without killing you."

"I understand."

"While I'm being honest, I might as well say everything. I don't want you here, no. I'd rather send you off to Denali or to another coven where you wouldn't be around Bella. Bella is the most important person in the world to me. She is my lover and soulmate and everyone in this family loves her deeply. We'd do anything to protect her, that much is certain."

"The fact is, she wants you to stay here," Alice said. "I think she's crazy, but she seems to feel that you staying here is a good idea. We all voted on it and in the end, we voted we'd give you a chance, regardless of how some of us feel. I want you to know right now that if you do decide to stay here, there will be some tension for a while and it will be awkward."

Alice knelt down so that she was eye-level to Sarah. "I may not be the friendliest to you, either. I won't let you be near Bella alone, at least not until you've shown that you can be trusted. But I want you to know, Sarah, that you shouldn't let what I say persuade you to choose one way or the other whether or not you stay here."

"It's kind of hard to do that when you make it clear I won't be welcomed," Sarah grunted.

"I'm sorry," Alice whispered. "Like I said, I wasn't going to lie. And if anything, I figured that I should be honest with you, rather than lie so that you'd be hurt by it later."

Sarah bit her lip and considered that for a moment. She seemed to decide that Alice was right in what she was saying and nodded in understanding, though I could tell that Alice's words were still having an effect on her. I wasn't sure what to say, though I was a little upset that Alice had gone about it the way that she did.

But then, I still couldn't quite blame her for it. She had a reason to be upset.

"There's one other thing that I need to say," Alice announced, crossing her arms.

Sarah met her gaze. "What's that?"

"I…" Alice hesitated briefly. "You have my consent."

She seemed confused. "I what?"

"I saw that you were going to ask me for my consent to stay here earlier on, so I want you to know that you do have my consent to stay," Alice replied, turning and coming over to sit back down next to me. "Bella wants you to stay here, to give you another chance in your life, and I'm willing to do the same, regardless of how I feel about you."

"Yes, it will be awkward and a little tense for a while if you decide to stay, but we're all willing to give you that chance," she told Sarah, her voice strained, but still sincere. "If you're willing to work with it, we are too, plain and simple."

Sarah remained quiet as Alice's words hung in the air. Her lips pursed as she went back to looking at the floor, thinking to herself. Alice didn't say anything more and proceeded to pull me into her lap. I relaxed into her arms and watched Sarah's mental struggle, feeling a little bad for her and wanting to do something to help. I knew that I couldn't, though. It wasn't for me to do.

A few minutes passed by and no one moved or said anything. I could vaguely hear the television in the other room and the faint whispers of some of the others, but I couldn't make out what was being said, nor did I try to. Sarah sat statuesque in her position, her brows knitting together in a frown as she continued to think over what her choices were.

Personally, I wasn't too sure that Alice had done much to help persuade her to stay. If anything, she'd shown Sarah that she wouldn't get the best reception from her or the others. I knew that it was true, but still, she could've gone about it…I don't know, nicer maybe? Or maybe I was just over-thinking the situation.

I don't know. This is all so damn awkward. I don't know what to do or feel. Damn it.

I mean, did I trust Sarah? I wasn't sure. She did show a bit more control, I'd give her that, and she did turn on James and save my life. I could tell that she was starting to see things in a different light and that she truly regretted all she'd done. If anything, that showed that there was hope for Sarah and that she was capable of changing her ways.

So in essence, I knew that I _could _trust Sarah. I merely didn't know if I could do so _yet_.

"Can I ask a question?" Sarah inquired, looking up at last.

"Yes," Alice replied.

"Would it be wrong of me to ask how much time I have to decide?" she asked, looking rather sheepish as she did.

I turned slightly to look at Alice, watching as her brows knitted in a frown. She looked like she was about to respond when Carlisle and Esme walked into the room, Esme first with Carlisle walking in step behind her. They both had passive expressions on their faces, I noticed, as they stopped a few feet away from Sarah to stand beside the couch.

"Sarah, we apologize for not speaking to you about this matter ourselves earlier," Carlisle said, shooting Alice a reprimanding look. "And we must apologize for our daughter's bluntness on a subject as personal and important as this."

"It's alright," Sarah replied. "I'm glad she was being honest with me."

"Honesty is no excuse for rudeness," Esme disagreed, scowling at Alice. "Honey, I know that you were keeping your tongue in check, but really, was that necessary?"

Alice huffed. "Give me a break, Esme! Do you have any idea how hard this is for me? I know that she's not the same as she was before, but I can't just forgive and forget what she's done and tried to do to Bella and to us. I'm not going to apologize for what I've said. You can punish me if you'd like, but I refuse to not be truthful about this."

Sarah held her hands up. "Really, it's okay. If anything, I deserve her anger and hatred for what I've done, I won't argue with that. I'm content with just being allowed to live, even if I'm not sure that I deserve that much. You've all been very generous to me and I thank you for that."

Carlisle gave her a soft smile. "You have no doubt been through a great deal of mental trauma for the past few months. And while some of my children might disagree, I happen to see that you were not the full cause for the problems in the past. As such, I don't hold any resentment towards you, Sarah, and I mean it when I say that you are welcome to stay here."

"You were asking about a time limit before, yes?" Esme inquired. "There's no reason to worry about time, I assure you. We aren't forcing you to make a decision now and by no means are we forcing you to stay here, just so that you're aware."

"Maybe we should inform her of the rules she'd need to follow," Alice murmured.

Sarah cocked her head to the side. "Rules?"

"Not so much rules as the way that we live our lives," Carlisle informed her. "You wouldn't have to abide by them if you chose not to, but we would be pleased if you decided you wanted to, merely because it's something we pride ourselves in."

"We don't drink human blood, for one thing," Esme said. "We feed off of animals instead."

"Is that why you smell different and your eyes are a different color?" Sarah asked.

Esme and Carlisle nodded. I furrowed my brow. I knew that they had a different eye color, but I never knew that they smelled differently to other vampires. I gave Alice a curious look, silently asking her if what Sarah was saying was true. Alice nodded once, her face softening slightly.

"Drinking animal blood affects our scent," Alice explained. "It has a different…flavor, I guess you could say, to other vampires. It isn't overly noticeable, but I'm sure if you were a vampire yourself, you'd be able to tell the difference."

I blinked and nodded. That was fairly interesting to know.

"I see," Sarah replied. "That is…different. I never even thought about the possibility of drinking animal blood. Personally, I didn't like the way they smelled, so I never even bothered to try their blood before. How are you able to do it, though, without wanting to kill humans?"

"It takes a lot of time and a lot of willpower," Esme replied, sighing. "And even then, it still isn't the easiest thing in the world. The urge to drink human blood never really leaves you, but if you remain on the animal blood diet and train yourself, it does weaken to an extent. I haven't tasted human blood in a long time now. I can safely say that I can be around humans without my throat burning, but even then, the smell of blood still calls to me."

"It's true," Alice murmured sheepishly. "It does affect us. The only one that it doesn't bother here is Carlisle. He's the only one who's never killed a human for blood before."

Sarah's eyes bulged as she appraised Carlisle. "You've never…?" Carlisle nodded. "How the hell is that even possible?"

Carlisle smiled softly. "Determination," he replied. "I didn't want to be a monster, so I fought the urge to feed from humans. After all these years, I barely recognize the scent anymore. It has no effect on me whatsoever, though. I don't brag about it. I know how hard it is to resist for my family and I do what I can to help them along the way."

Sarah looked amazed as she soaked his words in.

"I believe that, given the control you've shown, that you could adapt yourself to our lifestyle if you chose to," Carlisle added, giving her a thoughtful look. "That would allow you to be out in public around humans like us. In the end, it's your choice, though, and you're more than welcome to keep your current diet. I would only ask that you not feed in this area."

"What happens if I try and I can't do it? If I slip up?" Sarah asked.

"You keep at it," Alice replied. "No matter how much time it takes or how many times you slip up, you take what you've learned and use that to push yourself. I've slipped up before on countless occasions, but here I sit with my human mate in my arms, and I'm not tempted by her."

"Do you want some time to think, Sarah?" Esme asked.

Sarah asked. "I think I could use some time, yeah."

"Alright then, you're welcome to stay in here if you'd like," Esme said.

Sarah shook her head and stood up slowly. "If it's alright with you, I think I'd like to be outside and have some thinking time to myself. I promise I won't go into town or near any humans. I'd also like to try for myself the animal blood diet, if none of you mind."

"We have no intention of telling you what to do," Carlisle stated softly. "You have your own will; you are free to do as you please."

"Thank you," Sarah murmured. "May I speak to Bella before I go, please?"

"Certainly," Carlisle replied. Both he and Esme departed from the room, smiling at Alice and I as they did. Esme gave Alice a look, which Alice rolled her eyes at. I didn't need to read minds to know that she was telling Alice to behave herself.

"What's up?" I asked, cocking my head to the side. "Is there something wrong?"

"No," Sarah replied, shaking her head. "I just wanted to thank you again. For sparing my life and helping me wake up to reality and, well, everything. And I'm sorry for what I've done to you in the past, to both of you. I…" She paused and licked her lips nervously. "I would like to say that…well, I consider you to be a friend and…"

She took in a shaky breath and slowly extended her hand. I realized what she wanted and stood up, pulling away from Alice's arms, which I knew she didn't like. For a moment I didn't move and stared into Sarah's ruby colored eyes, but then I proceeded to extend my hand out and grasped onto hers. Her grip was icy cold and hard, yet she was able to reframe from hurting me.

"I'm not sure that I could ever thank you enough for giving me a second chance," Sarah whispered as we shook. "I'll try to, I promise. I'll do something to make up for my misdeeds and repay you for your kindness."

"It's no big deal, really," I replied, taking my hand back once she'd released it.

Sarah looked at Alice. "I would like for us to be able to patch things up as well, Alice."

Alice came to stand by me. "Perhaps," she said. "We'll have to see."

"I agree." Sarah's lips curled into a very small smile. "I have to ask, though. Would you have given me a second chance even if Bella hadn't reasoned with you on it?"

Alice thought about it, pursing her lips as she did. Then she let out a quiet sigh.

"Honestly, yes, I probably would have," she admitted.

"Why?" Sarah inquired.

"Because I'm not a heartless monster like most vampires are, Sarah," Alice replied. "I'm better than they are and I'll do whatever it takes to prove that point, even if it means giving someone who was once my enemy a second chance."

The room fell quiet as Sarah and Alice stared into each others' eyes, golden honey orbs smoldering at the ruby orbs and vice versa. At first I was worried by the heated stare between the two of them, but a few seconds later, Sarah nodded and her face softened.

"I guess I'll get going then," Sarah muttered to herself. "Goodbye, Bella."

"Be well, Sarah," I whispered.

Sarah smiled. "I'll try. You try not to get yourself into too much trouble. Oh, and if you see James again…"

"I'll rip his head off," Alice growled. "That's a promise."

"Good." Sarah's eyes darkened slightly.

With that said, Sarah turned on her heel and gracefully blurred out of the room. I heard the door open and shut shortly after and I presumed that she was now gone from the house. I let out the breath I'd been holding inside of me and relaxed into Alice's arms. Alice relaxed as well and we both felt loads calmer then we had before.

"That wasn't fun," I whispered. "The tension, I mean."

"I know what you mean," Alice agreed, kissing the back of my neck.

"Do you think we did the right thing?" I asked, turning to face her. "With letting her live and giving her the choice to stay here…do you think that was the right thing to do?"

Alice frowned. "Why are you asking me if it was the right thing to do? Bella, you were the one who convinced us to let her live because you wanted her to. You showed that you have a bigger heart than the rest of us and that you are far more forgiving and loving, too."

"Alice, you know that isn't true," I grunted.

She smiled and shook her head, her eyes no longer strained or concerned. All I could see in them was endless love and warmth, which alleviated all the worry from me and made me feel much better overall. She leaned in and connected our lips in a loving kiss, which I deepened immediately, having missed her lips. It felt like an eternity when I knew it hadn't been.

Alice curled her arms around me and pulled me in close as we kissed. I decided to be gutsy and darted my tongue out, licking her cool lips, silently asking for entrance. She moaned and granted me access to her heavenly mouth as she lifted me up and placed me down on the couch.

We spent the next ten or so minutes kissing each other passionately, moaning quietly and cuddling with each other while we did. Once we broke apart, Alice rolled off of me and nuzzled into the crook of my neck. We both giggled and smiled at each other, the mood from earlier gone altogether and replaced with our usual comfortable happiness.

"It's about time you two finished." We both looked up to see a mildly annoyed Rosalie standing near the entryway with her hands on her hips and a scowl on her face. "I was going to come and talk to you, but you two nimrods started making out. Normally I wouldn't care, but I know better than to mess with Alice's precious make-out sessions."

"Damn right," Alice grumbled.

"What's up, Rosalie?" I asked.

Rosalie lifted an eyebrow. "You're starting to talk like my mate and a certain sister of mine…never mind. I wanted to ask about our "guest" and what she's decided. Since she isn't here, I take it that you kicked her out or what?"

"She left to think it over," Alice replied. "I kind of told her off earlier on, but I did so without sounding too mean, I'd like to think. She needed to know that she wasn't going to be accepted with open arms, but that we wouldn't tear her head off if she chose to, either."

Rosalie's scowl deepened. "Well that stinks. The part about her maybe staying here, I mean."

"Why are you so against her staying here, Rosalie? She has nowhere else to go," I protested.

"Bella, you're far too kind and naïve to understand. Having her here would be an even bigger hindrance because we'd have to babysit her and make sure she didn't wander into town and massacre people because if she did, it'd be on our heads unlike now because she isn't our official responsibility yet. And personally, I don't care for another blonde in the house."

"Even if she does decide to stay, it's not our responsibility," Alice disagreed. "It's her own for making sure that she sticks to the vegetarian diet. There's no way in hell that she'd be able to stay here if she chose to remain on humans. The damn mongrels would get on our case again, for one thing, and there's the fact that we still have Bella here, too."

"I don't think she would," I murmured. "I think she wants to change. I could tell by looking in her eyes that she didn't like being the way that she is."

Rosalie scoffed and Alice rolled her eyes. I crossed my arms, irritated by my lack of support.

"Bella's right," said a smooth voice. Edward. He stepped into the room casually, his hands in his pockets as his gaze shifted between the three of us. "I could hear her thoughts. Most of them were torn from what she'd done and regret. She did want to change and she does want to make up for what she's done in the past."

"And why should that matter to us?" Rosalie asked. "She isn't even…" Her words stopped in mid-sentence as her eyes widened. "Dear God, Edward. Don't tell me that you're sticking up for this girl because—"

"Don't even finish that sentence, Rosalie," Edward growled. "That isn't the case."

Alice narrowed her eyes. "Are you sure, Edward? The way you've been looking at her…"

"I said no," he grunted. "Stop that, both of you."

I blinked. God I hated being slow sometimes. "What're you talking about? I'm confused."

"Think about it, Bella," Rosalie replied. "What's the one thing that Edward and Sarah or whatever the fuck her name is have in common?"

"Rosalie," he hissed. "Shut the hell up already, that isn't my reason. It isn't going to happen, ever, so enough with your snarky thoughts."

I frowned, but then it hit me. They were both single. Edward's lips pursed as he pinched the bridge of his nose and groaned loudly.

"Yes, Bella, that is what they're getting out. But I can promise you that it isn't the case. I have no interest whatsoever in her as mate, I'm merely more trusting of her because I'm the only one in this house who has actually been in her head. I know what she's thinking and I know that she's been truthful, otherwise I would have stepped in and said something."

"Whatever, Edward," Rosalie scoffed. "Deny it all you want to. All I know is that you need yourself a mate. And that I really don't want her here. If she ends up staying, though, whatever, I don't really give a damn one way or the other."

"Rose…" I sighed.

Rosalie rolled her eyes. "Yeah, yeah, I know. I'll be nice, I suppose, but don't expect me to bring out the drinks. If she aims to make amends, she'll need to prove that, and before she even does that, she needs to prove that she's worthy of being in the Cullen household."

"I agree," Alice grunted, nodding.

I groaned and Edward rolled his eyes. "Where are the others at?" I asked, deciding to try and change the subject.

Jasper, Amara and Emmett all popped in at that moment. Right on cue.

"What's cracking?" Emmett asked.

"We're discussing our "guest"," Rosalie replied. "And how Edward here might like her."

"Seriously, Edward?" Amara asked, crossing her arms. "You like her?"

Edward groaned. "I'm not getting into a debate over this."

"He doesn't have any feelings for her," Jasper chimed in. "I can feel his emotions, Rosalie, and I can officially say that they aren't mates; I'll say that right now. I'm sorry to disappoint you."

"Thanks for ruining my fun," Rosalie complained.

Emmett and Amara both snickered while Edward glared at her. I giggled myself and Alice soon joined in. Soon enough Jasper and Rosalie started to laugh too and poor Edward was vastly outnumbered by the amount of laughter at his expense. He glared at all of us before grunting and storming off, opening and slamming the door as he went outside.

"Sucker," Amara chortled. "But seriously, what're we gonna do about that Sarah chick?"

"She can stay if she wants to or leave if she wants to. We'll deal with it regardless of what she ends up choosing and that's that," I replied.

"I don't know about this," Amara admitted.

"We'll just have to make do," Jasper urged, placing a hand on her shoulder.

"Doesn't mean we have to like it," Rosalie grunted.

Emmett grinned and shrugged. "So who wants to go play some video games?" We all stared at him in silence. Emmett looked around and pouted. "What? What better way to break the tension and have some fun then to play some games?"

"Sounds good to me," Amara said at last. "What game we playing?"

"We'll vote on it," Emmett replied, smirking. "C'mon, let's go!"

He happily sprinted into the other room. Amara was the first to follow, then Jasper and then finally Rosalie, who shook her head as she slowly walked off. I was about to stand up and follow after them only to have a cold hand gently grab my wrist and prevent me from moving. I turned and scowled at Alice, who grinned playfully at me.

"Don't you want to go play a game?" I asked.

She licked her lips. "Oh, I want to play a game alright. Why don't you sit that cute ass of yours down and we can play our own special little game?"

I gulped at the huskiness in her voice and allowed her to pull me back to the couch. She crawled on top of me and pressed her lips to mine.

"W-w-what game are we playing?" I asked, unable to take my eyes off of hers.

"You will just have to wait and see," she purred, leaning in to kiss me again. I didn't even have a chance to reply and I didn't care, either. I just mimicked her movements as we picked back up with our kissing from earlier, excited about whatever "game" she had in mind.

And let me just start by saying, I love Alice's games.

**A/N: What games did they play? Well, I'll leave it up to your imagination. Tee hee.**

**Okay, first thing, sorry about the delay. This chapter came slowly and I had a lot on my hands with school this past week. Yeah, the combination of the two made this a bit of a hassle, but I was finally able to get into the groove of it. Took forever, though. Sheesh.**

**Second thing, I KNOW that someone is going to bring up the fact that letting Sarah go out on her own is a bad idea. Well, think about it, she does have decent control and it's been said that she's sincere in trying to change herself. That, and Alice would see if she planned anything and then, well, death. Sarah isn't that stupid even if she was still bad. As far as whether or not she'll ultimately join the Cullens, we'll all have to wait and see what happens in the end. For now, it's in the air, since neither she nor they nor I know the answer.**

**Also, I would like to extend my appreciation for the two of you who have expressed interest in doing an audiobook for Blood Solstice (one of whom did a few chapters already, which are up on Youtube). I brought it up before, yes, but I thought I'd bring it up again. If anyone is interested in doing the audiobook (only real requirements are that you be female, since it's in Bella's perspective, and that you have the time to do it), please feel free to let me know and we can discuss it and whatnot. And I'll say it now, I don't mind accents. No one has to. I just think that it'd be a cool idea. **

**Lastly, I'm in need of another Beta. One of mine has a lot on her plate right now and I don't want to hassle the poor dear anymore then she's going through. So if anyone is interested, please let me know. I only ask that you like femslash (preferably the Bellice variety, but you never know) and be good with weirdness. Because it's me we're talking about here, after all and we all know how weird I am. :P**

**Other than that, the end is nigh. A few more chapters to go. Until next time, adios.**


	75. Closure

**Disclaimer: I don't own Twilight, dabu dee dabu die. I don't own that song either. :P I only own my own characters and my ideas and nothing more. **

**Closure**

Sunday came and went by rather fast. Sarah didn't return, though when I asked, Alice assured me that she was in the area still, sitting statuesque by the creek. I was satisfied with that and didn't bother her about it anymore for the rest of the day. I ended up turning in for bed early that night, though Alice went with me and held me while I drifted to sleep.

And then it was Monday, which I wasn't happy about because that meant going to school.

"It'll be fine, Bella," Alice told me. "We'll be together most of the time, remember? And besides, you do want to graduate, right?"

"We graduate next year, Alice," I replied. "It's not like I have that great of grades anyways since I've missed a lot of school. The school year's almost up, too. I really don't see a reason in going anymore, so can we just stay home?"

Alice giggled. "Stop whining, silly girl. We're going to school and that's that."

I groaned. "School stinks."

"That's true, but you need your education," Alice giggled again, kissing my cheek. She cupped my cheeks and forced me to look at her. "Bella, relax. I know that you don't like school and I know that your grades aren't the best because you've missed a lot. That's nothing to worry about, okay? Just do what you need to do and then we can enjoy the rest of the day together."

"Fine," I sighed. "I'll be glad when it's over, though." Something hit me then. "Wait, you usually complain about school as much as I do. What's got you in such a chipper mood today?"

Alice beamed. "You remember what we're doing this week, right?"

I blinked. "Oh, right. We're going dress shopping and then to the prom."

"Yup!" she replied. "I can't wait! We're going on Friday to go dress shopping in Seattle. Esme is going to be driving us there because she wants to help you pick out a dress for yourself, if you don't mind, that is. Do you mind her coming along?"

I shook my head. "Of course not, Alice."

Alice squealed and clapped her hands together excitedly, bouncing up and down. "Oh, I'm so excited to go with you to my very first prom ever!"

"You've never been?" I asked.

She pouted. "No, and it stinks because Rose and Emmett always had to rub it in my face. Not intentionally, but they still did it and it annoyed me. But I don't have to worry about that anymore because I have you and I can finally go to a dance with somebody. I can't help it; I'm just excited about it! It's going to be so much fun!"

I couldn't help smiling at her as she bounced on the balls of her feet. She looked overjoyed and seeing her that happy made me happy. So I decided that I'd stop complaining about school and deal with it. It was almost over, anyways. Besides, I got a chance to see my friends at school, who I hadn't seen for a week now. I missed them.

I was also curious about what had happened to Lauren and how she was doing. I wondered what had become of that bastard father of hers, and how she was doing. But mostly, I wanted to know if she'd revert to her old self or if she'd really changed for the better. Jessica too, for that matter.

"C'mon, slow poke, hurry up!" Alice chimed, pushing me along. "The sooner we get to Hell, the faster we can escape it and have some fun time together."

I laughed at the "Hell" comment and decided not to waste any time. We were out the door and driving to school within the next fifteen minutes. Alice was giddily bouncing, even in the backseat as we drove in Amara's car. I started to run my fingers through her hair, which calmed her down in a matter of seconds and instead made her purr and lean into my hand.

_Just like a cat_, I thought to myself, smiling.

"Thank you for stopping her," Amara said. "That was getting annoying."

"Shut up," Alice grunted, though it came out garbled because of her purring.

"Be nice, girls," Jasper chuckled.

They both stuck their tongues out at him and started to laugh. Jasper rolled his eyes as Amara pulled up at school, for once losing out to Rosalie's ride. Rosalie, Edward and Emmett were all waiting for us, Rosalie smiling smugly at her obvious victory. Amara merely flipped her off as she parked her car, which only seemed to amuse Rosalie more.

"I win, red," Rosalie crooned as we exited her car.

Amara snorted. "Yeah, what is this, your fourth time to my thirty?"

"I only lost most of those times because you cheated," Rosalie hissed.

"Oh, please. I _never_ cheat," Amara chortled.

"Liar," Emmett laughed.

"Totally," Edward agreed.

"Still better than you lamebrains," Amara shrugged.

They both snorted. Everyone started bickering amongst themselves randomly, much to the amusement of both Alice and I. She looped her arm around me and we both decided we'd leave them to themselves and head to class together.

"Our siblings are weird," I said, smiling.

Alice giggled. "That they are. Of course, we're both weird too, so I guess we shouldn't talk."

"True. You're the one obsessed with feet," I pointed out.

Alice rolled her eyes. "You don't hear me making fun of _your_ fetish, do you?"

I blushed. "You're right. Sorry."

She kissed my cheek. "It's fine, Bella. I don't mind it since it's you. And it's not like you don't let me enjoy myself, too," she teased, winking at me.

We continued chatting throughout our class together and even afterwards. I love it. The rest of the day went by fairly quickly, which I was pleased with. I also spent a great deal of time catching up with Eric and Angela, apologizing for not being at school to hang out with them and promising them that I'd make it up somehow later on.

"It's no big deal, Bella," Eric told me, waving my apology off.

"He's right. We understand," Angela said, smiling. "I just wish that I could escape school the way that you and your family did. You're lucky."

I couldn't help but agree. I _was _lucky.

"Can you believe that school's nearly finished, though?" Eric asked, grinning. "Man, I can't wait. One more year and we'll all be out of high school for good. Then it's off to college and the rest of our lives, finding new adventures and new troubles along the way. Now if only our lives could be documented in written form. That'd be awesome."

I bit my lip. My story would be an interesting one, for sure.

Angela giggled. "Come on, Eric, be serious. And for crying out loud, we're not even at our senior year yet, so why do you want to get through it so fast?"

"I didn't mean it that way," he said, scowling. "I just can't wait for what happens next."

I thought about that myself. What was in my future?

Alice was. There was no question of that.

I would never fall in love again, because Alice was my soulmate and I was hers. We were destined to be together, and both of us knew it. Which reminded me of another detail that I knew to be inevitable: I was going to become a vampire. While the bell signaling the end of class rang, Eric and Angela continued talking as the three of us headed to the cafeteria. I, however, remained silent and stared down at the floor, thinking about what it would be like to become a vampire and what my life would be like thereafter.

For one thing, I wouldn't be able to be around humans anymore. In fact, I doubted that I'd ever be able to see any of my human friends again. That made me sad since I'd miss the few friends that I'd made. Even worse was the way my mind would be when I was a newborn. I'd be crazed, bloodthirsty and super humanly powerful, stronger than even Emmett was.

I think the part about it that worried me the most, aside from my instincts, would be that, from what I've seen, I would probably end up killing somebody. That scared me the most, I think.

"Hello, Earth to Bella? You in there?"

I snapped out of my thought and saw Eric and Angela both staring at me.

"Yeah, sorry, just thinking," I hastily replied.

Eric frowned, but shrugged it off while Angela didn't seem to believe me. She didn't pursue it, though, as we entered the lunchroom and were greeted by Katie and Ben. I exchanged a greeting with them and a hug with Katie, who was happy to see me as always. We chatted briefly for a few minutes about random things before I told them I'd see them later and walked off over to my family's table, where Alice and the others were all sitting down.

Alice jumped up and pulled me into her arms, kissing me gleefully.

"Hey Bella," she greeted, smiling against my lips. "Come sit down and cuddle with me?"

"Hell yes," I replied, smiling back.

We cuddled throughout lunch, ignoring a few of the looks shot our way. I glanced around and saw that neither Jessica nor Lauren were at school today and silently wondered where they were.

"Lauren's recovering still and Jessica skipped school. No word on why," Edward said, answering the questions in my head.

I nodded in understanding and shrugged it off.

The rest of the day was fairly uneventful. And so were the next two days, for that matter.

Each day was more or less the same routine. I would make sure to talk with my human friends as much as I could, no matter what the subject was, since it mattered a lot that I remain as close to them as possible before the inevitable happened.

Alice didn't mind that I was spending time with them, she encouraged it. She did end up joining me the following day, however, because she didn't like not being near me. And hey, I wasn't about to complain, and neither did anybody else. All of my human friends liked Alice and she liked all of them, so it made things even more entertaining to have her around.

And then after school, I would spend time with Alice and time with the family. I played more video games with my siblings, helped Esme with her garden and learned a bit about the vampire world from Carlisle when he was home. I don't think I'd ever been happier then I was when I was with my family. I never wanted those moments to end, truth be told, but they did because I needed to sleep and deal with my other human problems.

Sarah had yet to return yet, at least fully. I saw a flash of her on a few occasions and learned from Alice that Carlisle and Esme had begun showing her how to hunt animals. She hadn't made a decision yet, but from what I knew, it seemed like she was trying to become a vegetarian and would be sticking around for a while.

Eventually it came to Thursday, the day before we would be going dress shopping.

Honestly, I didn't get what the big deal about prom was. It was just some school dance and that was it, there wasn't much of anything special about it. Right? I didn't think there was. But I knew that Alice did, so I kept quiet about it. Edward knew and found it humorous, but he didn't say anything to Alice either, which I was thankful for. I would've killed him if he had.

As it were, Alice was even more excited because of the impending dress shopping that was to come later on after school was over. We'd invited Angela and Katie to come along with us to shop for dresses, which they agreed to. I was happy for that since it gave me a chance to spend time with my sisters and my friends.

Speaking of sisters…

"Why do I have to go?" Amara complained, leaning against the wall near our door. Both her and Rosalie were in our room. They claimed to have come to just say hi, but I knew better than that and was well aware of the fact that they were trying to get out of shopping. Amara hated it and Rosalie didn't seem like she wanted to go, for whatever reason.

Alice wasn't having any of that, though. They were stuck going.

"I'll just wear that damn dress I wore the last time," Amara said, sounding a bit desperate.

"That was like ten years ago, Amara," Alice replied nonchalantly, putting her hands on her hips and scowling. "I don't see why you have to complain so much. I'm not doing this to torture you; I'm doing this to help you so that you'll look extra sexy for Jasper tonight."

Amara lifted an eyebrow. "I'm sorry, are we forgetting that I look sexy _all_ the time?"

"Whatever," Alice groaned. "You're going, though, and you don't get a say in it."

Amara glared at her and huffed in annoyance. Rosalie rolled her eyes and sighed dramatically while Alice smiled smugly, clearly pleased with herself. I covered my mouth and giggled as Alice twirled over to me and planted a kiss on my cheek.

"I'm glad that _you_ aren't complaining, Bella," she crooned, beaming at me.

"That's because she's whipped," Amara snorted.

I glared at her. "I'm not "whipped", Amara. I'm just not whiny like you."

"If you say so…" Amara shrugged, grinning teasingly at me. I ignored her, even though I couldn't keep the smile from forming on my face.

Amara and Rosalie gave up on trying to get out of shopping tonight and left our room. Alice grinned wickedly and continued to grin even as we made our way outside. Amara and Jasper carpooled with Rosalie, Edward and Emmett in Emmett's jeep and sped off without Alice and I, apparently a form of payback against Alice.

Alice wasn't deterred in the slightest and vanished into the garage, pulling out seconds later with my car, which stumped me. She stopped it and got out, staying by the door with a smile as she beckoned me over with her finger.

"You drive today," she said.

I cheered happily and hugged her tightly. She giggled and kissed my cheek before merrily skipping over to her side as I practically jumped into the driver's seat and revved my car up. I was beyond happy since I hadn't been able to drive her—yes, my car was a girl—in so long, it felt like it'd been years since I'd last stepped foot in her.

I sped off seconds later and vowed to try and catch up with my siblings. Alice watched me with warmth and wonderment reflected in her eyes and a smile on her rose-petal lips. We didn't end up beating the others, but we did get there shortly after. They all chuckled amongst themselves and I noticed the playful smirk on Rosalie's lips as she blew a kiss our way.

"I'm gonna kick her butt for that," Alice grumbled under her breath.

"Kick her once for me too?" I asked.

She nodded and got out of the car. I had planned on being the gentlewoman this time around, but as always, Alice beat me to the punch and opened my door for me. I smiled and gave her a kiss as payment, which she accepted happily.

"I rather like that type of payment," she giggled, her eyes smoldering.

"As do I," I replied.

She looped her arm around me. "Shall we, my lady?"

I nodded. We started to walk off toward the school, but after taking a few steps Alice froze. I stopped as well and watched as her eyes glazed over. I waited patiently for her vision to come and go, wrapping my arms around her as it did. I always felt better having her in my arms; it helped relax me whenever I was nervous or worried. Not that I was nervous now, but with the way her visions were, I could never be certain.

About a minute later, Alice relaxed into my arms and peered up at me.

"Lauren is here," Alice whispered. "She'll be here in exactly one minute and twelve seconds to come and speak to you. I'll leave you to it, since she wants to speak to you alone. I'll see you in class, okay?" I didn't get a chance to respond because she pressed her lips to mine, smiled softly at me, then danced off, leaving me standing there with a dumbstruck expression.

Not but a minute later, Lauren drove up and parked a few feet away from me. Slowly she exited her car, her eyes catching sight of me almost instantly. I relaxed my stance and leaned against my car as she casually walked over to where I was. I noticed a few changes in her physical appearance, including that she'd cut her hair a bit and that she appeared to gain a bit of weight.

This wasn't the fish-faced, snotty looking girl that I'd met when I first started going to school, she looked like an entirely different person. Her eyes, though, were the same, but much more weathered and there were defined black circles under her eyes. I felt a little bad for her and for what she'd gone through and wondered what she wanted to talk about.

"Hey Bella," she greeted.

"Hi Lauren," I replied. "How're you doing?"

She took in a shaky breath. "Shitty," she whispered. "And yet…good."

Neither of us spoke for a moment. I noticed that Lauren had moved in slightly closer to me and licked her lips nervously as she stared down at the ground.

"Lauren, about what happened…" I started.

Lauren suddenly jumped at me and before I knew it, her arms were around me in a tight hug. She trembled slightly and I could hear her sniffling. I was so shocked by the motion that it took me a moment to realize that she was crying, at which point my arms slowly wrapped around her in order to comfort her, something I never thought I'd be doing.

"Thank you," she sobbed. "Thank you, thank you, thank you. You have no idea what you've done for me, Bella. Thanks to you, Alice and Chief Swan…God…" She nuzzled into my neck and squeezed me tightly. Not too tightly, though.

After three or so minutes she pulled away from me and wiped her eyes, turning away.

"I'm sorry, I shouldn't have done that," she murmured, looking embarrassed.

My brain finally started working again. "It's fine," I replied, blinking several times. "It was just a bit unexpected, honestly."

Lauren rubbed the back of her neck. "I don't really know what else to say. I can't thank you enough for what you've done for me. If it hadn't been for you…I don't even want to think about where I'd be now." I watched her face tense up and her hands curled into fists.

"That fucking piece of shit…I can't believe…after all these years," she whispered. I could see pain reflected in her eyes as she shook her head. "My poor mother. I can't believe that he did that to her when she was just trying to be happy. And I went and blamed her for it. God, I'm so fucking stupid, I swear…"

I took a step forward and laid my hands on her shoulders. I noticed that she flinched at first, but then she relaxed and allowed her shoulders to slump.

"It's not your fault, Lauren," I murmured. "It was his. I hope that bastard gets what's coming to him for what he did to you and your mother."

Lauren smiled darkly. "The police had him arrested and thrown in jail. From what I've been told, he's going to be put on trial for abusing me and for killing my mother and her partner. They found enough evidence to convict him without needing my testimony." She paused and swallowed the lump in her throat. "I'm kind of glad for that."

"Are you living alone?" I inquired.

She shook her head. "No, my aunt heard about the news and flew here from Florida. She bought a home and now I'm staying with her. I've never been taken care of so well before in my whole life, so it's a little weird."

"That's good," I replied. "Where does that leave us?"

Lauren bit her lip. "I want to restart things." She turned and met my eyes. "I've been a bitch for so long to so many people, it might take a while, but I want to turn over a new leaf. I see now that I was wrong about a lot of things. If…if you're alright with it…I would like to…be your friend, Bella. I owe you more than I can ever repay, but I want to at least be friends."

"I'd like that, Lauren," I told her.

She smiled. It didn't reach her eyes, but it was the first genuine smile I'd ever seen on her.

"Thank you, Bella. For everything," she said, coming up to hug me again.

The bell rang before I had a chance to respond. We both cursed out loud, realizing that we were late to get to class now because we'd been talking. I sighed and shrugged it off. It wasn't like I was going to be getting a passing grade anyways.

"Damn it," Lauren groaned. "Stupid short-ass bell."

"Tell me about it. I guess we should get going," I grumbled.

Lauren shrugged. "My grades stink anyways. It's not like it'll matter to me."

"Same here," I chuckled.

"So, uh…can I walk with you to your class?" she asked.

I smiled and nodded. "Sure thing."

We walked to the school together, talking about what had happened. She apologized profusely for her insults and for hurting me and said that she'd make it up to me however she could, even though I told her she didn't have to worry about it. She said that she needed to make amends and that she would one way or the other. I just smiled politely and nodded.

Eventually we got to my class, hugged again, and then she left. I hurriedly got into class, which was incredibly awkward because everyone stared at me. I felt my face heat up, but then I caught Alice's eyes. I felt relief shower over me as I sped over to where she sat, our eyes never leaving each other's, even after I'd sat down.

The awkward air didn't last long because our teacher went back to the lecture at hand and everyone turned their attention to it, partially thanks to Alice's glare at them. We held hands throughout the class in silence, sometimes turning to smile at each other. In fact, I think I spent more time staring into her eyes than I did listening to the teacher drone on. I did get called on once, but thanks in part to Alice; I was able to answer the question asked.

Then class ended and Alice nearly sprang on me.

"What did she have to say?" she asked, cocking her head to the side.

"You didn't see?" I couldn't help but be surprised by that.

Alice shook her head. "I didn't want to intrude on it. It was a private moment, after all."

"That's not like you," I teased.

She glared at me. "For your information, I don't listen to your conversations on purpose and I don't watch them when you're with your friends. That isn't in my nature, thank you. I only watch you when you're in the shower. That's all."

I lifted an eyebrow. "You're a pervert, Alice."

"You still love me though," she pointed out, grinning. "And besides, just because I don't watch your conversations doesn't mean I don't want to know about them. Now spill. What'd she say?"

I sighed. "She just apologized for how she acted before and thanked me for helping her put her bastard father in prison. She also told me to apologize to you for her and that she owes you a bigger apology at some point later on."

Alice narrowed her eyes. "I see. Well, I don't know quite yet if I trust it…but I suppose that I'll give her the benefit of the doubt. Given what she's been through and all, that is. But if she reverts back to her old, bitchy self, I call dibs on being the one to shave her head."

I rolled my eyes, but I didn't argue with her on that. Alice leaned in to brush her lips against mine, smiling against my lips as she did. We paused at the sound of a throat clearing and realized that we were both still in the class. Embarrassed, we both stood up, Alice flashing the teacher an apologetic smile as we exited the room.

"I hate when that happens," I muttered as we walked off.

Alice shrugged. "What can you do?"

Honestly, I didn't have an answer to her for that.

"So I was thinking that, since Angela and Katie are going with us tomorrow, that maybe you could go with Amara and Rosalie to find a dress for yourself and that I would go with Angela and Katie to find one for me. That way, I'll be too busy to be tempted into seeing what you end up picking and you won't know what I pick."

"You really think that you can keep yourself from looking?" I inquired.

Alice scowled. "I can and will, I promise."

"Alright, that works for me, Alice. Can I ask you something?"

"Of course you can," she giggled.

I bit my lip. "Why is prom such a big deal to you?"

Alice stopped moving. I gulped and immediately regretted my question, hoping that I hadn't upset her by asking. I_ was_ curious, though. Alice blinked and licked her lips as she seemed to think on an answer for me. Then she looked into my eyes and cupped my cheeks, pulling me in so that we were inches apart from each other.

"Bella…" She sighed. "I understand that you don't really like the idea of going to prom. May I ask why that is? And please, be honest with me. You don't have to be nice just because you're afraid of hurting my feelings. Really, you wouldn't be."

"I just don't see a point to it," I replied softly, resting my forehead against hers. "It's a dance with overly strict rules and paranoid chaperones and that's honestly all I see it as."

She nodded in understanding. "I can see why you would feel that way. To humans, that's what a dance would represent. And it is just a dance. That isn't why it's special to me, though." Alice stroked my cheeks with her thumbs as she spoke and placed a gentle kiss on my lips. "No, it's more symbolic to me than anything else, Bella."

"Of all the years that I've been a Cullen and gone to school, there have been dances and parties and other get-togethers. I always went to the ones that my siblings went to and I did have fun, but I was always alone. I didn't have a mate of my own at that time, no one to hold hands with or hold or be held by. On the outside, I was fine, but on the inside, I was hurting. I hated it."

"Now I have you, though. I have my Bella. This is the first time I've ever been able to take someone with me to an event like this. Dorky as it might be, it means the world to me that I have you with me and that I finally get the chance to show off in front of people. Because Bella, I can't wait to tear up the dance floor with you in my arms."

I bit my lip. "That's really sweet of you, Alice," I whispered. "I'm sorry I didn't see it that way."

"I'm not upset, silly girl," she giggled. "I just wanted you to know."

"But how are we going to dance when I can barely walk across a flat surface without falling and looking like an idiot?" I asked.

Alice laughed musically and kissed me again. "Bella, have you really forgotten that you have an amazingly talented and graceful girlfriend? I'll be there with you the whole time and I promise that I won't let you fall, because if you do, I'll make myself fall and glare at anyone stupid enough to even _think_ about laughing at you."

"Thanks, Alice," I whispered, feeling a little more reassured.

"Anytime, love. We really should get to class, though. I'll walk you to your next one so that the teacher won't get mad that you're late. C'mon." I groaned quietly in protest as Alice wrapped her arm around me and pulled me along to my next class. "Oh, stop that."

"I can't help it. It's a reflex," I shrugged.

She rolled her eyes. "Uh huh, sure it is."

We snickered with each other until we made it to my next class. Alice removed her arm from me and planted a soft kiss on my lips. She loomed by the doorway as I padded inside and sat down to my usual seat. I smiled and waved at her as the door closed and all I could see was her face through the small window on the door. She smiled back and then she was gone.

Class was boring as usual, save for talking with Eric whenever I got the chance. He was excited about prom too and thanked me for taking Katie to go and find a dress. He made me promise not to spill any details about it to him, since he wanted to be surprised.

We walked together once class ended and chatted about the prom. Eric asked me if I had any romantic plans with Alice for after it, which I hadn't thought about.

"You didn't?" he asked, surprised. "Jeez, Bella, you really are new to the romance scene."

"Shut up!" I huffed. "I've had other things on my mind, okay?"

He grinned. "Like, say, another round with Katie?"

I rolled my eyes. "If I did consider that, I would first check with Alice, and then I would check with Katie on it and make sure that you were none the wiser."

"Aw, don't be that way…" he pouted. "And here I was gonna give you some suggestions for what you and Alice could do after the prom."

"Thanks, but I think we'll figure something out," I replied.

"Fine, suit yourself," he huffed teasingly. "There goes my three way idea."

"Eric," I sighed.

He snickered. "I'm only joking."

I rolled my eyes again as we joined Angela in the halls. I guessed that Alice was giving me some alone time with my friends, which I thought was cool. Angela was looking forward to tonight's planned out shopping trip and mentioned that she wanted to help me find my perfect dress. I told her thanks, deciding not to mention that she would likely be dragged off by Alice.

About five minutes into our class, I felt something come over me. It was the underlying feeling that there was something wrong with Alice, which immediately concerned me. I darted my eyes to the exit and considered booking it, but I didn't because I knew full well that I would just end up falling and looking like an idiot.

Suddenly the door swung open and in walked Jasper, Amara behind him. Amara chose to stand near the doorway while Jasper hastily walked up to the teacher and whispered something. The teacher grunted and nodded, eyed me for a moment, then went back to teaching. Jasper caught my eyes and nodded his head toward the doorway. I didn't waste any time in complying.

"What's wrong?" I asked the moment I was out of class, walking as fast as I could beside my two vampire siblings. Amara was at my left, her arm draped around my shoulders, and Jasper was at my right, a frown etched onto his usually placid face.

"Calm down, Bella," Amara soothed. "It's nothing to be too concerned about."

Jasper sighed. "Your dog friend came by."

"My dog friend?"

"Yeah, one of those stinking mutts, the one that Alice asked to protect you but failed," Amara reiterated, scowling.

My eyes widened. Leah. "Wait, what happened? Is everything alright?"

"No, I can feel Alice's rage from over here," Jasper grunted. "We need to get there fast and stop them from fighting. The treaty was just renewed not that long ago, if it's broken again, then there's no point in another because a war will break out."

"Shit," I cursed. "Amara, carry me?"

She nodded and scooped me into her arms as we exited the school. She pulled me in close and without warning both her and Jasper sped off, past the parking lot into the nearby forest area, where I could hear snarling and caught the faint scent of Leah.

I only hoped we wouldn't be there too late.

**A/N: To a certain Leah fan that I know will get worried, don't be. I'm saying that now. Oh, and I apologize for the delay. I had to go in a redo some stuff.**

**Now then. The story is very close to ending. I know, it's sad, but it won't be going away quite yet. There's still more to do with Blood Solstice as a whole.**

**For one thing, the audio book. As of now, there are three people who have expressed interest in doing one as a whole, one of whom has already begun to do so on Youtube. If you haven't checked it out yet, I suggest you do. She's got an awesome accent to go along with it, which makes it very cool. The other two have said that they would love to do one and I am deeply in appreciation of those two individuals. I cannot wait. Because the more audiobooks there are, the sooner Blood Solstice can take over Youtu-I mean, yeah, it'll be cool.**

**HOWEVER! For the one that is currently on Youtube, by Alexandria1, IF you would like to take the role of a certain character (except for Bella, Alice, Emmett and Sarah, the latter two of whom are being portrayed by the same person), please let me or her know! All you need is a mic, a recording program and enough free time to speak the dialog spoken by whatever character you pick. I just wanted you to know for those who don't have the time to do the whole thing. And no, accents don't matter. They're cool.**

**One last thing, more so a request from me. I am looking for someone artistically talented (I used to be) to perhaps craft a drawing of my OCs. I think it'd be awesome to see someone else's interpretation of them, honestly, and I would offer a oneshot (can't really offer money) to any interested. If anyone is interested, lemme know. Thanks.**


	76. Truce

**Disclaimer: I take no claim for the Twilight saga, only for my own characters and ideas. And my own weirdness, I suppose. But you should be used to that by now.**

**Truce**

We whipped past trees as the sound of growling and shouting became louder and more pronounced to my ears. Alice was the one shouting and she was not in a happy mood, which worried me because I didn't blame Leah for what happened. Then again, given the obvious disdain they had towards each other, I guess it really had a deep effect on Alice.

"Where are the others?" I asked.

"Still at school," Amara replied hastily. "They don't know yet."

"We're here," Jasper announced as we came upon a small clearing.

In the center of it were Alice and Leah, each crouched down in a defensive position, waiting for the other to attack. Alice's eyes were jet black and her teeth were bared in a venomous grimace as she glared down the taller girl. Her head whipped over in our direction the moment we came into the clearing. Leah did the same, her eyes widening in surprise.

"Alice, Leah," I breathed, staring between the two of them. "What the hell's going on?"

"Bella…" Alice murmured. "Why are you here? You should be in class."

"So should _you_," I replied. I started walking toward her, glancing at Leah as I did. "Leah, what are you doing out over here?"

Leah relaxed her posture slightly, her eyes darting over to Jasper and Amara.

"I came here to see how you were doing," she replied. "I called your…er, parents, to see if I could come onto their land and see you and they said yes, but—"

Alice hissed. "You've got a lot of nerve, _mongrel_. I _trusted_ you dog, to protect my mate from harm, and you ended up letting her get captured and hurt instead!" she seethed. "That just goes to show that you can't trust a stinking mutt to do anything!"

Leah snarled at her. "Who the fuck do you think you are, you little freak? You're blaming _me _for what happened to Bella? Where were _you_ at during that whole exchange? I thought you could see the future or some shit like that and yet you clearly didn't see them coming either. So don't try to pin the full blame on me, pipsqueak."

"I was fighting off against your stupid mutt friend, if you don't recall," Alice spat. "He went and ruined a special moment between Bella and I and because of him, I was too busy to protect her when that bastard and his sidekick showed up to take her."

"So then blame Jacob, not _me_," Leah growled.

Alice's eyes narrowed into slits. "I blame both of you—"

"Stop it!" I shouted, stepping between them. They both looked like they were going to rip each other's heads off and I was damned if I planned on letting that happened. "Knock it off, both of you, this fighting is pointless!"

Jasper took a step forward and I could feel waves of calm rushing off of him to blanket the small area around me, including both Alice and Leah. Alice felt it and growled at him, but he didn't budge an inch. Amara moved so that she was standing behind Alice, her arms crossed and her lips curled into a scowl as she looked down at her shorter sister.

"Alice, as much as I may not like the dogs, I don't think you should be trying to kill this one, especially since your mate clearly likes her. If anything, we should just put the blame on that little weasel that ran off and stick with that, don't you think?"

"She's right, Amara," Jasper said softly. "Sometimes even the toughest of our kind can be taken by surprise and I'm sure that the wolves are no different in that aspect."

"Wait a minute!" Leah interjected. "What the hell do you mean that he "ran off"?"

"That's nothing for you to concern yourself with," Alice replied icily.

Leah practically leapt forward. "The fuck it isn't! If he's out there, that puts just about everyone in this community in danger, not to mention everyone on my reservation! Just who the hell do you think you are talking to me like that? And have you forgotten that if he's out there, then that means that Bella's in danger too?"

"I'm fully aware of what it means!" Alice hissed.

I wrapped my arms around Alice and pulled her into me. Her entire body was trembling. I didn't have to look into her eyes or at Jasper to know how angry she was, I could feel her anger and tension as if it were swirling around her. I shuddered at it, but I didn't let her go. I hugged her tightly and with as much love as I could, praying that it would help relax her.

Jasper slowly moved until he was standing next to us. He gently laid a hand on Alice's shoulder, my guess being in order to strengthen the amount of calmness pouring out of his body. Alice growled at first, but after a moment, her body finally ceased trembling and she relaxed fully. She laid her chin on my shoulder and curled her arms around me into a tight yet tender embrace.

I glanced at Leah, whose dark eyes glared down at Alice. She didn't move, though, and I could tell that she was nervous because there were three vampires and just one of her. I noticed that Amara looked more than prepared to jump in a fight with Leah and almost looked to be anticipating one. Jasper shot her a disapproving look, which she scowled at.

I sighed. "Alice, please listen to me." She turned so that her eyes were gazing into mine. "I know that you're still upset over what happened. But it wasn't Leah's fault that I was captured. She was caught off guard and hurt before she had the chance to phase and fight. I don't blame Leah for what happened, okay? And I don't want you to blame her either."

Alice's eyes bored into mine for a moment before she let out a loud sigh. "Fine, I won't blame her and I apologize for my brashness." She nuzzled into the crook of my neck and relaxed into me even further. I smiled and kissed her collarbone, happy that she was willing to listen to me instead of jumping into a debate over it.

I turned to Leah. "I don't blame you, Leah. You would've fought to protect me from James and I know that. And I appreciate that you came to check up on me. I'm fine, honestly. My injuries healed last week and…well, I've taken a lot away from what happened."

Which I did. My vow to be stronger for Alice and the others, having Sarah as a potential friend and maybe even a sister and Alice's past, which I aimed to use to my advantage.

Leah's stance relaxed as well, the tension and anger dissipating until nothing but a pained look was remaining on her tan face. Her eyes smoldered as they bored into mine, trying to convey an emotion that I couldn't quite register. Then she sighed and ran a hand through her hair, shaking her head as Jasper's calm waves finally took complete effect.

"Yeah, I guess. I did want to apologize for failing to keep you safe, though," she admitted. "I still can't believe how easily taken out I was. It pisses me off. I wanted to prove that I could be reliable and all I ended up doing was getting my ass kicked."

"I did as well," Alice piped up. That surprised me, Leah too. "If anything, it's my fault that he ended up escaping. I should've just killed that bastard and been done with it."

"Alice, what did I tell you about blaming yourself?" I asked.

"It's true, though," she said.

"It doesn't matter now," Jasper stated. "He's gone now, but we'll get him if he tries to return."

"Or _we _will," Leah grunted, annoyed that Jasper hadn't included her. I could tell that she also didn't like the idea of being shown up by vampires, too. "Speaking of which, what about that bitch that was with him? Did you at least manage to kill her or did she get away too?"

No one responded to that. I bit my lip and looked each of my two siblings, neither of whom looked like they knew how to answer her. Alice let out another sigh as Leah watched on, clearly puzzled by the lack of reaction.

"Uh, did you not hear me?" she asked, tapping her foot on the ground.

"We heard you fine," Amara replied. "We're just not sure how to explain what ended up happening with her."

Leah's eyes widened. "Is she still alive?"

"Yes," Alice replied. "She is no longer an enemy, however."

"What the flipping hell do you mean she isn't an enemy anymore?" Leah asked, bewildered.

I cleared my throat. "Sarah was never really "evil" to begin with. She was manipulated by James and Victoria into thinking that I was responsible for killing her family, which is why she wanted to kill me so badly. But I was able to convince her that she'd been lied to the whole time and then she turned on James to save me."

"Bella convinced the rest of us to give her a second chance," Jasper explained. "She is currently trying to adapt to our lifestyle of feeding on animals rather than humans and, if all is successful and should she choose, she will be given a place in our family."

Alice grunted. "She has to earn that place, though, and our trust if she ever wants to be considered a Cullen. We won't accept a half-ass job and if she proves that she can't be trusted, then we will have no choice but to end her life."

Leah looked baffled, for once not replying right off the bat. She just stood there, staring.

"Actually, it's a good thing that we tell you," I realized, appraising Leah. Leah blinked several times, still speechless. "That way you can explain to your council what happened and that Sarah isn't a human feeder anymore. You could say that we're giving her a second chance, but also that she's started to feed on animals, too."

"We'll take full responsibility for her actions," Jasper added. "Should she slip, I mean."

"And if your council has a problem with that, they can go fuck themselves," Amara sneered, crossing her arms. "We won't put up with their bitching about the choices we make. If we do something and it blows up in our faces, it's our fault and they don't get a say in it. We won't be bullied around by a bunch of feeble old geezers, plain and simple."

"Damn straight," Alice mumbled.

Leah finally snapped out of it. "You seriously want to trust her?" she asked, staring at me.

"Yes," I replied. "I have a feeling that she'll be honest and she'll keep her word."

"I hope you know what you're doing, Bella," Leah sighed, shaking her head. "I guess I'll see you around, then. Take care of yourself Bella…and…well, why don't you try to visit? I know the council will throw a big hissy fit about it, but fuck em'. I don't care and it's not like you're a vampire that's gonna go wild on the people there or anything."

I hugged Alice and laid my head on her shoulder. "I will, Leah. I promise."

"I guess I'll see you around then," Leah murmured. "You'd best behave yourself, bloodsucker."

"Get lost," Alice hissed.

Leah sneered and turned around. "Be safe, Bells."

"You too, Leah," I murmured.

Leah nodded and turned around, slowly beginning to walk away into the forest.

"Hey mutt," Alice called. Leah turned around slightly, peering over her shoulder. "You stink."

Leah scoffed. "You stink too, runt." She suddenly burst into her wolf form and clicked her teeth while glaring at Alice before spinning around and darting into the woods, vanishing several seconds later with the only thing leftover being the scraps from her clothes and her faint scent.

"_Finally_," Amara groaned, waving her hand in front of her face. "She _really_ stinks. Rose is gonna throw a total shit fit since we all stink now, too. Oh well, nothing we can do about it."

"We should be getting back," Jasper mused. "School's already ended."

I groaned. "Great. I missed the rest of class."

Alice pulled away from me, remaining in my arms. "I'm sorry. It's my fault for blowing up. I just got pissed off when I remembered everything that happened. I should've held my tongue, but I couldn't control myself." She gave me a sheepish look. "I'll make it up to you, Bella."

"It's fine, Alice. Not like I'll be passing this year anyways," I said, waving it off.

Jasper chuckled and patted my shoulder. "I wouldn't worry too much about that."

I furrowed my brow. "What do you mean?"

I noticed the twinkle in his eye as he brought a finger to his lips. "Now, now, no need to worry."

"We should probably get back to school," Amara suggested. "The others are probably waiting for us and Rose will likely force us all to shower."

"Dibs on the shower first," Alice sang, scooping me into her arms. "Well, Bella can use it first, and then I will. You two can use the hose outside."

She didn't give them the chance to reply because in a matter of seconds Alice pulled my face into her shoulder, giggled and started running at full speed. I clung to her tightly and buried my face into her neck, kissing it as her scent filled my nostrils. My beautiful pixie brushed her lips against the top of my head as she ran, hugging me as close to her as she could.

"I love you," she whispered into my ear as she ran.

"I love you too," I whispered back, knowing she'd hear.

We got to the school faster than Jasper and Amara could and immediately dashed to my car. I leapt into the driver's seat so fast that for a moment I actually thought that I was moving at the speed of a vampire, though I knew it was just my imagination. With a flick and grin, I pulled my car out and drove off, looking only once in my rearview mirror to see my disgruntled siblings, namely Rosalie, glaring my car down as it drove off before them.

"Ha! Suckers!" I laughed wickedly.

Alice just watched me, wonderment shining in her eyes. "God you're sexy when you drive."

I blushed as I pulled into our driveway as fast as I could, amazed that I'd finally beaten my siblings. Okay, I had an unfair advantage and it wasn't that big of a deal, but I was still thoroughly pleased. And I guess it wasn't just me that had won, it was Alice too.

Alice and I walked inside once I'd parked in the garage, careful not to hit any of the other incredibly expensive vehicles. We linked arms, sauntering inside to immediately be enveloped by the familiar loving arms of Esme. Esme pulled us into her and hugged as tightly, placing kisses on each of our cheeks and foreheads.

"Hi mom," we greeted in unison.

"Hello girls," she replied, smiling warmly at each of us. Her nose crinkled. "Whoo-wee, it smells like I've got two stinky girls in my house. That just won't settle with me." She placed her hands on her hips and smirked. "Off to the shower with you two! I won't be having any stinky children in my house, not now, not ever."

We both giggled. "We know, Esme. We're going."

"Good," she smiled. "Extra hugs and kisses for the first of you to finish."

I kissed Alice on the cheek and sprinted—well, I guess it was a fast walk since I knew if I started to run that I'd end up falling—up the stairs, the sound of Esme and Alice's harmonic laughter filling the room behind me. I found myself smiling giddily as I showered, feeling content with what had happened today. I'd restarted things with Lauren, helped ease Leah's guilt about what happened and now I had no more doubts about going to prom with Alice.

Today had been a pretty good day. The rest of it was just as good, too.

Soon it was Friday, prom dress shopping day. Amara was quietly complaining, Rosalie was fussing over her appearance and Alice was dancing around the house. I sat on the couch, watching my pixie lovingly, enchanted by her grace and exuberance.

Funnily enough, there was no school today. It was some big teacher work day, which I was beyond happy for. That made my day ten times better. I'd called Katie and Angela and, after double checking with Carlisle and Esme, gave them directions to where we lived. They'd be dropped off here, and then we'd all head out to go shopping up in Seattle.

Esme would be taking Emmett's jeep and with her would be Katie, Angela, Alice and myself and Rose and Amara would be taking Amara's car. It was going to be a "girls night out" type event, which was something I found to be exciting. That didn't spare the boys, though, since Carlisle would be taking his sons to go and find nice suits. Both Emmett and Jasper knew that they were being forced into going shopping, though it was separate from our intended trip. Emmett didn't look happy about it while Jasper seemed more understanding and less bothered.

The only one being spared was Edward, who conveniently claimed that he had plans for the day of prom and that he wouldn't be joining us. So he was sitting in an easy chair with a smug grin on his face as he listened to his iPod, which _I_ probably could've heard from my room. Even worse was the fact that whatever the hell he was listening to stunk.

"Don't be hating my music," he chuckled, bopping his head around slightly.

"Then don't listen to crappy music," I retorted.

He rolled his eyes. "What a surprise that you clearly have no taste in music, Bella."

I stuck my tongue out at him. "Don't make me get Alice in here."

On cue, Alice twirled into the room and lightly smacked Edward in the back of the head, making him sputter in disbelief and glare at her as she stopped in front of me. With a smirk she leaned down to press her lips to mine, which I immediately deepened. She cupped my cheeks and gently pushed me down before crawling on top of me, her tongue darting out of her mouth to intertwine with mine, making us both moan.

Edward muttered under his breath as he disappeared from the room, leaving Alice and I to our passionate kissing. Unfortunately, our making out didn't last as long as either of us would have liked since were both interrupted by a throat clearing. Irritated, we both looked up and glared in the direction of said perpetrator only to see Esme looking at us apologetically.

"I'm sorry to bother you girls during your private time, but it's almost time to go," she informed.

"Katie and Angela will be here in four minutes and fifteen seconds," Alice added, lifting herself off of me before pulling me up. "They're being dropped off by Angela's mother. I can safely say that they're both quite excited about this shopping trip. Not as excited as I am, of course."

"I don't think anyone could ever be as excited about shopping as you," Jasper chuckled as he and Amara blurred down the stairs.

"It's an unhealthy obsession," Amara snorted.

"Oh, quit belly-aching," Alice grumbled.

"Can we please get this over with?" Rosalie asked.

Alice tapped her foot on the floor. "Rosalie Lillian Cullen, you of all people love shopping as much as I do, so why are you acting like this? Is it because you lost that bet that we had and now you have to try on thirty different embarrassing outfits for me?"

Rosalie glared at her. "That was a setup and you know it."

So _that's_ why Rosalie was so disgruntled about going. Normally she would've been more than happy about shopping, so I found it odd that she was so disdainful about it. Alice smiled devilishly at our tall blonde sister and wrapped her arm around me.

"Stinks for you, Rosie-posy," she giggled. "Ah! Our guests are here."

We walked over to the window nearest to the door and peered out it to see a dark green car slowly pulling up the driveway. Katie and Angela both stepped out and began to walk towards our house with wide eyes as they stared down the building before them. I noticed that Esme was peering out the window as well and had a smug grin on her face.

I answered the door as both girls got the front step and smiled at them.

"Hey guys," I greeted. "Welcome to my home."

"_Our_ home," Alice corrected, wrapping her arms around me from behind.

"This place rocks," Katie breathed as she and Angela stepped inside.

"I'm so glad you like it," Esme sang, walking towards them casually. Their eyes both widened in surprise at Esme, who beamed and extended her hand. "I'm Esme, Bella and Alice's mother. I'm so very happy to meet the friends of my daughters. It's a very rare treat for me."

"Er, hi," Angela murmured shyly. She took hold of Esme's hand and shook it. "I'm Angela and this is Katie. It's a pleasure to meet you, Mrs. Cullen and thank you for taking us."

"Please, call me Esme. And it's no trouble at all," she giggled.

Katie shook her hand next and smiled politely. "Yeah, I'm…er, Katie. You've got an awesome house here, Mrs. Cull-er, Esme."

"Why thank you, Katie," Esme replied, flashing them a brilliant smile.

It was obvious that they'd never seen Esme before, as evidenced by their reactions. I smiled inwardly because I could only imagine the thoughts running through their head. Esme was a beautiful woman, one of the most beautiful in the world, without a fact. Even straight girls would have a hard time being around her without staring. Not that _I_ would know.

Edward coughed from the other room and I mentally flipped him off.

"Amara, Rosalie, get your butts down here!" Alice shouted.

"We're already here," Rosalie grumbled, strutting over to where we were, Amara shuffling in step directly behind her.

"Is everyone ready to go?" Esme asked, looking excited. She paused. "Oh my, I haven't even given you girls a tour of the house yet."

"It's alright," Angela replied. "We don't want to be a bother to you."

Esme tsk-ed. "Nonsense dear, it wouldn't be any trouble at all." She paused and giggled. "You two are very well mannered. It reminds me of how a certain brunette used to act when we first adopted her. And now look at her, a troublemaking stinker like her girlfriend."

I blushed while Angela, Katie and Alice all laughed. My siblings laughed as well, which only made me redder. I turned around and buried my face into my girlfriend, who nuzzled into the top of my head affectionately, kissing my cheek while she did.

Esme came over and pulled us both into a tight hug. "You know that I love you dearly, Bella."

"I know," I mumbled.

"We gonna get going or what?" Amara asked. She sounded happy.

Alice rolled her eyes. "Stop that, Amara. It's rude."

Esme cleared her throat. "Angela, Katie, are you certain you don't mind leaving now?"

"Not at all," Katie replied. "I'm honestly not that big on dresses. I only wear em' when they're needed, otherwise I'd go without."

Angela nudged her. "That's not what she was getting at, Katie," she whispered to the other redhead, who rubbed her neck and shrugged. Angela gave Esme a polite smile. "We really do appreciate that you offered to take us."

Esme smiled and waved it off. "It's no concern at all, really. Shall we, then?"

Everyone save for Esme and Amara clambered outside, Alice holding me, Rosalie staying silent and my two human friends talking amongst themselves in hushed whispers that everyone else could hear perfectly fine. A few seconds later both women drove out in the vehicle that they'd be driving. Rosalie immediately sauntered over to Amara's car and jumped in while the rest of us got into Emmett's jeep. I wondered if Emmett was complaining about that.

"Are you ready?" Alice asked, sounding excited.

I nodded. Once everyone was buckled in—Esme had to make sure that we wore seatbelts since we had Katie and Angela with us, though I knew that Alice was a far better seatbelt—Esme turned on the jeep and we were off, tailing Amara and Rosalie. And here I thought that Amara would be speeding like she usually was. I guess we were going overboard on the human thing since we had two that weren't accustomed to the Cullen lifestyle like I was.

"Where are we going?" Katie asked.

"A super store up in Seattle," Alice replied. "It has a lot of top designer dresses there. Some of it is pretty expensive, I'll admit, but we won't have a problem with that." I silently smacked my forehead while Esme growled quietly under her breath. Alice, realizing the error in her words, sheepishly cleared her throat and smartly corrected herself. "What I mean is, we'll be more than happy to help pay towards your dresses if the price is too high."

"We wouldn't want you to spend money on us…" Angela murmured.

Alice waved it off and smiled politely at them. "It's the least we can do to help out friends, and really, it's no problem. We have more than enough money to—"

"Alice!" I whisper-yelled, nudging her as best I could without hurting myself.

She mouthed a "sorry" to me and gave both Angela and Katie an apologetic look. I could tell that she was disdainful about using the wrong words to try and convey a good thing. I kissed her cheek in reassurance and neither of my two friends seemed bothered by it in the slightest.

Our drive lasted about two and a half hours, which was primarily due to traffic and to the fact that Esme was clearly not used to driving slow for this long and neither was Alice. Both women were obviously becoming impatient, though Esme was able to keep it hidden much better. Alice on the other hand, was jittery and, had I not been there, would have probably started bouncing around the jeep like a sugar-high jackrabbit. Not that I could blame her or anything.

Eventually we arrived at the "super store". And I'll be damned if it wasn't a super store.

"This is place is huge," I breathed.

Alice giggled next to me. "Yup! And the selection is awesome!"

Esme parked next to Amara's car, my sisters waiting outside for us to arrive by the time we had gotten there. We joined them shortly after and all of us started walking together in a group, Esme leading the way with Amara in the back, her hands in her pockets with a prominent "I don't want to be here" look on her face.

We were already beginning to attract attention. People passing us were shooting looks at Esme, Alice, Rosalie and Amara like they had just seen women for the first time in their lives and I swore that I saw a few tongues hanging out. It made me cringe in disgust and I held Alice closer to me while Alice mimicked the motion, pulling me in as close as she could.

"Stupid men," she hissed under her breath.

"Ignore them," Rosalie replied. "They're not worth our time."

Once we were inside, though, Alice's personality shifted and she was bouncing excitedly again with a big grin on her face. I was too busy gaping at the size of the building we were in and remembered the place that we'd gone shopping to before wasn't even half the size, or that's how it felt to me. Katie and Angela were both staring too, so I was glad that I wasn't alone.

"Alright then, Bella, you come with me. Alice, you go and help Katie and Angela find dresses and find yourself something and Amara, Rosalie, you two know what you like already," Esme said, clasping her hands together. "Now let's go find something that'll knock your boys'—" I heard Alice clear her throat, but Esme ignored her. "—socks off."

Amara and Rosalie both walked off. I turned to Alice and stared into her eyes for a moment.

"I hope I find something you like," I whispered.

Alice cupped my cheeks and pulled me close, connecting our lips. "Bella, find something that _you_ like, because no matter what you wear, I know for a fact that you'll be the sexiest woman in the entire building. No question about it."

I blushed as she leaned in to kiss my cheek before she danced over to Katie and Angela, taking one arm from each and pulling them along, skipping merrily as she did. I stared after her for a moment, admiring her grace, but had my attention jarred by a throat clearing. Esme was smiling at me with her hands on her hips.

"Shall we, dear? I'll help you find something real sexy for the both of you," she said.

I ducked my head shyly. "Okay Esme."

She giggled and draped her arm around me as we started to walk in the opposite direction that the other girls were going in, which I found confusing. When I asked, Esme explained to me that there were different sections for different types of dresses. Alice and Rosalie preferred the more expensive, fancy, designer level dresses, whereas Esme knew that I would want something less flashy and more suitable for my personality.

"And what is that supposed to mean?" I asked, feigning defensiveness.

Esme rubbed the back of her neck. "No, no, that's not what I meant at all."

"I was only playing, Esme," I chuckled.

"Wait, what do you…you little…" she lightly smacked my shoulder and mock glared at me, but it quickly dissolved into giggles. "I was right, you _are _a little stinker! Oh, but I love you so. I guess I'll let that slide for just this once." She gave me a playful wink and pushed me along to an area where they had a plethora of different dresses and a dressing room area.

I started thumbing through a selection of dresses, giving each piece a onceover. Upon doing so, I quickly realized something very important. I stink at finding dresses. I couldn't really tell what would be right for me since I've never actually worn a dress before. Honestly.

"Er, Esme?" I asked sheepishly. My wonderful mother was by me seconds later, warm smile in place as she titled her head to the side curiously. "I have no idea what I'm doing. I've never dress shopped before. I've never even worn a dress before, truthfully."

Esme gave me a soft kiss on the forehead. "There's nothing wrong with that, sweetheart. I'm more than happy to help you find a dress. Tell you what, you go and wait in a dressing room and I'll pick out some nice dresses and we'll go over them together. How does that sound? I promise I won't get anything too ostentations."

"Alright," I replied. I walked over to the dressing room, found a stall and went inside to wait for Esme to bring me some dresses. It didn't take long. A few minutes went by and Esme appeared, opening the stall door with what looked like thirty different dresses in her arms. I gaped.

"I'm sorry, I know this is a lot," she said, smiling apologetically. "You don't have to try them all on if you don't want to, there's just a few in particular that I thought might work."

Thus the dress-up began.

"No, I don't like that," Esme frowned, pursing her lips at the first dress I tried. "It doesn't accentuate your hips very well, I don't think." I looked down at it and nodded in agreement, so I gave it to Esme to put in the discard pile. Then I tried on the next dress.

Esme shook her head. "It looks too tight on you. Definitely a no," she grunted. I agreed with her again and shrugged out of it for the third.

"Nope, the colors don't work. Damn," Esme cursed quietly. On to number four.

I ended up trying on twenty four different dresses, discarding each because there was something that both Esme and I didn't like about it. I was about ready to give up when Esme handed me a blue and black sequin dress that immediately caught my attention. There was something about it that just seemed to call to me, so I hastily put it on. Esme's eyes widened once I was done.

"I like it," she exclaimed. "It's sexy and it fits you perfectly. Everything is accentuated right and the color really brings out your eyes, oddly enough." She stepped forward and kissed my cheek, her eyes smoldering with warmth. "You look positively beautiful, my dear. Alice will be drooling over you when she sees it."

I blushed, but nodded, checking myself in the mirror. Esme was right. It looked good.

"Thanks, Esme," I murmured, smiling appreciatively at her. Now it was on to prom.

**A/N: I know, the chapter wasn't the most exciting, but it needed to be done. And at least now there has been some closure between Leah and Bella. Oh, let's not forget the obvious rivalry growing between Leah and Alice. Rivalries are so much fun. Hee hee.**

**I wanted to take this little moment to apologize to you readers. I know that the last few chapters probably haven't been very entertaining to you, and I'm sorry for that. The story is ending, so there really wasn't much else for me to do. I needed to put in what was necessary to help it along the way. Maybe I"m jumping the gun and you're all enjoying it, but just aren't saying anything on it. Here's the thing. Wrong as it might sound, I typically equate review amount to reader happiness. The more reviews I get, the happier I know my readers to be and the more satisfied I am. Is that the wrong way to feel? I don't know. That's just how it is. But I won't beg for reviews.**

**Anyways, this is actually the last technical chapter of the story. Wow. Blood Solstice is almost over. It's just...wow.**

**Until next time...**


	77. Dress

**Disclaimer: I don't take credit for the Twilight saga, all that belongs to Stephanie Meyer. I take credit for my characters (they be mine) and my own ideas and whatnot. As always.**

**Dress**

It seemed to me that maybe God was a fan of prom. After everyone had purchased their dress at the superstore—and a butt-load of other things no thanks to Alice and Rosalie—we all went back to the house. Esme made Angela, Katie and I some sandwiches and we spent time talking about what we had planned for the future next year after we graduated.

It was strange, talking about the future. Katie and Angela both had plans. I didn't. Alice, who had been sitting with me while we talked, piped up and said that the two of us would be heading to college in Alaska. I'd never heard of that, but I didn't say anything. I just smiled and nodded.

Later on, Alice explained to me that we would likely need to move to a more convenient location for when I turned into a vampire, a place that wasn't as populated so that I wouldn't be as enticed to blood as I would if surrounded by humans. That made sense and I agreed, but I wondered if Alaska was really the best choice.

"The Denalis are there, so we would have people to stay with and more vampires to help you when you're changed," she told me when I asked. "Don't worry, love. We'll do everything we can to help you when the time comes."

"But what if I still slip?" I asked quietly.

She stroked my cheek reassuringly. "I'll be there for you."

We didn't speak on that subject afterwards. I opted not to, merely because I didn't want to worry myself about it. Alice was content with changing the subject around and we went on. But the fact remained there, ingrained in the back of my head, that I would be dangerous and that I would most likely take someone's life. I only hoped that if it came down to it, that they deserved it.

I spent a good amount of time with Alice throughout the week, which was to be expected since the two of us had become practically inseparable. We kissed, cuddled, played video games, watched movies and spent a lot of time with the family, which was loads of fun. Every day we did something new and fun, something that I could do since I was still human, yet it was a challenge for at least half the family to do.

We played Twister, for example. That was entertaining, especially when I was watching people that were super limber trying to outmatch each other—I tried to play, but I usually got eliminated pretty quickly save for the two times I won—which was always fun. They would always try to use cheap moves to best each other, which I found even more fun.

For example, during one game Alice poked Amara's bellybutton when she was bent over backwards, winking at me as she did. Amara was caught off guard and collapsed on top of Rosalie, eliminating the both of them from the game. They both got her back, though. Rose ran her bare leg across Alice's face and Amara smacked her ass, causing Alice to yelp and fall.

I'd never realized it before, but my family was very competitive with each other. No one liked being outmatched, _especially_ Alice. She was one of the most competitive and I think it was because of her that everyone else was. It was surprising for me to see my graceful, loving pixie acting cocky and arrogant, always gloating about her victories. It was kind of hot, too.

We did other things, though, like nature hikes, swimming trips and other games, like family checkers, Sorry, Yahtzee and Monopoly. Monopoly night was interesting. I think if Jasper hadn't been there with his gift, the game board would have been destroyed. Rosalie, Emmett, Amara and Alice were all getting very into the game and their competitive nature made it all the worse.

I was laughing most of the time during that. The faces they made and how seriously they took a board game was utterly priceless. But then I started to get into it and got pissed off because Emmett kept taking my money from me. In the end, Jasper won, winning actual money from both of his brothers, Rosalie, Alice and Amara in the process. I didn't bet, thank God.

That was pretty much how most of the week went; quality time with Alice alone and with everyone else, either separately or together. I don't think I've ever had as much fun as I did when I was with everyone. I laughed and smiled so much that my face was actually hurting by the end of the day, but it was totally worth it in the end.

Plus there were the Alice kisses each night before bed. Those were fucking awesome.

There were several things that bothered me. The most prominent on that list: James and Victoria.

I had asked Alice about that on Tuesday. I'd tried to forget them, but no matter how hard, they still remained there in the back of my mind and in my dreams. Sometimes I believed that they would be with me forever after all they'd put me through.

"They've vanished," Alice admitted to me after I asked her. She held me tightly in her arms and rubbed my back tenderly while she spoke in order to ease me. "I haven't seen that bitch since she last disappeared. And as far as him, I've seen him once or twice, but that's it. He wasn't making any decisions at all, so I barely saw anything."

That was all she'd tell me. I had a feeling that there might be more, but I didn't press.

The next day, we got a surprise visit from Sophie and Arthur. They said that they had spotted James out in the outskirts of Washington. Sophie ran at him headfirst and the two fought with each other, but James ended up escaping from her. She claimed that he "just vanished".

Either way, Sophie wasn't happy about it. Neither was Arthur, though he said nothing.

Aside from that, the two did stop by two more times to visit. I'd grown particularly fond of both of them. I liked Sophie's rambunctiousness and randomness and I liked Arthur's intellect and his calm demeanor. The two reminded me a lot of Jasper and Amara, actually, which I think was another reason why I was drawn to them.

All in all, the week had gone by pretty fast. I'd enjoyed it, though.

Now it was Friday, the day that everyone I knew seemed to be hyping. And here I was, sitting on my bed, watching my beautiful Alice twirl around joyously. School had ended early so that everyone could get it ready for prom tonight. I had no complaints, I was happy to be home.

"What are you doing?" I asked, watching her with wonderment.

Alice stopped mid-twirl and spun around to face me, beaming. "I'm practicing for tonight, my sweet Bella. I want to be in top condition so that I don't pull a muscle or mess up!" I rolled my eyes at her obvious teasing. She giggled and came over to plant a soft kiss on my lips.

"You're silly," I murmured against them, staring into her eyes.

Alice's eyes smoldered. She gently pushed me back and crawled on top of me, her lips still pressed against mine. For a moment, we just laid there, staring into each other's eyes. Alice quickly corrected that and began moving her lips against mine in a heated kiss.

My hands moved all over her as I deepened our kiss, snaking my tongue out and running it across her bottom lip for access. She moaned and granted it, and I pushed my tongue inside and ran it across hers. Our tongues began to battle each other over dominance of her mouth. She won in the end, but she generously let me have control.

We moaned as our tongues entwined, eventually breaking away so that I could breathe. Alice rolled off of me, both of us breathing raggedly.

"I love that," Alice breathed. "God I love it."

"I can't wait till I don't have to breathe anymore," I whispered.

Alice giggled. "Don't wish for it too quickly, my love. Enjoy your humanness while you can."

She pressed her lips to my forehead, then sat up. I sat up lazily and watched as she twirled around a few more times before deciding to trek downstairs. We had a few hours to go before we would be readying ourselves for prom. I figured I could make use of that time and go and visit with my other family members. Why not?

I made my way downstairs, already aware that the boys were playing a game. I could tell by the shouting from Emmett's big mouth. I discovered once I was in the living room that they were playing, once again, Halo 3, and it was getting pretty intense.

"Grenade!" Emmett shouted. "Shit!" His character died seconds later and he almost threw his controller on the ground in irritation.

"Don't be a sore loser, Em," Jasper admonished. His character was sniped by Edward's and he turned to glare at his bronze haired brother, who merely smirked silently. "You know, there's a saying for that sort of thing, Edward…"

Edward shrugged nonchalantly. I walked up and watched the three of them battle it out in their game, smiling whenever Emmett's character was killed because of the way he'd react and giggling at the glaring between Edward and Jasper each time one of them killed the other. I absentmindedly wondered where Rosalie and Amara were, though. I wanted to see them.

"What, we aren't entertaining enough?" Edward asked mockingly.

"Watching you kill each other? No, not so much," I replied. "Where's Rose and Ama at?"

I heard the door opened and turned to see said girls walking in. "We're here," Rosalie announced, flipping her hair. "We had to go and hunt. Are you boys seriously still playing that fucking Halo game? That game stinks. You need something that's actually _fun_."

"It is fun!" Emmett defended, pouting at his wife. "You're just mad because you always end up losing whenever you play." Rosalie glared at him and he ducked his head sheepishly. "It's true, though, I'm sorry babe. You lose all the time…"

"That's only because you all go after me!" she growled, throwing her hands in the air.

Amara snickered. "Maybe it's because you always end up cheating?"

Rosalie rolled her eyes. "Alice is the one that cheats, not me."

"I do not!" Alice shouted from upstairs.

I giggled and leaned against the couch. I always did enjoy listening to my siblings' banter. No matter what the subject was, their arguments were always beyond entertaining to listen to. Amara walked over to me and draped her left arm around me, pulling me close. I smiled and leaned in to my much taller sister, who smiled back at me.

"Whatcha thinking about, Belly-Button?" she asked.

I lifted an eyebrow. "Is that supposed to be a nickname?" I asked.

She grinned. "Yeah, Rose and I decided we'd start calling you that. It fits, don't you think?"

"Ha ha, very funny, Ama," I deadpanned. "Just wait till Alice and I give _you_ a nickname."

"I'm terrified," she chortled. "But seriously. Come with me, would you?"

She walked outside and I obediently followed after her, wondering what she had on her mind. Amara stopped at the large rock where she'd first told me about her past and sat down on it, patting her lap. I smiled and sat down on it, resting my head on her shoulder as she wrapped her long arms around me and smirked.

"I bet if you and I weren't in relationships that you'd totally want this, huh?" she teased. Her face grew serious then and she stared down at me placidly. "I wanted to see how you were doing after all the shit you've been through for the past…what, month? I mean damn, I know our lives are like that normally, but for a human to have to go through that…"

"It has been rough," I admitted, hugging her. "I'm amazed at how much has happened in such a short amount of time. It's crazy to think about and even crazier that I haven't completely lost my sanity from it all. I guess I'm just built to be able to withstand it. Either that, or I'm way too stubborn and stupid for my own good."

Amara gently rocked me in her arms. This was a side of her that I'd seen before, but I'd never seen it as strong as this. I stared into my sister's eyes and saw warmth and love in them, the kind of love that siblings were supposed to have with each other. I liked that.

"You know, you've really helped change this family," Amara murmured, kissing my forehead and smiling at me. "You've given our little bundle of happiness the thing that she's wanted most throughout her existence and it definitely shows. And since she's become happy, the rest of us have too. Rosalie isn't as much of a bitch, Edward hasn't been as mopey, Jasper's chipper as hell with Alice's happiness swimming through him and Carlisle and Esme are both overjoyed."

She chuckled. "Honestly, I think once Edward gets himself a girl and gets laid and you and Alice tie the knot, everything will be as it should be for those two. I can't help but agree. You two need to fuck each other, seriously. I've been waiting and waiting since you first got in a relationship, but it's like neither of you seem to be thinking about it. Or have you?"

I blushed. "Well, uh…" How could I not think about it? I mean, Alice was…fucking hot.

"Ha! I _knew_ it!" Amara crooned, laughing musically. "Oh, the others are gonna love that!"

"What? Don't tell them!" I shouted. "Please, Amara?" I gave her a pleading look. "Could you please not tell them, for your favorite little sister?"

Amara smiled. "Oh alright, I won't. Ruin my fun." She kissed my cheek. "Nah, you know I wouldn't do that. It ain't my place. I'm serious, though, you really do need to get in the sack with her, Button. She's getting a bit antsy. Don't tell her I said that, just thought I'd let you know."

I sighed. "I kind of figured. I've noticed her eyes sometimes. The look in them…"

"Hey, don't let it bother you," Amara said. "I'm just messing with ya. It happens when it happens and I'm sure it'll be a wonderful experience for the both of you. Anyways, back to what I was saying earlier, you've helped us a lot, Bella. I just wanted to make sure that you knew."

"Thanks, Amara. It means a lot to hear that," I murmured, staring up at her. I leaned up and gave her a kiss on the cheek. "You're a great sister Amara, you and Rosalie both. I want to get closer to you, to Jasper, Edward, Rose, Em, Carlisle and Esme…all of you. I've never had a family like this before and I want to make sure that it counts."

She smirked. "And you will. Don't you worry, once stinking school ends, you'll have all the time you want to spend with us. I'm flattered that you want to be closer to me. I feel the same way, honestly, and I look forward to bonding with you. One of these days we should go out and have some fun, just the two of us. What do you say?"

"I'd like that," I replied, smiling at her.

"Good," Amara smiled back. "I love you, little sis. Don't ever forget that, okay? I'll be here for you if you ever need someone."

I laid my head on her shoulder and the two of us stayed there for a little while. It was comforting, the air between us. This was the kind of relationship that I would've never had if I'd never found the Cullens to begin with. I'd have no Amara, no Carlisle or Esme, no Alice. Nothing. All the things that I had now wouldn't exist if I hadn't accidentally run into their house.

Amara lightly poked me in the stomach. "You alright?"

I blinked and nodded. "Yeah, I'm fine. I was just reminiscing kinda."

"You want some time to yourself?" she inquired.

I considered that for a moment and nodded, leaning up to kiss her cheek. She did the same to both of my cheeks and stood up with me still in her arms. With a snicker, Amara set me down on the rock and tousled my hair affectionately.

"Alright, Belly-Button, I'll see you later," Amara said. "Don't forget, Rose and I are gonna help you out with your dress and all that crap later on. But if you wanna come chill with us after you're done thinking, go right ahead. We'll be inside."

"Thanks, Ama."

"Anytime, squirt. Just promise me you won't think too hard. I know how much it hurts for you to use that tiny little brain of yours," she snickered.

"Fuck you," I huffed petulantly. I tried to keep a pout on my face, but it only lasted for a few seconds before I started giggling. Amara laughed and gave me a warm smile before sauntering back towards the house, leaving me to my thoughts.

Once she was gone, I sighed and stared off into the forest. Looking into the trees brought back the memory of when I first happened upon the Cullen mansion. I'd been running for days, exhausted, bruised, tired and hungry. I thought that I was just delaying the inevitable, that no matter what I did that they'd catch me and that I would die.

I was wrong. And even now, that still surprised me.

All the nights I woke up in a cold sweat with laughter ringing in my ears, the searing burn coursing through my body every time Victoria bit me, the broken bones, the blood, the tears, the hating, hoping and yearning. All of that had gone through my mind for the past four months, to the point where I'd gotten so used to it that it barely bothered me anymore. It was like I was nothing more than a mindless puppet, moving at its master's will.

Yet here I am now, with more than I ever dreamt of.

It was so…surreal.

I closed my eyes and took in a deep breath. I could smell the pine, dirt and something more from the woods around me. But I could also smell something else, something sweet. It smelled like chocolate? I opened my eyes and turned to see Alice standing a few feet away from me, watching on in silence. When our eyes met, she smiled softly and walked over to me.

"I had a vision of you just sitting here alone," she whispered, sitting down next to me. Her left arm wrapped around me and pulled me into her lap. I immediately relaxed into her body and snuggled into her arms as she rested her chin on my shoulder. I felt her brush her nose against my hair and breathe in several times, a content sigh escaping shortly after.

"I didn't mean to bother you from whatever you were doing," I murmured.

Alice chuckled. "Please. All I was doing was twirling around like a derange lunatic. I mean, it was fun as hell, but being with you is ten times more fun." She kissed my neck. "Mind if I ask what you're thinking right now?"

"About how I started with nothing and ended up with everything," I replied.

"Ah yes, that." At first she didn't respond and I took it as a sign that she was contemplating the severity of what I was talking about. But then, out of nowhere, she started to giggle, which I scowled at her for. She stopped and gave me a sheepish grin. "Sorry babe, I can't help it. Even after all this time, you're still as corny as you were when the two of us first got together."

I hung my head. "I know…"

"It's not a bad thing. In fact, I think it's cute," Alice admitted. "I love your corniness. I don't think it'd be the same if you were some overly suave girl. I love that you're so clumsy and shy and so fucking adorable. I'll take that over any other kind of girl any day."

I looked up and into her eyes. They smoldered right back at me.

"I heard a bit of what Amara said to you," Alice murmured, connecting our lips. "What she said to you was completely true. You've changed this family for the better in more ways than you could possibly imagine, Bella. You might not notice it fully because you're a human and you don't pick up on the same things that I do, but it's true."

"Like what?" I asked.

"The overall atmosphere," she replied. "Everyone is happier when you're around. You've brought more joy into this family than…" She bit her lip. "Shit, Bella, you've practically changed most of us in some way. I heard Amara tell you about that, but there's so much more that you don't know about. I can't even begin to tell you, much as I'd like to."

"I never realized that I made such a difference. I'm just one human," I whispered.

Alice shook her head furiously. "You are _not_ "just one human", Bella. You are a beautiful, sweet, wonderful angel and my missing piece. You are my heart, my soul, my world…I could list off a number of different words to describe what you are to me. Yes, cliché, I know, but they're all completely true. That's how much you mean to me, Bella."

"Not only that, but you mean a lot to the others. Don't ever doubt that." She cupped my cheeks and connected our lips again, more passionately than the last time. "I love you, Bella. More than words alone could ever describe."

"I love you too, Alice," I murmured against her lips.

Alice giggled. "I certainly hope so. It'd stink if you didn't."

"As if I couldn't love you," I rolled my eyes. "Come to think of it, who _couldn't_ love you?"

She tapped her chin methodically. "That, my dear, is a good question. I'm far too sexy and amazing to not be loved. I suppose if there was ever a fool who didn't love me; it would be out of sheer jealousy and stupidity. Oh well, it's their loss. Personally, I think I'm awesome."

"I agree," I giggled.

"You're awesome too," Alice said, planting a kiss on my nose.

"Thank you."

"And you know what two awesome people like us can do?" Alice asked, lifting an eyebrow. I shook my head. "Well, we _could_ make out with each other. That's always nice. Or perhaps we could do something else, something a bit more…friskier…" She licked her lips seductively and leaned in to lightly nip my ear. "What do _you _think, my dear Bella?"

I shuddered. "Um…" Alice's tongue darted out and teased my ear, making me moan. Then she pulled away and giggled, pressing her lips to the top of my head.

"You're fun to play with," she giggled. Before I knew it, she had lifted me and set me back down, but was now standing in front of me, a smirk stretched out on her rose colored lips. "I'd love to stay and have fun, but we'll be getting ready for our big night in a few hours. So, I'll see you then, my little Belly-Button."

She winked at me, then she flitted off, leaving me staring after her, dumbfounded. It took a moment for me to process what had just happened. That conniving little…

"Bitch!" I snarled. "No foot massages for two months!"

I huffed, irritated. She was going to get it for that, damn right. I don't care if she gave me the super pout ten times over, I WOULD get her BACK. Now that I was annoyed, my good mood from earlier was gone and I got off the rock, storming up the house.

I didn't even spare a glance at anyone as I marched up the stairs and into our room.

"Jerk," I muttered under my breath before plopping down on the bed.

For the next few hours I laid on the bed, staring up at the ceiling, lost in thought. I ended up grabbing my iPod and my laptop and messing around with those to help pass the time. Not once did I see Alice and not once did anyone else come in. I figured that they were just giving me privacy, or they just didn't want to disturb me since I wasn't in the best of moods.

My annoyance with Alice dissipated, but I wasn't about to let her get away with teasing me.

Eventually I turned both appliances off since it was drawing nearer to when we would be leaving to go to prom. I had a funny feeling that my sisters would be coming up soon in order to help me get into my dress. I didn't see why they wanted to help; I knew how to put a dress on. I just wasn't accustomed to actually being in a dress for longer than a few seconds.

Low and behold, there was a knock on the door and both girls strutted in seconds later.

"Get up, lazy human," Rosalie crooned, practically pulling me to my feet. "We've got a lot of work to do before you'll be ready for prom. We need you looking your best, after all, not like some drab, boring little buzz-kill that doesn't give a fuck about looking good."

Amara snorted. "I wouldn't put it quite that way, Rose."

"Whatever, the point remains that we need to make her over," Rosalie stated. "Now sit your ass down over here so that I can get started."

She pointed to the chair in front of Alice's freakishly large mirror. I sighed and dutifully seated myself. I didn't mind Rosalie wanting to do my hair and makeup and whatnot. It wasn't a bother. I just didn't want her to fuss over it like I knew she would.

Rosalie stood behind me and ran her fingers through my hair, scanning it. After a moment she nodded to herself and vanished, reappearing seconds after with a can of hairspray, a brush and some other supplies that I didn't even bother looking at. Rosalie didn't even speak when she started to brush my hair and spray it.

I don't know how long Rosalie spent on my hair alone. It felt like hours. When she was done she began working on my makeup, applying various shades of colors to see what worked best with my skin color and eyes. She decided after a few combinations and smiled smugly as she applied her chosen colors, not allowing me to look at myself. Lipstick, eyeliner, nail polish and even toenail polish was administered by my blonde sister until she stopped completely.

She stared at me with pursed lips for a few minutes before nodding. "Sexy," she said at last, her lips curling into a wide grin. "You look _very _sexy."

"I agree," Amara added. I'd almost forgotten about the tall redhead looming to the side, watching on as Rosalie performed her procedure. "Let's get that dress of hers on next, Rose. Then Esme wants to see her for some final touchups."

"Can I see myself?" I asked.

"No," Rosalie replied. "Not until we're done with you, Belly-Button."

I rolled my eyes. "Fine," I groaned.

Amara snickered. "She totally loves our nickname." Rosalie grinned and nodded. "Anyways, I'll go and fetch your dress from Esme. Be back in a sec." She vanished out the door, leaving just Rose and I. Rosalie gave me another onceover, admiring her work once more.

"Can't Alice see this?" I asked.

"I would kick the shit out of her if she did," Rosalie shrugged. "Besides, the boys are with her to ensure that that little stinker doesn't look into the future. She may have promised that she wouldn't, but she stinks at keeping her word when it comes to her gift. And if you were thinking of asking about_ her_ dress, you'll have to wait and see. I'm not telling."

Amara reappeared with my dress in her hands, looking at it curiously. "This is the dress that you ended up going with, huh?" she asked.

I nodded. "Esme and I both agreed that it worked well with me."

"That'll do nicely," Rosalie said, taking the dress from Amara. She turned to me. "Off with your clothes, Bella. Let's get this on."

"Er…you want me to undress, right here?" I felt my face start to heat up in embarrassment. They wanted me, the human, undressing in front of two demi-Goddesses like themselves? There was no way in hell that I wouldn't feel inferior in their midst.

They both stared blankly at me. "Bella, we're all women here," Amara pointed out. "It's not like we've never seen naked girls. I have frequently, if you recall. So has Rosalie, though she'll never admit to it because she's a total hard-ass."

Rosalie snorted. "My ass is amazing, Amara. But never mind that. YOU, strip, now."

Blushing embarrassedly, I sighed and reluctantly removed my clothes, being careful not to mess my hair up at all for fear of pissing Rosalie off. Rosalie and Amara both helped me undress, to my surprise, and once I was done they helped me get the dress on. When I was fully dressed, the girls started looking over it and muttering to one another.

Rosalie disappeared for a few, bringing a pair of shoes that I'd never seen before with her when she returned and dropping down to my feet. I wondered why she hadn't brought me socks, but then I noticed the kind of shoes they were and remembered Alice. She smirked at my startled expression and slipped each shoe on, more gently than I'd have expected for her. Rosalie must've noticed the look I was giving her because she lifted a delicate eyebrow questioningly at me when she'd finished.

"What's that look for?" she asked.

I bit my lip. "You're just being…gentle."

"And? You're my sister and a human; I have to make sure that I'm gentle with you," Rosalie replied, shrugging. "Besides, we both know that Alice would kill me if I ever hurt you and I'd rather not have that happen. And it's not like I don't care about you or anything. Not that I_ like_ you, though, so don't get that idea in your head either."

I smiled warmly at her while Amara situated my dress. "I love you, Rose."

Rosalie whipped her head up, sputtering. "I…y-you…er…" She didn't seem to be able to find the right words to use, just staring at me. Amara snickered behind me, which was apparently enough to get my awestruck sibling to react at last. "I…I love you too, Bella."

Her voice was but a whisper, but I could see the meaning in her eyes. Rosalie started looking nervous and licked her lips as she returned her attention to my shoes, which were already taken care of. I couldn't help smiling wider and I could feel Amara doing the same, clearly amused.

"That's the _second_ time you've reduced Rosalie to a blithering idiot," Amara chortled.

Rosalie glared at Amara. "Shut up, you long-legged freak."

The two girls bickered until they'd completed fixing my outfit up completely. Amara slipped on my Cullen bracelet, which I'd been forced to remove for whatever reason, and Rosalie put Alice's necklace back around my neck. I stared down at my wardrobe, then looked at my two sisters as they appraised me with wonderment in their eyes.

"Can I see myself now?" I asked.

Rosalie silently turned me towards the mirror. And once again, as it seemed to do just about every day of my life when it came to my vampire family, my jaw dropped.

**A/N: Hey. Sorry about the delay and for once, I didn't intend for there to be a cliffhanger to this. Let me explain. I started writing this up as one big epilogue, but the problem is that it was getting a little too long in length and they hadn't even gotten to prom yet. So, yeah, I decided to cut it in half, so this bit is like the first half and it is now a chapter (you get an extra chapter, lucky you! :P) and the other half gets extended and becomes the epilogue. Who knows, it might end up being long in the end anyways.**

**So yeah. The end is pretty much closing in. A couple of notes.**

**First off, there will be not one, but FIVE different parts to the epilogue, each a different chapter in someone else's viewpoint. I intended to be evil and make you all think that Bella's was the final chapter and then be all "SURPRISE!" when I finished the next one, but I have decided to be nice and let you all know beforehand. That way, you won't think that it's all over and be depressed when there's still a bit more to come. Be thankful. ;)**

**Nextly (that's not even a word), I am still taking ideas or requests for a oneshot or multishot for the "Outtakes", if you will, of Blood Solstice once it is done as a whole. I'm also considering maybe doing a bonus chapter or two in another character's viewpoint (greedy!), so we'll see.**

**And...yeah, you know, *insert tumblr plug*, *insert Twitter plug*, *insert audiobook plug*. Say, do I have any male readers out there with a mic? Because there are male characters that need voicing in Alexandria1's audiobook. No, I ain't dropping it, you'll see this in my notes until the bitter end. Cuz I'm stubborn like that. :P**

**Anyways. Again, apologies for the cliffhanger and I will see you whenever I manage to finish this next chapter.**

**Off-topic (I seem to do that a lot) note. Who among you would like to see an Alice/Amara/Bella story once this is completely finished and Broken Aurora gets some long overdue love? It would be an actual story with plot, characterization, weirdness and other stuff of that nature (what you should come to expect from me, honestly, though there may not be a randomly inserted foot fetish on Alice in this incarnation, I dunno) and YES, a bit of smut. If you would like to see that, please say "yes" in a review. That is all. :D**

**Alright, no more random remarks. I will see ya'll whenever I get around to it. Ciao. **


	78. Epilogue: Bliss

**Disclaimer: I don't own Twilight, Stephanie Meyer does. I own my characters and ideas and that's it. **

**Epilogue: Bliss**

I stared back at my own reflection in shock.

I barely recognized myself. With the hair, the makeup and all the other alterations that my sisters had made set, for a few seconds I thought I was staring at someone else's reflection and not my own. Rose and Amara came to stand by me, Rose to my right, Amara to my left. They both looked pleased as they admired my new form and I couldn't help but feel the same way. I looked…good, for once in my life.

"You look fucking hot," Amara crooned. "Nice job, Rose."

"I can't take all the credit," Rosalie murmured. "Bella lives up to her namesake naturally, even if she doesn't believe it." She rested her hand on my shoulder. "Truly, you are more beautiful than even I am, Bella. When you become a vampire, your beauty will likely be one of the traits you take with you. Of this, I am sure."

"Thank you," I whispered, still astonished. "Both of you."

"Just a moment," Rosalie said. "I have something for you. Cover your eyes."

I did as she asked and waited until I felt her take one hand and put something in it. When I pulled my other hand away, I was shocked to see a pair of earrings in my palm. They were gorgeous silver earrings with blue roses on the end. I could tell that they were finely made and if I didn't know any better, it was _actual_ silver. I stared down at them and gaped.

"These are…"

"They were a gift for me, many, many years ago," Rosalie murmured. "These are the remnants of my human life, something that I've never told or shown anybody before." Rosalie placed her hands on top of mine, smiling softly at me. "I want you to have these, Bella. You can have more of a use for them than I can. Don't you dare say no, either, because I won't accept it."

I stared at her. I didn't know what to say. Rosalie smiled and closed my opened jaw.

"Here, let me put them on," she said. Before I knew it, she had speedily replaced the earrings I had been wearing with hers. "There." Her smile widened and radiated with actual happiness and warmth, which made me gape in awe. Her smile was one of the most beautiful that I'd ever seen in my entire life. Now_ I_ was the awestruck one. "Perfect."

My body decided to react before my brain did. I flung my arms around Rosalie and hugged her as tightly as my body could and surprisingly enough, Rosalie hugged me back. Amara made a playful "aw" and clasped her hands together as Rosalie kissed my forehead.

"You are a wonderful person," Rosalie said in my ear. "Better than I. But I think, if I try enough, I might be able to learn from you." She pulled away and planted another kiss on my cheek before playfully tapping my nose. "So don't ever say that your bitchy sister never did anything for you."

I heard a clicking sound and saw a brief flash and turned to see Amara with a camera in her hands, a sheepish grin etched on her face.

"Sorry, but I totally needed to capture that on camera," she said.

Rosalie growled. "Damn it, Amara!"

Amara smirked and dashed out of the room with Rosalie right on her heels. I couldn't help the smile that formed, but I discarded it and turned to look back at my reflection.

I have to admit. I look _good_.

"Bella?" A musical voice broke my attention. Esme. "May I come in?"

"Yes," I replied, spinning myself around.

Esme walked in with her usual loving smile, which grew with each step that she took toward me until she was standing right in front of me. I smiled back at her as she wrapped me into her traditional Esme hug, which I always loved.

"You look stunning," Esme said, beaming. "Beautiful beyond belief."

I bowed my head and felt my cheeks heat up again. I was probably redder than a tomato from all the praise that I was getting. I just wasn't used to that sort of thing, even with Alice constantly telling me how beautiful I was. Even stranger was that I was beginning to actually think that myself, which kind of worried me. I didn't want to be Rosalie junior, after all.

"Thank you, Esme," I replied sheepishly.

She giggled and cupped my cheeks. "Oh, stop being so modest. You're a gorgeous young woman and Alice will be slobbering all over you. Well, maybe not all over you, but she'll be drooling pretty badly when she gets a load of you, especially your shoes."

I giggled. I could just imagine Alice's reaction to my shoes.

"Hm," Esme pursed her lips. "I love the earrings." She playfully batted one. "I think you've got just about everything you need. But I would like to make one final addition to your outfit, if that's alright you, my dear."

"Of course, Esme," I replied.

Esme took my right hand in hers and reached into her pocket. She pulled out a very beautiful, old looking ring and slipped it onto the ring finger of my right hand before releasing my hand and smiling pleasantly at me. I stared down at the ring, marveling at it. But then I realized that Esme was giving me something that was likely of value to her. I couldn't do that.

"No, Esme. I can't. It's yours—"

She shushed me by gently placing a finger to my lips. "None of that, Bella. I happen to give all of my children a personal belonging of mine at some point in time, to show how much they mean to me. I've given both Rosalie and Carlisle a necklace, Alice a bracelet, Amara and Jasper a ring, Emmett a wristwatch and Edward a book. And now I'm giving you a ring of your own."

"But Esme," I sighed. "Then I feel bad."

"Oh posh, there's no reason for that. I want you to have this. This is a gift from me to my beloved daughter who I want to be truly happy with her life under my roof. I should warn you, though. If you and Alice ever try to move out, I'll beat your asses into the ground and drag both of you back by your hair." She winked. "I don't think either of you could leave, though."

"Never," I said, appalled. "I love it here too much and I'd miss everybody."

"Well good." Esme put her hands on her hips. "I do believe that you are now ready. And if I were to hazard a guess, I'd say that Alice and the others are ready too."

She wrapped her arm around me and together we walked out of the room and started downstairs.

"They finished that quickly?" I inquired. _Well duh, they're vampires!_

Esme chuckled. "They're quite fast. The only thing is that it takes decades for Rosalie and Alice to put their makeup on. They're both very vain, so it's a very long process. That's why I've made a rule about makeup and told them that if they didn't speed it up, I'd burn their makeup in front of them while they were forced to watch. Let's just say that did the trick, shall we?"

"Damn, Esme. You're a badass," I whispered, amazed.

"That I am," she sang. "But let's not get into that now."

We were now standing in the living room. Carlisle was standing near the couch wearing a very snazzy suit, smiling warmly at the both of us. He walked over and looped the fingers of his right hand around Esme's left and reached over to tenderly squeeze my shoulder.

"You look wonderful, Bella," Carlisle said.

"Thank you, Carlisle," I replied shyly.

The sound of heavy footsteps echoed throughout the house. The three of us turned to see Rosalie, Emmett, Jasper and Amara, all dressed up, walking down in pairs with their partner. Rosalie was wearing an elegant red dress, Amara a very stylish black dress and both boys were wearing very good looking suits. For once, I could actually call Emmett handsome. Not to his face, though.

"Damn, Bells, you look hot," Emmett boomed, grinning at me.

"That she does," Rosalie agreed.

Amara rolled her eyes. "That's only because you worked on her."

"She does look good," Jasper agreed, smiling politely. "Very good."

"Thanks guys. You look fantastic yourselves." I studied each of them and admired them all for their beauty and charm. I tried not to feel jealous because I knew Jasper would sense it, but it was impossible to feel when I was surrounded by so many gorgeous people.

Jasper smirked. "There's no reason for you to be jealous, Bella."

I bit my lip. "I can't help it. I'm surrounded by beautiful people. And I'm—"

"—the most beautiful person in this house," sang a sweet voice.

My heart fluttered as Alice gracefully strode down the stairs, spinning like a ballerina until she was standing right in front of me. I do believe that my jaw may have been unhinged from dropping so low at the sight of my beautiful Alice in her elegant yellow dress. It wrapped around her body perfectly and, in my eyes, she appeared more angel than anything. I could hardly believe my eyes as I stared at her. But that was when I noticed something.

There was something different about her. She was…taller?

I did a double take when I realized that Alice was now taller than I was. It took me a moment to use my brain and look down. She was wearing a pair of rather spiffy looking heels with small silver flowers on them. Alice cleared her throat, grabbing my attention.

Her eyes were wide and shining as she appraised me. She slowly scanned me from head to toe looking as she had just laid eyes on the sun for the first time in her life. Her lips moved in silence as she took my appearance in.

"You look…" Alice bit her lip and closed the gap between us, pressing her lips to mine. It was a quick yet tender kiss, but her love was poured into it. When she broke away, she cupped my cheeks and gazed longingly into my eyes. "I can't even begin to describe how beautiful you truly are, Bella. I really have to hand it to my sister for helping bring out your true beauty."

Rosalie bowed. "Yes, yes, I am amazing, I know."

Everyone rolled their eyes, save for me. My brain wasn't quite working yet. It was still taking in the Goddess in front of me without trying to melt. That in itself was nearly impossible.

"You're wearing heels," I murmured. That was the only thing that I could say.

Alice giggled. "Yeah, I've had these old things for a long time now and I've always wanted an excuse to wear them. So what better time than to prom with my angel, don't you agree?" I nodded silently. "Besides, I've always wanted to be taller and this gives me the chance to be the tall one in the relationship for once, which fits better in my opinion."

"Uh huh." Alice giggled again and brushed her lips against mine, which seemed to kick my brain into working right again. It was funny how her touch seemed to be medicine for just about any ailment I'd ever had in her presence. I bet if it were possible to somehow bottle that up, she'd be curing thousands across the world daily. "You look heavenly, Alice…"

She beamed at me. "Why thank you, my love. Even I cannot hold a candle to you, though."

Esme clapped her hands. "Now that everyone is down here, let's get some pictures for Bella's memory book, shall we? Amara, where's the camera at?"

Amara went to grab the camera as everyone started talking. I zoned out, focusing solely on Alice and her radiance, and it looked like she was doing the same to me. We just gazed at each other's forms until Esme gently moved us over and positioned us so that we were standing together.

"Bella, Alice, I'd like to get a photo of you," Esme said, clearing her throat. Alice lightly nudged me and pulled me in close. We both smiled at the camera as Esme grinned and snapped our photo, squealing delightfully afterwards. "Oh, I can't wait to start putting these together! Now everyone else get in with them!"

Seven more pictures later, Esme put her camera away and hugged each of us, saving me for last since she knew how much I loved her hugs and always liked to give me the longest one. To be honest, I kind of thought that some of the others were jealous of it, but none of them ever said anything. I giggled at the thought and kissed her cheek in thanks for the ring again.

"Oh, I wish I could be there," Esme sighed.

Carlisle wrapped his arm around her. "Don't worry honey, there will be other chances."

"Like when we get married again!" Emmett boomed. I furrowed my brow. Again?

"They get married every ten or so years because they like being the center of attention and wasting our money for no reason," Edward said as he strutted into the room. He wasn't wearing a suit because he wasn't going. And it showed, too, especially when Emmett scowled at him.

"That's not completely true," Rosalie said, scowling as well.

Edward snorted. "It is true and you both know it. Honestly, you need to stop getting married so many times. There's no need for it. The others have only gotten married once and they're all content with one time. I only hope that when Alice and Bella marry that they aren't the same way that you two fools are. That'd be an even bigger pain."

I did a brief double take at the word "marriage", but I pushed it aside. There wasn't a need to think about that right now.

"What'll you be doing, Edward?" I asked.

He leaned against the couch. "I'm actually going to head out of town for a few days. I'll be back on Sunday night, most likely. I wanted to see everyone off tonight before I left, hence why I'm here. That and I wanted to rub my freedom in my brothers' faces." He grinned at Emmett, who growled at him in return. "That's not very nice, Emmett."

"It is and you know it," Emmett grumbled.

Rosalie patted her mate's shoulder. "Leave it be, Em. Once Eddie gets himself a girl, he'll be forced into going to prom just like you are. And besides, why are you even complaining when you like dancing with me? I don't get it."

"I hate wearing a suit," he grumbled, staring down at his attire. "I feel like I'm wearing a monkey suit with a tie."

"That's funny considering the fact that you _are_ an overgrown monkey, Em," Amara snickered.

Rosalie scoffed. "Don't even start with me on that, Amara."

"Can we not get into this?" Alice interrupted. "I would really like to leave so that I can dance with my beautiful girlfriend, if you don't mind."

"Yes, no fighting girls, it's time that you get over there and steal the spotlight," Esme said, trying to keep a serious face. She was able to for the most part, but after the silence that followed she cracked and started laughing, Carlisle quietly chuckling next to her.

"I guess so," Rosalie grumbled. She gave Amara a warning look. "I'm sure as hell not done with you, fire-crotch, you hear me? Once prom is over with, I challenge you to a best of three wrestling competition out back. Do you accept?"

"Hell yeah," Amara crooned. "What happens if I win, though?"

"We'll discuss that later," Rosalie replied, wrapping her arm around Emmett. "Right now, we should leave before Alice rips us into shreds." She shot Alice a look. "It's not like you and Bella can't just leave before we do, shrimp. I don't see why you insist on waiting."

"Because it's proper to," Alice replied, puffing out her bottom lip. "So, if you bimbos are done playing around with each other, I suggest we go. _Now_." She tapped her foot impatiently and glared at her siblings for keeping her waiting. I just stood there silently. It was not wise to get Alice angry, especially when it came to spending time with me.

The others didn't put up a fight about it. They merely nodded and walked out the door.

Alice laced her fingers around mine. "You really do look stunning, Bella. You'll be the star of the dance tonight; I can assure you of that." I nodded, still feeling the effects of her beauty and the nervousness about screwing up. Alice, noticing this, turned to face me and frowned.

"What?" I asked, confused.

"Would you please mind telling me what's wrong?" Her tone was soft and concerned as she spoke, despite the obvious "I want to go to the dance with you already!" look on her face.

"I just…" I hesitated.

Alice came up to me and cupped my cheeks. I had to stop myself from looking down more since the heels made Alice an inch taller than me, which would definitely take some getting used to.

"Tell me," she breathed, letting her sweet, icy breath blow into my face.

"I don't want to mess this up, Alice. And I'm nervous. We're the only gay couple in all of Forks, for crying out loud. I'm honestly surprised that they didn't try to keep us from going to prom or something like that. I know this is important to you and I don't want to sound selfish, but it's just bugging me, you know? Maybe I'm overreacting about it…"

Alice rolled her eyes. "First off, yes, you're overreacting. Secondly, fuck them. I don't care what those other fuckwads think, if they don't like us being lesbians they can take a hike. You don't have to worry about it, Bells. You've got me and your siblings there and you know damn well that we'll protect you. Besides, the school owes us. They won't start anything."

I sighed. "You're right. I'm—"

She hushed me with a kiss. "Bella, I do believe you apologize far too much and it's beginning to get a little annoying. You don't need to apologize. Now let's get our asses outside and over to the school so we can tear up the dance floor and show them just how awesome we are together."

"You're right," I replied, smiling. "Oh, can I talk to Edward real quick? I'll be just a few seconds and then I'll be out there, I promise." She nodded and kissed my cheek before flitting over to the doorway. "Oh, and Alice?" She turned and smiled. "No cheating and looking to see what I want to say to him, okay? It's no big deal, but I know how you are sometimes."

Alice scoffed at me. "Just go and talk to him. Sheesh!"

I giggled until she departed. Once she was gone, I turned to face Edward, who appeared from the piano room with an eyebrow arched at me.

"Something I can help you with?" he asked.

I nodded. "I wanted to ask what you did the with the video camera…"

"Oh, that." He cocked his head to the side. "I took the tape out from it and put it up in our attic until you decided you wanted to watch it. Then I destroyed the camera. Don't worry, I didn't watch the tape beforehand and I don't intend to. I must express my curiosity as to what's on it, though, because I've heard some of your thoughts about it. I must say, I'm interested."

"It's private," I whispered.

He narrowed his eyes. "You do remember that I read minds, yes? That means that when it comes to privacy, there's no better person to trust than I. Well, there's that and the fact that I'll end up getting it out of you one way or another, even if I didn't mean to."

I cursed in the back of my head. Bastard. He was right, though. He would find out eventually because I knew I wouldn't be able to not think about it. Damn!

"You promise you won't tell Alice?" I asked, giving him a serious look. "She can't know."

Edward nodded curtly. "Of course I do, Bella. I may not look it, but I'm quite good at keeping secrets when I'm needed."

I sighed. _Fine!_ I snapped in my head. _I'll tell you. Before you guys got there to save me, James started talking about his past while he was filming. Back when we were in the woods the first time when he and Victoria tried to get me, he said that he knew Alice somehow, so I got him talking about it. He revealed how he knew her and it's on that tape. I want to use that and see if what he said was true or not. That's all I'm saying. _

"I see," he murmured, pursing his lips. "Now I understand why it's so important to you." He tapped his chin in thought and appraised me with placid eyes. "I must say, that's awful thoughtful of you to do, Bella. I know that it would mean more to Alice than anything else if you were to do that for her."

"I know, that's why I want to do it. I'll try and plan out when," I said. "I'd need everyone to keep her preoccupied, though, so that she wouldn't look into the future and find out."

"It would still be difficult," Edward mused. "She's tricky. She knows how to bypass both Jasper and myself and yet somehow manage to use her gift. You would need to be able to work on making snap decisions or changing your mind rapidly in order to fool her. If anything, it'd give her a headache and she'd quit trying to see."

I furrowed my brow. "Vampires get headaches?"

He smiled wryly. "Not the normal ones."

"Huh?"

"It's nothing," he chuckled. "An inside joke of sorts that Alice, Jasper and I know. I'm sure she'll explain it to you at some point in time. Right now, I would suggest you hurry on outside before your mate's impatience causes her to drag you off. I can hear her thoughts from here and she isn't in the happiest of moods right now."

I rolled my eyes. "Yeah, yeah, I know. Say, can I ask you one more thing?"

"Would me saying no stop you from asking regardless?" he inquired.

"Probably not," I admitted, smirking.

"Typical," he groaned. "Well, come on, let's hear it."

"Are you and Sarah together?" I asked quietly, cocking my head to the side. "The truth."

Edward pinched the bridge of his nose. "No. We aren't. We are not mates. Trust me; you would know if we were, Bella. Besides, I haven't seen her since she left a week ago."

I held my hands up. "No need to get snappy, I was just checking."

"Whatever," he grunted. "Go have fun at the dance."

I rolled my eyes and speedily walked off, knowing that Alice was likely waiting for me. And she was indeed, waiting with her foot tapping and her arms crossed, scowling. Once she saw me she appeared in front of me and scooped me into her arms without a word before running to Emmett's waiting jeep. I didn't really see much because one second she was running towards the jeep and the next we were inside, Alice sitting down with me on her lap.

"It's about time!" Emmett complained, revving his jeep up.

Rosalie turned around from her seat and glared playfully at me. "How dare you make us wait for you like that? Who do you think you are, Belly-Button? The Queen of the Cullen house?"

"That would be Esme," I replied, smiling at my blonde sister.

"She's right," Jasper chuckled.

"Well then I'm the…beta Queen," Rosalie said, scowling.

Everyone laughed at Rosalie's humorous title and the face she made. Rosalie glared at all of us at first, but she ended up caving and chuckled herself. The atmosphere in the jeep was a happy one as Emmett sped down the road. Several minutes later he drove into the school parking lot and parked in our usual place—I swear it was like a reserved parking spot made just for us—before everyone got out, Alice still holding me in her arms as she did.

Only when we were outside did she set me down on the ground.

"There. Now we can go and dance with each other," Alice cooed, kissing my cheek. "Oh Bella, you have no idea how much I look forward to showing off my wonderful, beautiful mate tonight in front of those other arrogant humans. I've wanted this for years now."

I wrapped my arms around her and hugged her tightly. "Let's go," I whispered into her ear.

Alice squealed excitedly. "Yes, yes, yes!"

"Let's show these simpletons what style is about," Rosalie crooned.

"Damn right!" Emmett boomed.

Together we all walked towards the gym, where the prom was being held. Rosalie and Emmett led the way with their arms linked, followed by Jasper and Amara and then Alice and myself in the back. I felt weird being shorter than Alice for once and I couldn't help glancing at her every few seconds, telling myself that I hadn't shrank and that she was merely wearing heels.

"Why _are_ you wearing heels?" I inquired as we neared the gym.

Alice giggled. "Like I said, I wanted to be the tall one for once. To be brutally honest with you, I feel better being taller than you, Bella. It feels more…natural to me."

"You're still short, though!" Emmett laughed.

Alice growled. "Shut up you overgrown ape or I'll castrate you."

"Family outings are so much fun," Amara snickered.

By then, we were at the doors to the gym. Emmett walked over to the two chaperones near the entrance to hand them the tickets to get into the prom, and then we all walked in two at a time. I took a deep breath as Alice and I made our way inside and was actually surprised by the amount of effort that the school had made to make the gym look_ nice_ for a change.

Alice scoffed. "These decorations stink. I could've done a _much_ better job with them."

True as that it was, it still didn't look as bad as I thought it would. Our siblings all walked off in different directions, finding a spot to dance as the music blared from all the speakers. The song they were playing sounded alright, but I was too caught up in looking around to dance right off the bat. Alice didn't seem to mind, though I could feel her inching me forward.

I saw a lot of familiar faces, some good, some bad. I caught sight of my friends, Angela, Ben, Katie and Eric, all dancing near the center. It was kind of funny seeing as how Ben was five inches shorter than Angela was, yet they were dancing rather well. I also saw Lauren looming near the drink table next to Tyler. And to my surprise, Jessica was here too.

Alice nudged me. "C'mon Bella, the song is about to finish. The next one's a good dancing song, so get ready to shake that hot ass of yours."

I nodded silently and allowed her to pull me into the very center of the dance floor, the one area where no one else was. I could already feel the eyes of half the room on us, most glares of disdain at the fact that the two lesbians were here to dance. I knew this because of the whispers and mutters that I could hear coming from around me.

"Fuck them," Alice whispered into my ear. "Focus on me and me alone."

She pulled me in close and placed her hands against mine, looping the fingers. I swallowed the lump in my throat and nervously waited for the song to end. Alice gave me a reassuring smile and planted a kiss on my left cheek, her golden orbs smoldering.

"Just relax," Alice murmured, moving her left arm to my waist. The song that everyone was currently dancing too ended. I could feel my heart racing in my chest as Alice rubbed her cheek against mine soothingly. "Trust in my strength, Bella. I won't let anything bad happen to you."

I gulped. "A-alright, Alice," I stammered.

The next song began and Alice started to slowly move. I stared into her eyes and before I knew it, I felt my legs beginning to move as well. I wasn't even paying attention to what my legs where doing, all I paid attention to was Alice. Her eyes could illuminate the whole room if it were possible, I swear. They were so beautiful…

Alice smiled as we both continued to move in sync with the music. I wasn't even paying attention to the lyrics of the song as Alice swayed. I felt as if she were pulling me along with her with every step that she took, like I was magnetically compelled to do what she did. But then I realized that I wasn't even the one moving my body, she was. She had complete control.

"Wow," I breathed.

"What?" she asked, smiling.

"Are you doing this?" I whispered.

Alice leaned in closer, brushing her lips against mine. "Yes. I told you that I'd help you out."

"Oh."

Alice lifted up our linked hands and spun me around, which startled me. I nearly fell backwards, but she immediately pulled me into her arms. I relaxed into her body and sighed, nuzzling into her neck. Her sweet chocolaty sent filtered into my nostrils, easing me like it always did.

"I stink at dancing," I grumbled.

"No, you don't," Alice disagreed. "You just stink at keeping your balance."

Her cool hands re-situated me, her body never once ceasing to move. She placed her hands on my hips and started to move my body so that it was moving just like hers. I frowned at first because I didn't think that would work, but since she didn't bother stopping, I gave in and decided to actually try to dance myself using her lead.

Alice beamed when she saw that I was actually going to try to dance. She positioned our hands the way they had been previously and started to move around. I concentrated on keeping my balance and followed her wherever she moved. She swayed, I swayed, she moved her arms, I moved my arms. I refused to let my clumsiness ruin this night. This was her night.

Our movements began to pick up as the song changed into a new one, a more dance-centric one.

"That's good, Bella," Alice told me. "Keep it up."

I smiled. I was starting to get the hang of this.

We moved in every direction; left, right, up, down…everywhere. Alice twirled around, her smile growing with every passing minute as my heart pounded in my chest and I kept in rhythm with her, which amazed me. I noticed something else, however, as we danced. We'd been dancing in the very middle of the gym, the place where usually people avoided.

It wasn't like that anymore. We were surrounded by other students, including our siblings and my friends, who danced around us as though we were the center of attention. I noticed that all the students and chaperones were watching us. They weren't glaring or looking on with disgust, though, but instead their eyes held wonder and awe. Was I imagining that?

Alice giggled as she lifted me and spun me in the air. "What are you thinking?"

I let out a sharp breath when she set me down. "Everyone's staring at us," I whispered.

"Yes, they are," Alice said. "They're completely transfixed by how beautiful you are and how graceful the two of us are together. That's why we're in the center and why everyone is surrounding the two of us; we're the life of the prom, like I knew we would be."

"Are you sure?"

She leaned in close, her breath against my face. "Just dance with me."

I shuddered and nodded dumbly, silencing myself as we continued to dance. After a while, I started to ignore the other people around me. I forgot about their staring and made sure to erase all thoughts save for my girlfriend from my head. Soon enough, I was dancing like I'd never danced before in my entire life. And strangely, I was having fun.

I couldn't believe that I, clumsy Bella, was having fun at a dance.

Feeling the spur of the moment overwhelm me, I decided to be gutsy and went to spin myself the way that Alice did, but without Alice's help to do it. I bit my lip and braced myself, then went for it, imagining Alice doing it inside of my head for reference. Shockingly, I pulled it off perfectly and even managed to kiss Alice's cheek on the way back.

"Good!" Alice cheered, mimicking my movement. "That was wonderful, Bella. You see, I knew that you'd have fun here." I couldn't help but smile in agreement at her. Alice smirked. "Like I've said a thousand times over, I'm never wrong. You should be thankful you didn't bet on that when I told you, otherwise you would've ended up regretting it."

"I'm pretty sure that it's safe to say that no one should ever bet against you, Alice," I giggled.

She beamed. "Oh how right you are, my love."

We danced with each other throughout the night. Towards the end of prom Alice and I literally stole the dance floor away from the other students, who opted to surround us and cheer us on. I caught sight of my friends, including Lauren, Tyler, Jessica and even Mike, smiling and clapping for Alice and I. Even the students that usually glared at us or jeered us were clapping.

In the end, Alice and I both bowed to our audience. I was blushing like mad, but that alone wasn't enough to wipe the giant smile on my face. I'd never thought I could enjoy myself the way that I had from _dancing _of all things.

Afterwards, when some of the students started to leave, my friends came up to me.

"Bella!" Katie shouted, hugging me .I happily hugged her back and smiled at her when she pulled away. "Damn girl, you look sexy. I love the dress. You look hot too, Alice. You both completely wiped the floor with the rest of us."

"Nice moves," Eric complimented, grinning. "Could've used some more lip locking, though."

I rolled my eyes. "I had a feeling you'd say that, Eric. I'm sorry to say, but our "lip locking" is for our time and pleasure only."

He shrugged innocently. "Darn. It was worth a shot."

Angela moved past him and hugged me, Alice too. "You both look gorgeous."

Ben, who was looming behind her, waved. "I agree."

Alice wrapped her arm around me and pulled me in close.

"Did you enjoy prom tonight?" she asked the others.

"We did," Angela replied, smiling at Ben. "Ben proved that just because he's shorter than I am doesn't mean that we can't dance well together."

He rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly. "Yeah, I guess."

Eric and Katie both laughed. Angela merely sighed and kissed Ben on the forehead, which made him turn as red as I usually did. I giggled; somewhat relieved that I wasn't the only one who turned red from embarrassment. Ben and Angela talked with us for a few minutes before they had to leave since they'd made dinner reservations at a fancy restaurant.

Once they'd left, I was greeted by Lauren, who came over to me shyly and hugged me.

"Hey Bella," she said, smiling softly. "Hello Alice."

"Lauren," Alice greeted, pulling me as close to her as she could, almost protectively.

I noticed that both Katie and Eric had their jaws hanging open in surprise. A lot of the remaining students did as well. Apparently they had never expected Forks High's top girl to ever be nice to the two lesbians, but things were different now. Lauren was different.

"I can't even begin to describe how awesome you both were," she gushed. "And your dresses are fucking awesome. Where'd you get these at?" She looked at each of us and shook her head in disbelief and amazement. "Man, I really need to come to you girls for makeover advice. Not to mention whoever did your hair, Bella. It's fantastic!"

I blushed. "Thank you, Lauren. Honestly, I owe my thanks to my sisters and my mother."

"It must run in the family," she whispered, shaking her head. "But yeah, you danced great."

"Thank you, Lauren," Alice murmured. _That _was surprising. "I hate to do this to you all, but Bella and I actually have some plans of our own. Thank you for the compliments, though."

Lauren nodded in understanding. "No problem. Jessica says hi by the way. Anyways, I'll leave you two to your night. See ya."

She skittered off, running up to where Tyler was before embracing him. They departed shortly after and Katie and Eric were soon to follow, bidding us goodbye quietly, the shock of Lauren's sudden kindness taking them by surprise. I turned and leaned into Alice's body as she pressed her lips to mine, smiling against them as she did.

"What plans are you referring to?" I inquired. "Come to think of it, where'd the others go?"

"They left a while back," she replied, giggling. "Emmett and Rosalie are heading off for some of their "private time", if you catch my meaning. As for Amara and Jasper, I do believe tha they are going hunting together. What they have planned afterwards, I do not know. To your question, my dear Belly-Button, you and I are going to head out to our special place. I told you I had plans."

I nodded in understanding. "Hey! I thought that was Rose and Amara's nickname for me?"

She giggled. "So? I'm your mate; I have a right to steal it. You call my pixie feet, so it's only fair that I get to call you Belly-Button. Don't you agree?"

"I guess so," I sighed. "But…well, I do kind of like it…"

"Which is another reason why I'm going to use it," she cooed. "Let's get going, my love, while the night is still young."

I nodded and laced my fingers around hers. "Alright."

We walked out of the gym together, smiles on each of our faces.

Some time ago, I would have never thought that it was humanly possible for me to be in the position that I was in now. I had a family; a wonderful, loving mother and father and siblings that I loved and that loved me. I had friends, something I used to wish for. And most of all, I had someone that loved me more than the world and I loved the same.

My world had gone from being dark and without hope to the exact opposite. Alice had saved me from my pain and turned my life around completely. She was my guardian angel. I didn't care if it was cliché like the stuff children read in storybooks, for me, it was the truth. Alice was my hero, my rescuer, my everything. And that was all there was to it.

I knew that things weren't always going to be perfect. There were a lot of problems on the horizon that could come at us at any given moment. There was going to be a lot of craziness and a lot of things that would put me in harm's way, I had no doubt of that. But I accepted that it would be something that I'd need to deal with, seeing as how I was a human living with a family—my family—of vampires.

I would be stronger when those challenges came. I would learn about this gift that I apparently had, I would prepare myself for the transformation to come. I would fight and protect my Alice and my family from harm. I would do everything I could to not be weak and helpless.

And then, when the dust settled and all the challenges were behind us, Alice and I would have what it was that she had always wanted and what I wanted most.

A perfect forever. Bliss.

**A/N: ****First part of the epilogue is now complete. This isn't quite the end, my dear friends. There's still four more parts to go.**

**Expect a big author's note in the final chapter. I was going to say some things here, but I've decided that I'll just wait until the very end. It makes it more heartfelt that way.**

**Oh, and side note. I love that half of my comments from last chapter were you reviewers going "YES!" to the Alice/Amara/Bella story. :P I'm not complaining, I just find that it's pretty amusing. And to be honest, I'm kind of psyched that you all want to see it. Don't get your hopes up with the "ZOMG smut!" stuff. There will be smut in the story, yes, but that won't be the main focus. Just so you pervy readers all know. :D**

**Until next time. I hope you enjoyed this chapter.**


	79. Epilogue: Visions

**Disclaimer: I don't own the Twilight saga or any of its characters. I only own my own characters and ideas, that is all.**

**Epilogue: Visions**

**Alice's POV**

I vaguely remember what my world was like when I first awakened into my eternal life. I woke up in a forest, surrounded by sights and smells that I'd never experienced before. There was so much around me, so much to take in, it was maddening. I didn't understand any of it, either. I was lost in a world I knew nothing about.

Yet even then with all the colors in the world around me, my own world was dark.

Misery and loneliness became my companions for a good portion of my newborn life. I didn't know who I was or who I even used to be. Whenever I tried, I couldn't remember, not even the slightest bit. It depressed me. All that I had had was a single word, a name etched onto a band around my ankle. Alice. That was all I had and that became my sole possession. Back then, I believed that I would always be alone, without answers and without hope.

That changed as time went on. My visions were the start, showing me an alternative to taking the lives of innocent humans. Before then, I'd killed because I needed to, not caring what had happened to the weaker creatures. They had been my food and nothing more, but then I saw that they had families; loved ones, people that cared for them whether it was a mother or father, a spouse or children. They had love in some part of their life. Something I didn't have.

It made me feel empty inside, like there was some kind of void there. No matter how much blood I drank, the burn would disappear and the beast would be appeased, but the emptiness wouldn't go away, and it angered me. More than that, it hurt me.

Why did the humans have loved ones while I had no one? Did God hate me? Was I worthless?

I made a lot of mistakes back then. I joined others who said that they would be my friends, my family, claiming that I would find peace and happiness with them. I was so very foolish at that point in my life, blindly believing their lies. I ended up with a broken heart and my immortal life almost gone, but I'd managed to survive.

Then I met Jasper. I recall the vision I had of him one day when I was out hunting. I would have never guessed that meeting with the tall, polite blonde would begin a series of chain reactions that would ultimately end up bringing me my greatest joy.

Jasper was the first hint of light in my otherwise dreary world.

The bond that I formed with him helped fill in a piece of the emptiness inside of me. I'd never felt as good as I did when I was with him. At first, I wasn't sure if it was love that I was feeling or if he and I were just meant to be friends. It didn't take long for the answer to become obvious.

From that point on, I started to lose my depression and sorrow. My visions brought both Jasper and I to the Cullens, who would become the family that I'd wanted for what felt like ages. Esme and Carlisle became my parents, Emmett and Edward, along with Jasper, became my brothers and Rosalie—Amara soon after—became my sisters. I had a family, and for the first time in my immortal existence I felt complete. The emptiness was nearly gone. Nearly.

I spent years growing comfortable in my new life. I grew close to my family; I became more skilled at controlling both my bloodlust and my gift and I was able to find things to help take away the nagging feeling inside of me that I wasn't yet whole. The shopping, training, video games and the sex I had with Amara and Kate, all of that helped to push it aside.

It never went away though, not for the longest time. I didn't show it, though. I put on a happy face and danced around and cheered over getting out of the house to shop. As long as I was doing something to keep myself busy, I didn't have to worry about thinking.

That all changed when I had that vision, the vision that had color soaring through my world like brilliant fireworks; the day I saw my future, my Bella. I may not have seen it that day, but deep down inside I knew that she was meant for me and that I was meant for her. The only pain that my vision brought was that I would be forced to wait many years until I would find her. But I was determined to do so, and I let the thought of being complete help push me forward.

"Don't lose hope, Alice," Esme had told me.

"We're here for you one hundred percent," Carlisle had said.

My family's faith in me and my own stubbornness was the support that I needed and it worked.

And then finally, after years of waiting, watching and yearning, she came to me. I had found my missing piece at last and I couldn't have been happier. At least, that's how I felt until I met my Bella face to face for the first time. I hadn't expected to find out that my mate was a scarred, frightened young girl, tormented by cruel, heartless vampires and without any friends or family.

It broke my dead heart and I wished that I could wrap her into my arms and show her just how much I had been waiting for her. I couldn't, though, because I couldn't risk scaring her more than she already was. So despite the nagging feelings within me, I took things slow and made sure to go about getting closer to her the right way. I never once lost faith during that time, because I could see that she was being drawn to me and I to her. That proved we were mates.

I have never loathed myself as much as I did the day I tried to attack her. I felt so angry and disgusted with myself that I even considered ending my life that very second. Seeing Bella forgive me before I had the chance surprised me. I didn't understand why she'd been so forgiving, but she was, and in the end, we both admitted our feelings for the other.

It was a given that we would. And it was stupid of me to doubt myself like that. I still worried about how we would work our relationship out. She was a human and I was a vampire, which meant that there were going to be hardships. To be honest, I never expected the number of hardships that would come our way, from the mongrels to the bitchy humans at school to my own instincts that constantly took over my mind and body.

Yes, it was hard, harder than I imagined. But I'll be damned if it wasn't worth it in the end.

I still remembered the feelings that surged through my body when we had our first kiss, when she told me that she loved me, when I first saw her wonderful body naked…alright, I may have been out of line when I peeked, but damn it, she's too sexy for her own good. Besides, I admitted it to her that I did it and it wasn't so bad.

In the end, regardless of the pain, the worry, the fear, the anger, the loneliness...everything that I'd been through…it truly was worth it. I had my soulmate and for that, I thanked God, fate and any other mystical being of power or unexplainable phenomenon for bringing her to me. I loved her more than life itself and I knew that she loved me the same.

That, to me, was what mattered the most.

Currently Bella and I were at the house, cuddling with each other in our room. She was nestled up next to me, her head beneath my chin. We'd gone to our private spot and spent a few hours kissing, hugging, swimming in our heated pool and just holding each other while gazing at the stars. I'd enjoyed that, just as much as I'd enjoyed dancing with her at prom. I told her that it would be fun and I knew that she'd enjoyed herself more than she thought possible.

Now it was just us relaxing. Bella would be falling asleep soon, but she was stubbornly keeping herself awake so that she could spend more time with me. I wasn't complaining, of course.

"Alice?" she murmured, breaking the silence that had fallen between us.

"Yes, my love?" I asked, looking down at her beautiful face.

Her chocolate colored eyes glistened as she stared up at me with warmth. "I love you."

I beamed at her. "I love you too, Bella. More than you could possibly know."

"What do you want to do tomorrow?" she asked, shifting so that she was closer to me.

I giggled. I loved having her next to me like this. Her body was so warm and soft, which felt so odd yet so pleasant when it was next to mine. I could hear her heart beating softly in her chest, a musical sound that, combined with her rich, wonderful smell, soothed me. I brushed my nose against her brown locks and breathed in her floral scent, sighing contently.

"I don't know," I replied. "We can do whatever you'd like to do."

"Okay," she mumbled, sighing.

I frowned. "Is there something wrong?" I asked, absentmindedly starting to run the fingers of my left hand through her hair.

"No. I'm just thinking," she replied.

"Not too hard, I hope," I said, trying to sound serious.

Bella glared at me. "Shut up! Why does everyone have to keep making fun of me? I know I'm not the smartest person around, but I'm not _that_ stupid," she huffed, puffing out her bottom lip in the most adorable pout I'd ever seen on her.

"Aw!" I cooed, pulling her face to mine and connecting our lips. She didn't even bother to resist and moaned, deepening our kiss. I smiled against her lips, pleased that I was able to have that effect on her. Then again, I knew how much of an effect that she had on _me_, so I wasn't about to make a joke about it. The last thing I needed was to feel whipped, even though I knew I was.

We broke apart when Bella needed to catch her breath, which, to be brutally honest, was really starting to piss me off. I hated that we would start getting real passionate, but then we'd have to stop so that Bella could take in air. I didn't blame her, I blamed her stinking body.

"So what were you thinking about?" I inquired. I hadn't had any visions, so I didn't see whether or not she had decided on something or if she was just thinking about random things. Part of me hated not knowing what went on in my love's head. I didn't say anything about it because it would be rude to do so. I would just have to deal with it.

Her lips twitched as she thought about how to respond to me. Was it that big of a deal?

"It's nothing," she said at last, looking into my eyes. "You know how I am, I'm always thinking about random things without purpose." She shrugged nonchalantly. "In all seriousness, we should plan out what to do tomorrow. No more school, after all."

"Until Fall," I pointed out, though I wasn't the happiest to do so.

"Ugh. School stinks!" Bella complained. I nodded, agreeing completely. "Whatever, let's just not talk about it. I just want to focus on spending time with you and the rest of the family and my friends and that's it. No crappy school or any other annoying problem. How's that sound?"

"It sounds fine to me," I giggled, pressing my lips to her soft forehead.

She smiled a beautiful smile. "Any ideas, then?"

"Shopping?" I offered, giving her a hopeful smile.

Bella rolled her eyes. "You and your shopping obsession, Alice."

"What? It's an idea," I pointed out, pouting.

"Let's do something else for a change," she said, pursing her lips. "I kind of want to include our family in it, if at all possible. Or maybe just Amara, Rosalie and Esme, since Carlisle has his work and Jasper and Emmett can entertain themselves."

I took that into consideration and thought about different things that we girls could do.

"We _could_ do a fashion photoshoot," I suggested. "You'd get the chance to see all of us hot girls in sexy outfits. You could also take pictures and keep them in your little photo album. There's an idea that we haven't tried out, hm?"

Bella bit her lip and looked away, an adorable blush streaking across her face. I giggled and nearly cooed at how cute she looked, but I was able to hold it in, sparing her anymore embarrassment despite how fucking adorable she was. I wondered if she knew that I loved how shy and docile she was most of the time. It was like a weakness for me.

"Maybe," she murmured. I caught sight of her yawning, so I knew that she would be falling asleep soon. And as I knew, a few seconds later Bella stretched her arms upwards and let out a quiet yet cute—I'm not sure how, but to me, even her snore could be cute—yawn.

"Sounds like somebody is sleepy," I sang.

Bella looked at me lazily. "I wanted to stay up more…"

"Bella, sweetheart you need your rest," I said, resting my forehead against hers. "You can spend as much time with me as you want to tomorrow when you're awake, but right now your body needs its sleep. But I'm not going anywhere, I promise."

She sighed. "Alright, alright. I just wish that I didn't have to sleep. Then we could spend as much time together as we wanted to without any worries."

"Soon, my love," I whispered, brushing my lips against her cheek. "For now, enjoy your human life while it lasts. Even if there are some things about it that are less than nice to deal with, you should still enjoy it to the best of your ability. I wish that I could sleep. I wish I could dream the same way that you do and sleep next to you while snuggling."

"I know, Alice," she murmured, hugging me. "Will you hold me while I sleep?"

"Don't I always?" I giggled. "Well, I might have to leave to go and hunt. I don't have the burn in my throat just yet, but I feel that it's better to be safe than sorry."

"That's fine," she whispered. "But I…want you to…be…back…" Her eyes slowly started to close and she pushed herself into me as much as she possibly could.

I smiled warmly at her. "Goodnight, Belly-Button. Sleep tight."

"Night," she muttered against my neck. Then her eyes closed and she drifted off into sleep.

I held her in my arms while she slept, laying my head on top of hers and closing my eyes. I didn't move an inch, all I did was relax my body and listen to Bella's breathing and heartbeat, two sounds that I found wonderful. I never told her this, but I loved listening to those sounds while she slept. It brought me peace in a way that I couldn't describe. And I guess it sort of made me imagine that I was sleeping, too, especially if I did it long enough.

It was weird, I know, but I didn't care. I'm weird. I accept that fact and revel in it.

I'm not sure how much time passed while I was holding Bella as she slept. Time was such a strange thing to a vampire; it was almost like an entirely different concept to us than it was to humans. I did know that she must've been sleeping awful comfortably, because she wasn't making any noises in her sleep like she did sometimes.

Eventually I decided to go out and hunt. It was best to do it sooner rather than later, that way Bella wouldn't miss me being next to her. Worst of all would be if she woke up and freaked out that I wasn't there, which she'd done once before because of my carelessness. I vowed I'd never make that mistake again, so I had to be quick and careful.

As quickly and smoothly as I could, I pulled away from Bella's body, making sure to not disturb her while I did. Once I was up, I looked into the future to see if she would wake up at all within the next few hours and was relieved to see that she wouldn't. She would sleep soundly, albeit whimpering once or twice, without waking once.

I ran a hand through my hair and departed from the room. I was glad; it gave me a chance to hunt and maybe do a bit more without worrying that she'd suddenly wake up. I flitted down the stairs and into the living room. As of now, the only person in the house aside from Bella and myself was Carlisle, who was reading in his studies. Everyone else sans Edward was outside. Esme was supervising the wrestling match that my sisters were partaking in, funnily enough.

With a shrug, I darted out of the house and into the woods. I was glad to be away from Bella because now I could give in to my instincts freely. I pushed aside all emotions and focused solely on hunting, breathing in deeply to sniff out any potential prey. I licked my lips when the scent of deer flickered into my nostrils and dashed toward the location.

I heard heartbeats several clicks away and smiled. All that fresh, delicious blood would be inside of me soon. My mouth watered and venom trickled down my lips as I sped into a thicket where I spotted them; a herd of foolish deer. Mine. Their blood was mine. I lunged for the nearest one and pierced its weak flesh with my superior teeth. Then the blood came.

I moaned in ecstasy as the sweet, delicious blood guzzled down my aching throat. I was in heaven, reveling in the warmth and bitter yet Godly taste. The crimson ambrosia stopped flowing several seconds later. I growled, dissatisfied with my meal, and threw the carcass aside. The other deer had scampered off, but they hadn't gotten far. I was faster anyways.

I snarled and caught up to them, tackling the one closest down and sinking my teeth into it, repeating the feeding process of the poor dumb animal. It was dead soon after and I could feel the blood sloshing around inside of me. I licked my lips, shuddering once, then spun around and made my way back to the house at a normal pace. Running with blood sloshing around was always an odd feeling, so I tried not to go too fast until the blood had been absorbed.

It didn't take long for me to reach the house. Just as I was about to reach for the door, however, my body froze and I was hit by an oncoming vision.

_Locks of dark brown hair fluttered as a female vampire sped through a familiar looking forest, whipping past trees and shrubbery. Her movements were fast, faster than even the speediest of vampires and everything about the way she moved was graceful. She came upon a cliff and lithely leapt into the air, landing several feet below without a problem. Eventually the vampire stopped completely, revealing her angelic face as the light from the sun beamed down on her._

_Her body glowed, the light wrapping around her gorgeous and radiant form as she sauntered over to a large oak tree, flashing a warm smile. Seconds later, a shorter vampire with black hair jumped down from the tree, tackling the brunette beauty to the ground. A playful growl emitted from the brunette as the two tousled around, eventually stopping as they had started; the black haired vampire lying atop the taller brunette one._

"_You kept me waiting," the black haired vampire sang._

"_Sorry," the beauty replied, her lips curling into yet another amazing smile. "I was busy."_

"_Liar," the other female giggled. "But that doesn't matter. You're here now."_

_She leaned down and pressed her lips to the girl beneath her, the angel's golden orbs shimmering with love and joy as their lips connected. They kissed passionately and wrapped their arms around one another, fingers running through hair and teasing clothing. Shortly after they broke apart, the beauty's eyes pitch black with both love and lust. She licked her lips._

"_Shall we?" she asked, lifting an eyebrow._

"_Most definitely," the other replied huskily. "Oh, and Bella?"_

"_Yes, Alice?" _

_She lifted the brunette's left hand, lightly brushing her thumb against the ring positioned on it._

"_I love you."_

I snapped out of the vision, stunned. Bella as a vampire…married to me.

If possible, my heart would have burst from my chest in sheer joy. I squealed excitedly and jumped into the air, even daring to do a fist pump like Emmett did. I was so overwhelmed by happiness that I didn't even know what to do. I didn't care though!

Bella and I were going to be married! Yes, yes, yes!

I danced into the house, spinning and twirling like there was no tomorrow. I didn't even notice that my siblings were all staring at me amusedly until I finally stopped. I must've had the goofiest grin on my face, but I honestly didn't give a damn about that. I had just had the greatest news in my existence ever since Bella and I had gotten together.

"What're you so happy about?" Jasper asked.

I beamed. "I had a vision! Bella and I will be married in the future!"

The others smiled at me, pleased.

"That's great to know," Amara said. "Well, it was pretty much a given anyways."

Jasper chuckled. "Did you ever think you wouldn't be married?"

I stopped jumping up and down and put my hands on my hips, scowling.

"That's not the point! The point is that Bella and I are going to be married, which is awesome because that means we'll be legally together for the rest of eternity. And before you ask, yes, I did see her as a vampire. That just makes it all the more better!"

I started jumping up and down again while twirling. I was so happy that I failed to notice that I was falling until I face-planted onto the floor, a loud thud echoing through the entire house. It took me a few seconds to realize what had just happened. I, the graceful Alice, had fallen flat on my face right in front of my siblings. Fuck.

All four of them started laughing as I speedily got to my feet. Were I a human, my face would likely be crimson colored in embarrassment, but thankfully I wasn't, though that did little to help how embarrassed I was. I couldn't believe that _I _had just fallen. Again!

"Damn it," I grumbled under my breath. I turned and glared at my siblings as they laughed at my expense, which always irked me. "Shut up, all of you! If Bella wakes up because of your loud ass laughter, I swear to God I'll hurt you!"

They quieted down, but I could tell that none of them were ever going to let me live that down. I sighed, thankful that they at least had the decency to keep their mouths shut while my future wife slept cozily in bed. I decided to go and tell both Carlisle and Esme the good news and flitted up the stairs, glaring down my siblings, particularly Emmett, while I did.

"Alice, what was that noise?" Esme asked concernedly when I walked into Carlisle's office.

I bit my lip. "It's nothing to worry about, Esme. I was just getting excited about a vision I had."

"What did you see in your vision?" Carlisle inquired, sitting upright.

"Bella and I being married," I replied, clapping my hands together.

Esme immediately engulfed me into her hug. I gladly hugged her back, relaxing into her loving arms as she spun me around. There was nothing better than an Esme hug. I knew Bella loved them, but she didn't know what a_ real_ Esme hug was like yet. I could just imagine how much she'd love them once she was a vampire.

"That's wonderful news, Alice!" Esme cheered, kissing my cheek. "Oh, I can hardly wait for when you two marry each other. Once you're married and Edward is married, everything will be as it should in this household."

Carlisle came over and hugged me as well once Esme had released me.

"I am very happy to hear this," he said, smiling. "And very proud. Congratulations, Alice."

I smiled warmly at both of them for their remarks. "Thank you both. I know that it's a ways away, but I just had to come and tell you the good news. I'd like to keep this on the down low from Bella, mainly because I want it to be more natural for her."

"That's fine, dear," Esme replied. "What will you be doing now?"

"I'm going back to my room to cuddle with her," I replied, still giddy over the fact that Bella would be my wife in the not-so-distant future. I couldn't help myself, I was so damn happy. It was like a dream come true knowing what was to come for us. "If I stay gone for too long she'll wake up and think that something's wrong."

"Alright sweetheart. Thank you for telling us the wonderful news," Esme sang. I could see that the news had just made her good mood skyrocket because of the shine in her eyes. I was glad, I loved seeing Esme happy. Carlisle reflected similar happiness, though to a lesser degree.

I smiled and ducked out of the study before making my way back to my room. Once I'd gently closed the door, I turned and strolled to the bed and saw my angel stretched out lazily, snoring rather softly in her sleep. I giggled at the humorously cute noise coming from her mouth as she slept rather peacefully in a bed that used to have no meaning to me.

I sat down on the bed and noticed that Bella's shirt had risen, not to mention the overall position that she was laying in, which made me giggle even more. I reached down and lightly brushed my fingers against her warm skin. She murmured incoherently under my touch. I smiled lovingly at her beautiful form, images of us together with her as a vampire flooding through me.

Just for the sake of randomness, I lightly poked her cute little belly button. Her body twitched and I heard a quiet moan escape her lips, but otherwise she remained asleep. I sighed contently and fixed her shirt before lying back and curling my arms around her, pulling her in as close to me as I could. She immediately relaxed into my body, nuzzling into my neck as if she unconsciously knew where to go, which I found adorable.

I kissed her soft lips, her forehead, her cheek and then finally her ear.

"Rest well, Bella," I whispered into her ear. "My beloved wife."

"Alice…" she murmured quietly.

Then she let out a sigh and didn't speak again. I rested my head on top of hers, burying my nose into her sweet smelling hair. How I loved her scent. If anything, the only deterring thing about her lovely smell was the blood coursing through her veins. Even after I'd trained myself, her blood still called to me, constantly egging me on. I never showed it because I couldn't bear to look weak in front of my beloved again. Nor would I fall to my temptations, either.

"No," I told myself. "Never again."

As my body finally relaxed into the bed—which was fairly comfy, I'll admit—I closed my eyes and went back to doing what I'd been doing prior to when I went to hunt. But before I could even begin to enjoy hearing Bella's breathing, I was hit by yet another vision.

_Spiked bronze hair seemed to give off an odd glow from the light inside the room that the familiar golden eyed vampire was standing in. He was sitting with one leg crossed over the other as he read an older looking book. He turned a page, reading each line speedily yet thoroughly as if it was the most important thing in the world to him._

_But then he stopped, closing the book and looking up with a smile forming on his face. He set the book down on the table in front of him and stood up, speedily moving toward the door of the home that he happened to be staying in. His smile grew with each passing step that he took until he was at the door, at which point he opened it up._

"_Hello there," he greeted the person on the other side. "You're here rather early."_

"_Well, did you expect me to be late, dear Edward?" came the response, which was female. The voice sounded somewhat familiar, a voice that hadn't been heard in quite some time._

"_I apologize," the male replied, bowing his head. "I can never be sure sometimes."_

"_No family here?" the female inquired, rather hesitantly._

_He shook his head. "They are back in Forks enjoying themselves."_

"_You didn't tell them yet." It was not a question and the tone of the female was uncertain._

_He shook his head. "I wanted to be sure that __**this**__—" He paused to gesture between himself and the woman in front of him. "—was legit before I decided to tell them about it. I meant no offense, but I had to be sure, as you did, I'm certain."_

"_That is why I am here," the female said. "Now are you going to let me in, or what?"_

"_Yes," he replied, smiling again. "Do come in."_

I snapped out of the vision, my jaw dropping. Did I just see what I think? Really? It took me a moment to rewind what I'd just seen. I had to play it a few times back in order to make sure that I hadn't just imagined that out of thin air. When I was able to see that I had seen that and that it was real, I felt a surge of anger. No, not just anger. I was _**pissed**_!

I couldn't believe it. My _brother_ was in a _relationship_. And he didn't fucking tell me!

"That little piece of shit," I growled angrily. I immediately cupped my mouth and worriedly glanced at Bella, who didn't stir. I sighed into my palm and cursed internally for not being able to keep my mouth shut. Then I cursed with every swear word that I knew inside of my head that Edward had been keeping secrets from not just myself but the rest of the family!

Oh, he was going to get it when he got back here. Damn him.

Fuming mad as I was, I couldn't do anything about it since he wasn't even in Washington anymore. I didn't know where he was since he kept changing his mind, the sneaky bastard, in order to avoid letting me see. In fact, if not for that one slip up, I likely wouldn't have seen it in the first place. I had to give him credit, idiotic as he was; he knew how to keep me in the dark.

I kept myself where I was and breathed in Bella's scent, letting that become the focus of my attention in order to relax myself. And it did, because a few seconds later I slumped into the bed and found my body relaxing involuntarily. I pushed my agitation aside for later. Edward was definitely going to get it, though; I swore that on the spot.

Bella shifted in my arms, cuddling further into me. I couldn't help but smile, finding it funny that she liked to get so close. Sometimes I thought that she was trying to be inside of me. It sounded weird, but it sounded true much of the time. I was rather flattered by the notion, actually.

Eliminating all previous thoughts from my head, I closed my eyes again, this time hoping that I'd be able to keep them shut. All I wanted to do was hold my love and listen to the sound of her heart beating in her chest and feel the steady movements of her breathing. That was it. No more visions, no more sidetracking, I just wanted to enjoy my time with Bella.

Of course, no sooner did I think this did I feel another vision coming. Irritated I tried to keep it from bothering me, but that only made my head ache. I winced at the pain and ended up giving in, wondering to myself why I was getting so many visions in one day. But I didn't really have the time to ponder that when the vision hit me full force.

_Six thrones were perfectly aligned in the massive room. The décor was ancient and royal in appearance and gave off a very powerful air. Sitting on each throne was a vampire with chalk colored skin, blood red eyes and garments that furthered the royal feeling. They each sat as if they were the ruler of the world. There were three men and three women among them, all familiar looking, but not a welcome sight._

_The male in the center stroked his chin in thought as he gazed at nothing in particular. The black haired woman next to him sat by idly, looking rather bored and in need for something exciting to happen. On the left of them was another male, this one older looking with a frown on his face as he spoke silently to the blonde haired woman beside him. The last male, with white hair, was scowling while the brown haired woman on his right played with her hair._

"_Aro, dear, I'm bored," the woman in the center complained. _

_The male vampire in the center smiled and patted the woman's hand._

"_I'm sorry, my love, but there isn't anything I can do about it," he told her apologetically._

"_We could execute somebody," the brunette woman suggested, looking hopeful. "That's always fun to do, don't you think Sulpicia?"_

"_No Athenodora, we're not going to execute any of our soldiers or any random human just because you want to," the raven haired woman replied, rolling her eyes. "How many times must I tell you that, dear sister? It's getting rather annoying to have to repeat myself."_

"_That's not what I meant," the brunette scoffed. "Why must you always jump to conclusions?"_

"_Sisters, please," the blonde woman sighed. "We are not children here."_

"_Indeed," the male next to her said._

_The room fell silent as the sound of a door opening echoed throughout. A single robed figure slowly made its way up to the six thrones, stopping several feet away to bow. They reached up and pulled down their hood to reveal a male with medium long brown hair._

"_My lords and ladies," he said, speaking respectfully. "I bring you news."_

_The man in the center clasped his hands together. "Splendid! What news do you have?"_

_He nodded and bowed again before speaking. "There has been word of recent vampire activity in the states, particularly in the Washington area. The news has shown numerous deaths for the past month and a half. They think it's a serial killer or wild animals. We know otherwise."_

"_Interesting…" the man said, pursing his lips._

"_Washington? That's the Olympic Coven's territory, isn't it?" the blonde woman asked._

"_Yes, it is," the black haired woman replied. She smiled. "How ironic it is that the largest coven outside of the Romanians would have trouble stirring in their area. Do you think that our American friends have something planning?"_

_There was a scoff from the left by way of the other black haired vampire male. _

"_I doubt that sincerely. The day that Carlisle Cullen ever plotted something against another being would be the day that the humans developed the ability to fly," he grunted._

"_You don't know that, Marcus," the white haired male hissed. "With so many gifted vampires in their coven and the number of allies they have, their numbers would come close to our own and prove to be a troublesome thing indeed. How can we be certain?"_

"_You are paranoid, dear Caius," he responded nonchalantly._

"_And you are blind," was the retort._

"_Peace, dear brothers, this is not the time for pointless bickering," the center male said, holding up his hands. "This news does not bode well for us, especially if it continues. For now, I believe that we should wait and see what happens. If the threat is eliminated, than surely we can trust that our dear Olympic friends took care of the problem. But should it persist…"_

_The raven haired woman licked her lips, grinning rather wickedly._

"_I do believe that we owe our friends in the states a visit, don't you Aro?" she asked._

_He considered it for a moment and smiled. "Yes, I do, actually. Let us make plans."_

When my third vision ended, my head was swimming. Not only was it in pain from my earlier attempt and keeping it at bay, but I was now filled with worry and concern. The Volturi, the largest coven of vampires in the world, were considering coming here to the states. That was _not_ good news at all. I needed to tell Carlisle and Esme this, definitely.

I glanced down at my beloved, wrapped up rather tenderly in my arms. I couldn't leave her now, not after she'd gotten so comfortable being huddled up next to me. So I would wait until later and pray to God that the Volturi would change their minds about coming here. Because I knew that if they did, nothing good would come from it, especially with Bella being here.

If they did decide to come here, though…

It wouldn't be good. I know how badly Aro and Sulpicia want me as a part of their coven, how they want Jasper and Edward. Most of all, I know that they want Amara back. She's the one that they want more than anything else in the world.

I sighed and stared up at the ceiling. I hated having visions that stressed me out. It always ruined the moment whenever I did. So I tried to think of something else and went back to thinking about the first vision that I'd had; of Bella and I, being together. Seeing how heavenly she looked as a vampire and the ring that would be forever placed on her hand.

With thoughts of Bella filling my mind, I once again closed my eyes. This time I didn't have any visions distract me. I smiled, content with having my world in my arms, and settled for pretending to be asleep while silently promising myself and Bella that no matter what obstacle lay in our future that we would face it.

And we would face it together.

**A/N: My first time writing in Alice's point of view. I hope that I was able to do it well and I do hope that the visions were alright. I decided that I'd do them in third person, which I emulated from a friend of mine. Otherwise, the second part of the five epilogues is now complete.**

**I did have a different vision that I was going to put in instead of the Edward one. But the Edward one sounded too amusing to resist, so I put that in instead. :P**

**So, I've been thinking of maybe doing some bonus chapters (I think I noted this, I can't recall). Nothing too special, just a few extra "epilogue" type chapters that would be in the POV of a side character. I've considered maybe doing one for James, Sarah and Raina. What are your thoughts, readers? Do you want to see those three? Let me know in a review if you do, please, so that I'll know that it's wanted.**

**Another note, there is a Bellice forum out there that I am a part of. You want to be a member, see the link on my profile. It's young right now, but if enough people join, we could turn it into something grand.**

**Lastly, my dear friend (and a person that I consider to be a sister) AleinWonderland has started writing a story. For those of you who don't know, she's the wonderful person responsible for the photo edited characters you see on my Tumblr pages. It is a Rose/Em story and I ask that you go and give her some support. Help her out, even, because I know that she has the talent in her to be a great writer.**

**Until next time.**


	80. Epilogue: Tides

**Disclaimer: I don't own Twilight. I only own my own characters and ideas.**

**Epilogue: Tides**

**Leah's POV**

I stared out at the sea, watching as the waves moved in and out. With everything that had been happening as of late, it was nice to have some time to just relax. There was no pointless running around because of some idiot's paranoia and I was spared from having to listen to a bunch of hypocrites trying to tell me that I needed to "get stronger" and "be prepared".

I was tired of it all; tired of being told what to do, tired of having to obey every order that was given to me…tired of everything. I'm sick of this shit and I wish that I didn't have to put up with it, even if it meant not being a werewolf.

I often found myself wondering why I was a wolf. I never asked for it. I never asked to have a short temper and a father that constantly pressured me into being something I wasn't.

There wasn't a damn thing I could do about it, though. I was stuck with this ability, which to me was both a gift and a curse, and I had no say in it because now that I was a wolf I had an obligation to protect every Quileute and every single human in the entire Forks area like the others, all because it was a tradition. I wondered if the tradition had been something the wolves decided on or if they had been forced into it.

That was how I felt it was for myself and for the other wolves. It was like we were forced to carry the weight of every living thing here on our backs. If one of them died, that meant that we had failed as protectors and we would be punished for it. The council didn't seem to care one way or the other, they wanted absolute perfection.

"Fucking waste of time," I muttered to myself, grabbing a rock and throwing it out. I watched it skip four times before it sank into water.

"You look like you've got a lot on your mind," sang a familiar, cheery voice.

I looked up to see Serena smiling down at me. "Serena," I said. "What do you want?"

"May I sit?" she asked, gesturing toward the spot next to me.

I sighed and nodded, knowing full well that she wasn't going to leave until I said yes. She plopped down next to me, giving me a placid yet thoughtful look.

"You look pissed," she mused.

"Aren't I always pissed?" I inquired. That seemed to be what the others thought of me; that I was the pissy, bitter, bitchy wolf that ripped anyone's head off for trying to get to close. While I'll admit that I did have a temper and I was known for being a bit of a bitch, the truth was that I didn't want to keep others away. I just sucked at not showing it.

Serena gave me a soft smile. "You might look it, but I think you're just hurting on the inside."

I lifted an eyebrow. "Oh? And you know this how?"

"You may do a good job keeping your thoughts clear when you're in wolf form, but you aren't that good at it when you're a human," she replied. "I'm no psychic, but I can tell that you're hurting by the look in your eyes, Leah. Try and hide it all you want, but you might as well admit it to me. I won't be giving up until you do, in fact."

I stared at her for a moment before my brain was able to start working. She was being serious about what she was saying. Not only that, but she was being sincere too. I was definitely not used to that. In fact, aside from my family, there had only been one person…

"Why does it matter so much to you? I thought you disliked me," I grunted.

Serena cocked her head to the side. "I don't dislike you, Leah. Your attitude might stink, but I've got no problem with you whatsoever. In fact, I've been meaning to get some alone time with you just so we could talk a little..."

I held my hands up. "Er, Serena, no offense or anything, but I don't really think that I'm your type of girl. You're sweet and charming and I'm, well, not. It's nothing against you because you do have a nice body, but I'm not really interested."

She chuckled. "That's not what I meant, Leah. All I meant was that I wanted to have a chance to just talk with you. You know, bond with my fellow lesbian, seeing as how you and I are the only female wolves into other females."

"Oh." And now I felt like a moron.

"It's cool, Leah," Serena said, flashing me a bright smile. I swear that she was almost as cheery as Seth was, which was all the damn time. Thankfully, she wasn't as annoying as him. "I kind of have flirted with you in the past, I'll admit. You've got an amazing ass, by the way."

"Thanks," I murmured, lying back onto the sand. She did the same, lying on her side.

"Mind if I ask you a question?" she inquired.

"Yeah, sure," I muttered. I couldn't believe that she actually wanted to talk to me. It was…nice.

Serena licked her lips nervously. "Does the reason why you're upset have anything to do with that brown haired human living with the Cullens? Bella, I think it is?"

I blanched at the mentioning of Bella's name. I'd been trying to not think about her for the past few days, but fuck was it hard. It was like I couldn't get the girl's image out of my head, no matter how hard I tried. It didn't help that that piece of shit Jacob couldn't stop thinking about her either, which only made it worse for me.

It sucked when you had feelings for someone that you knew would never have them back.

I still remember when I first saw Bella. I'd managed to escape La Push and decided to go shopping for whatever reason. I wasn't the biggest fan of shopping, but I figured "why the fuck not" and went with it. Low and behold, what do I end up seeing there but this gorgeous, innocent looking brunette girl and I could only think to myself "damn she's hot".

Not the most aspiring thoughts, but hey, I couldn't help myself. My immediate reaction is to go and flirt with her, which I did, rather successfully. The fact that she was so caught off guard by me and embarrassed just made my interest in her skyrocket.

Unfortunately, I forgot one very important detail about being a wolf; unless I imprinted, I had no point in flirting with someone, because it would never work. I ignored that fact though and tried to get her interested in coming to see me on La Push. I would've hit her with a string of flirty remarks that I knew worked, but then I smelled the stink of vampire. So I left, dismayed.

I don't know why I couldn't stop thinking about her. She was the first girl that I'd seen that caught my interest in a long time. Technically, she was the second since I'd become a wolf in the first place that had gotten me interested. The first one was a different story entirely. But with Bella, there was just something about her that drew me in. I didn't know what it was, it just did.

I think my heart might have jumped a little when she came to La Push. I was excited because I had a chance to have a friend, a fresh start. I worked her with my cleverly created charm and arrogance, which almost did the trick. It might have worked had she not already had a girlfriend at the time, which was only made worse by the fact that she was with a Cullen.

Not only that, but she was a fucking _Cullen_! I couldn't believe it!

Maybe I got pissed off about that detail more than I should have. Being a wolf, I got the same repeated garbage about vampires being ferocious, heartless killers shoved down my throat and I'll admit I didn't think of any alternatives. I never once considered the fact that maybe there was such a thing as a "good vampire". Even now, it still surprises me.

But Bella…my feelings for her were genuine. She was the first person to actually treat me the way that she did, who was genuinely sweet to me. And she even called me beautiful. No one had ever done that before. I felt like there was someone tugging ever so slightly on my heart strings, but it was all in vain because her heart already belonged to someone.

"Leah, are you alright?"

Serena's voice broke me from my reverie and I realized that I had been spacing out when she'd been trying to talk to me. I smacked myself internally and turned to give her an apologetic look, since I normally bitched whenever someone did that to me.

"Sorry about that, Serena," I murmured.

She didn't seem bothered. "Don't sweat it, Leah. It happens to me all the time."

I sighed. "Not to me. Then again, my head hasn't been right for a while now, I guess."

"You were thinking about Bella, I take it," she said, giving me a thoughtful look.

"Am I that obvious?" I asked, frowning.

"Sort of," she replied, giggling. "It's not a bad thing, though. At least you aren't like Jacob when you think about her. He's always so obnoxious and creepy about it. I swear that the way he talks it's like he owns the poor girl. I don't think that he's right in the head anymore."

"I doubt he ever was to begin with," I snorted.

Serena nodded, frowning. "True."

"You don't sound like you're too fond of him, Serena," I mused. Her eyes looked a bit darker, I noticed, which wasn't something that happened with Serena. She was the kind of person that just about everyone liked. Even I liked her, though I'd never said anything about it to her face.

"I'm not really fond of him, no," she admitted. "I used to like him, back when he wasn't an arrogant asshole. But that was a long time ago and he's changed drastically since then. My family was close to the Blacks, so I know what he was once like. I know that people change overtime, but Jacob has changed for the worse."

I found it hard to believe that there was a time when he wasn't a douche.

"It's probably all that "you have Alpha blood in you" bullshit that the council's been tossing him since he was, what, three years old?" I rolled my eyes, just imaging his sickening display of why he thought he was so damn amazing. Piece of shit. "He thinks he's God because of all the crap they've fed him and it's driving me nuts."

Serena nodded. "Yeah, it's no fun," she agreed. "I feel bad for Raina. She has to put up with all of that and she can't say anything without being punished for it." I gritted my teeth together, not wanting to think about Raina. Serena noticed this and rubbed her neck sheepishly as she sat up.

"Sorry, I forgot that you and Raina don't have the, er, best of relationships," she murmured.

"That's one way of putting it," I muttered.

"Leah…do you really think that it's good for the two of you to hold a grudge like this after so long when neither her nor Sam intended to hurt you?" Serena asked. "I can't say that I know what it feels like, but I do know that what happened wasn't fair to you. That's in the past, though, and you really should carry on from it. You'll only hurt yourself more if you don't."

"That's easier said than done, Serena," I grumbled, laying my hands on my stomach. "You might be able to forgive and forget and you'd probably make peace without a problem. That's how you are; the sweet, caring girl that only a complete jackass could dislike. Me, on the other hand? It's _not _that easy for me to do any of those things. Believe me, I've tried."

Serena bit her lip. She was obviously trying to find some way to persuade me, which I thought was both odd and amusing. Nothing she could say to me would change my mind concerning my issues with Raina and Sam. Nothing at the moment, at least.

"Have you tried talking to her about it?" Serena asked, turning to look me in the eyes.

I rolled my eyes. "I've tried, but it didn't do us much good."

She looked confused. "Why not?"

"Have you not seen us when we're anywhere near each other?" I asked. "The tension is thick enough to cut through it with a damn butcher's knife, Serena. It isn't easy. I guess that it also has a lot to do with our egos and our tempers. I'll admit I've got a bad case of both, but so does she. It takes two to tango and if she isn't willing to try, then I'm not gonna waste my breath."

"But Leah—"

"Serena, I appreciate that you care enough to ask, but can we please not talk about her?"

She bit her lip and nodded. "Sure. Sorry that I pushed it."

"Don't apologize," I sighed. "No reason to. It's just a touchy subject for me."

Serena nodded silently and stared out at the ocean as I had been doing before she came to talk with me. A gust of wind blew over us, tousling our hair and bringing in the salty scent to our noses. I rubbed the bottom of my nose with a finger and glanced upwards at the sky, mentally counting the number of clouds that were out today.

The silence that fell between us was surprisingly a comfortable one.

We just rested there for about thirty minutes before I glanced over. Serena was looking down at her stomach and frowning, messing around with her bellybutton, it looked like.

"What are you doing?" I asked curiously.

"Oh, getting rid of a piece of fuzz from my belly button. Quil and Embry thought it would be funny if they dumped a bunch of it all over me when I slept. I thought I got rid of all of it, but I just noticed that I missed a piece." She scowled and flicked the piece away. "Boys, I swear, they're such a pain sometimes."

"Aren't we the same way, though?" I pointed out.

She grinned. "I would have used something a bit more…_tasteful_."

I rolled my eyes and sat up, unable to hide the smirk on my face.

"You want me to go kick their asses for you?" I offered. "I'd be more than happy to, and it'd be a good way to work out any tension I got."

Serena laughed and smiled. "You can if you'd like to, but I don't see a point in sweating over a couple of idiots. They'll get their just desserts soon enough, I'm sure. And it's not like they were being jerks about it or anything."

"If you say so," I shrugged. "I guess I'll get going then…"

"Oh, Leah, wait," Serena said, grabbing my arm. I frowned and turned to her. She removed her hand and bit her lip again. "Um…there's another reason that I wanted to talk to you in private, if you don't mind. It's kind of personal, I'll admit, but…I just need to know something."

I sat back down and turned my body so that I was facing her fully, crossing my legs.

"Shoot," I told her.

"Well…when did you know that you were a lesbian?" she asked, staring into my eyes.

I was surprised. I hadn't been expecting that to be her question. Why did she want to know that?

"Why do you want to know?" I asked, repeating my mental question. It wasn't that I minded sharing it with her, since she was like me, but it didn't make sense for her to ask.

"Would you believe me if I said I was curious?" she inquired, cocking her head to the side.

I shrugged. "Suit yourself, then." I closed my eyes momentarily to think back. It hadn't been that long ago, that was true, but it wasn't something I thought about much. "I was fifteen when I first realized it. I caught sight of one of the older girls from the reservation school naked in the bathrooms and just about had a nosebleed right there."

"It was kinda funny, actually," I chuckled. "I was shocked because of all the feelings coming over me at seeing this chick naked. She didn't even notice me there, not even when I turned and ran out the door. The funny part was when I accidentally knocked over another girl that was in my class and tripped at just the right angle that I landed on top of her. And you know what? Our lips connected at that very second, which makes that my first kiss, too."

"Really?" Serena asked, astonished.

"Yup, really, really," I replied, smirking. "It sounds like something you'd see in a sitcom, but it's the honest-to-God truth. Probably one of the most awkward moments I've ever had in my life and there's a shit-load of those. Oh well, nothing happened afterwards."

Serena placed her chin on her palm. "She wasn't mad?"

I remembered the expression on her face and that my face had probably been the exact same. I also recalled that it was that kiss that started getting me interested in girls, so really, I owed that girl—and the naked one—some thanks for showing me who I was.

"No, just shocked. She ended up coming out as a lesbian before I did, ironically enough. I think she moved north somewhere, to be honest. I can't remember." I glanced at her again. "Be real with me, Serena. Why do you want to know about this?"

"No reason…" she sighed. "I just…"

"What?"

Serena rubbed the back of her neck. "I think I might have imprinted," she whispered.

My eyes bulged. "You did?" I asked, stunned.

"I think so," she murmured. "I don't know for certain. I wanted to…well, I wanted to talk with you and see what it was like when you were in love, but I know that was personal, so I couldn't ask that and I ended up asking the other question—"

I placed my hands on her shoulders and cut her off. "Serena! Calm down, girl," I said, gently as I gave her shoulders a squeeze. "Calm it down. Take a deep breath, okay?" She nodded and took in a shaky breath, dispelling it after a moment. I had never seen Serena act like this before, so I knew without a doubt how serious this was. And I wasn't about to fuck it up either.

"Sorry," she whispered once she'd calmed herself. "I don't know what came over me. Crap."

"It's cool," I said, pulling my hands away. "Now take it from the top, with less freaking out and no speedy talking, if you please."

"Okay," she breathed.

"So you think you imprinted or you _know_ you imprinted?" I inquired.

"I'm pretty sure I did," she replied, giving me an honest shrug. "I remember hearing and seeing what it was like when the others imprinted. I know it was a bit different for each, but the underlying feelings that they felt are the same that I felt. It just shocked me when I imprinted because it was so spontaneous."

I chewed on my bottom lip, feeling a surge of jealousy swelling up inside of me. Then I pushed it back and told myself that Serena became a wolf before I did and she was a much better person, so she deserved to find her happiness first.

"Congratulations, Serena," I murmured.

She smiled and flung her arms around me. Damn this girl surprised me a lot.

"Thanks!" she squealed, her earlier nervousness disappearing. She hugged me tightly and, after a moment of my brain being blank, I hugged her back.

"Have you talked to your imprint?" I asked.

Serena's face fell and she shook her head sheepishly. "Um, no, I haven't."

I frowned. "It's a girl, right?"

"Thank God," she breathed.

"Do you know her name?"

"No…"

I pinched the bridge of my nose and sighed in exasperation.

"Serena, have you actually talked to this girl at all?" I asked.

Serena ran her fingers through her hair. "No, I haven't," she admitted. "Our eyes met just as she was leaving La Push a few days ago. Her friends dragged her off before I could even start to move over there towards her. Even if I had, I wouldn't know what to say. To be brutally honest with you Leah, I stink at flirting. I may be able to be nice, but I don't know jack about hitting on girls or anything of that sort. That's another reason why I wanted to talk to you…"

"You want me to give you advice on talking to other girls?" Could this day get any weirder?

"Would you please?" she pleaded. "It doesn't have to be today, but maybe sometime this week? I don't know who else to go to, Leah. You and I are the only lesbians here on La Push and if I asked any of the guys they'd just laugh at me."

I sighed. I didn't like the idea of it, but then Serena was a good girl. Besides, I had nothing else to do with my time except mope and be bitter, both of which were getting old. If anything, there was a chance for me to bond with someone and I liked it.

"Alright, I'll help you," I told her. She beamed at me. "Come over to my place tomorrow and we'll talk a bit more, alright? How does that sound?"

"Wonderful," she replied, hugging me again. This time I relaxed quicker. And really, I kind of liked being hugged, strange as it sounded. She kissed my cheek and removed her arms, jumping to her feet in a matter of seconds.

"Thank you, Leah. You're a good person. Don't let anyone ever tell you differently."

I stared at her and nodded, unable to do much else. "Thanks," I whispered.

"It's no problem; I'm just telling you the truth. Oh, and I know that it isn't my place, but I really do think that you should talk to Raina. She suffers more than you think about the problems that she has with you and I know you do too. Just give it a chance."

Upon saying that, she turned and walked off, leaving me utterly speechless and lost. After a few minutes of gaping like a moron, I mentally smacked myself and stood up. Sitting around wasn't going to get me anywhere. Serena's words seemed to implant themselves into the back of my head as I brushed the sand off of my body and started walking toward my house.

I took one last look at the tides as I did, then walked inside.

"There you are, Leah!" he shouted, wearing his usual goofy grin. "Mom was wondering where you'd run off to sulk. I told her that you'd probably be gone all day since that's usually how long you spend being all angry and stuff. I'm kinda surprised to see you here; did the clouds in your head finally start clearing up?"

I snorted. "No, but I did come to obliterate the proverbial sunshine in yours, doofus."

"Oh, well in that case, Mom said that she wanted to talk to you," he said cheerily.

"I doubt that," I scoffed, sneering at him. "You're just a pussy. But don't worry, I wanted to speak with her, so I'll be nice and not kick your ass around. Touch my stuff, though, and I'll give you the ultra wedgie treatment like I did last week. Kapish?"

Seth's smile dropped and he nodded curtly. "I won't, I swear."

"Good boy," I said, patting his head.

I walked off with a smug grin on my face as Seth muttered under his breath. I made my way into the kitchen and caught sight of a plate full of sandwiches. I didn't waste any time grabbing the plate and scarfing them down, enjoying the taste of my mother's fuck-awesome cooking. Once all the sandwiches were finished, I went in back, finding my mother in her room, reading a book.

"Hey Mom," I greeted, pulling a chair up next to her.

She put down her book and smiled. "Hey there sad-eyes, how're you doing?"

"Fine. Had a talk with Serena about some stuff," I replied, shrugging.

"That's good to hear. It's about time you started talking to other people," she replied. "But I can tell that you didn't come in here to be interrogated by your mother, did you? I can see that there's something on your mind. You can talk to me about anything, Leah. I won't share secrets, unlike some other people that we both know."

I rubbed the back of my neck, thinking about how I wanted to go about doing this.

"You know that I'm gay, right Mom?" I asked, not meeting her eyes.

She chuckled. "Of course I do, Leah. I can see it rather plainly, especially when we had our meeting with the Cullens. The way you looked at the brunette girl was a clear giveaway, if not for the other obvious signs. It doesn't bother me in the least bit, Leah. I'll always love you no matter what, gay, straight or anything in-between."

I let out a sigh of relief. "That's good to hear."

"Did you really think otherwise, silly girl?" she asked, lifting an eyebrow. "There's much more to what you want to say, I can see. Go on."

"Well, it…it has to do with the girl you mentioned, Bella," I admitted. She nodded in understanding and waited for me to continue. "I have feelings for her, Mom. They won't go away no matter what I do and I know that she already has someone…"

"Ah, yes. The vampire girl, Alice I think," she mused, tapping her chin. "I can imagine that it must be hard to have feelings for someone else. I am sorry that it had to happen that way, Leah, I'm sure that the two of you would've been wonderful together."

"That's just it, though!" I shouted, throwing my hands in the air. "I don't know what the hell I'm supposed to do with my feelings! How can I love someone that will never love me back because they've already found their soulmate? I hate it. It's the exact same bullshit that I went through with both Sam and Raina!"

My mother placed her hands on my shoulders. "Leah, sweetheart, you need to stop living in the past with what happened. I know that it hurt you and I'm sure that it hurt them the same. They never asked to imprint on each other. It was never in their hands, just as Bella had no control over falling in love with the Cullen girl. Vampires have a very similar experience to mating, so I hear, so you and I both know that it won't be changing."

"I know, but…" I felt tears starting to well up in the back of my eyes. Fucking hell, I was crying!

"Dearest, you must let go of the past," my mother murmured.

"That's easier said than done," I grumbled. "Every time I'm a wolf I'm forced to hear what they think of each other, how much they love each other. I can't block it out. And when I see Bella, I'm forced to remember that she's with a stinking vampire of all things! It's like no matter what I do I can't find the person I'm meant to be with. Everyone I start to fall for ends up with someone else whether it's their choice or not."

She nodded again, her face still soft. "But you do have a choice, Leah. You can choose to let the pain consume you and be bitter for years to come or you can choose to do something about that bitterness and throw it aside. Confront your past pain rather than let it control you."

"Is that what you did when father died?" I asked.

"Yes," she replied, removing her hands. "It was hard and it took a lot of time, but I came to terms with what happened and I hold no grudges for it. I realized that there was no point in dwelling on the past and I dealt with it. Personally, I think it's made me a stronger woman and a much better person, especially considering the fact that I am the first woman on the Quileute council in ages."

"That's true," I sighed.

"Do you want to hurt for the rest of your life?" she asked. "Do you want to drive away others because you're too bitter to allow them to get close to you?"

"I…no, I don't," I replied.

My mother smiled at me and pressed her lips to my forehead.

"You are a beautiful, strong willed woman, Leah," she said, standing. "You're stubborn as sin and you've got both an attitude and a mouth on you. But you're also a loving, kind-hearted and brave and I know that if you were to face your problems, you would be able to make others see that for themselves rather than judge you for past mistakes."

I soaked in her words and nodded slowly. "What about Bella, though? It's harder with her, even if she isn't my imprint. She…she means a lot to me."

"I know, Leah," my mother replied. "I think you know deep down in your heart what you should do with Bella. I think that you should be there for her as her friend. Love her, protect her, show her that she means a lot to you and that you'll always be there for her. Because that's what true friends do, they're there for each other no matter what. You never know, she might need you more than anything else in the world one of these days. But will you be there for her?"

I considered that. I knew that Bella would be with the leech through it all, but that didn't mean that she would never need a friend; someone to help her when her lover couldn't, someone that was there to support her; to be her rock. I would never have Bella's heart the way that I wanted; I knew that without a shred of doubt. It hurt, yes, but I was letting it dominate me.

Maybe…

No. There was no point in dwelling on maybes. Bella was not meant for me. If she had been, I would have imprinted on her and she would be in my arms, but I had not and she was not. I did have to accept that fact, regardless of the jealousy and the irritation that it brought.

Bella would never be my love. But that sure as shit didn't mean that I couldn't love her. And it didn't mean that I couldn't be there for her.

"Yes," I said, staring into my mother's eyes. "I would be there for her."

My mother smiled approvingly. "Good, Leah. Do not try to persuade her away from where her heart truly belongs, but rather strengthen it. Become a part of it, a part of who she is, and you will both be much happier afterwards. Who knows, maybe being with Bella will bring you closer to finding your soulmate. You never know."

I frowned, doubtful. But I didn't say anything. I didn't want to ruin the mood.

"Well, I'm going to go and take care of some council business," she informed me. "I will be back in a few hours. Promise me that if you and your brother wrestle that you'll do it outside and do try not to do anything too rambunctious."

"Now what would ever possess you to think that I would do something like that?" I asked, trying to be as innocent as I could.

She snorted. "Leah, destruction is your middle name. Seriously though, don't break any of my furniture or it'll come out of your allowance, young lady."

"What allowance?" I inquired. "And if I recall correctly, Seth breaks just as much as I do."

"Do not!" Seth whined from the living room.

"Who does it doesn't matter to me," she stated, tapping her foot. "But _I _am the one that has to pay for it every damn time. Hence, from this moment on, if either one of you breaks _anything_, whether it's an accident or not, _you_ will be the ones paying for it, understand?"

"Yes, I understand," I sighed. _I'll just blame it on Seth. He's way too easy to trick._

"Good." My mother tapped my nose and smiled. "I'll see you later." She started to walk away, but I gently touched her shoulder.

"Er…Mom?" She turned and gave me a curious look. "Thank you for talking to me."

"Anytime, Leah. It's what I'm here for."

I watched my mother walk off, waiting until I heard the front door shut before making my way into the living room. Seth was sitting lazily on the couch with a video game controller in his hands, bashing on the buttons while playing his favorite fighting game series; Tekken. I smirked when I recalled all the times I'd kicked his ass at the game. He didn't ask me to play him anymore for that reason and for fear that I'd challenge him for some belonging of his.

What can I say; Seth and I had a very competitive sibling rivalry. We loved each other, yeah, but we were always getting into some sort of challenge. Seth seemed to think that it was necessary for him to be the "man of the house" despite my superiority in every way possible.

"So, what are you gonna do now?" Seth asked, not looking away from the TV screen.

"I'm contemplating kicking your ass in a few rounds of Tekken," I replied, smirking.

"Ha! I've been practicing a lot lately!" he crooned. "I even bought a game that you've never played before and practiced in that one, too! So rather than play this, let's play that out and see if you're really "the best in the house", shall we sis?"

My competitive nature began to take over me and, despite the fact that I could very well end up regretting the decision, I sat down and told Seth to put in whatever crappy game he got. He smiled and tossed me a controller before putting in the game that he'd got called Soul something or another. I didn't pay attention because in a matter of seconds we were mashing buttons to try and kill each other. I picked a hot girl, he picked some ugly lizard thing and we went at it.

Three hours later, I was grinning like a fool as Seth dished out his last ten dollars, whining and pouting like a wounded puppy all the way. I sneered at him as I pocketed his cash and stood up, pleased that I had once again proven my superiority to my little brother. And for once, neither of us broke anything, so our mother had no reason to be mad.

Truthfully, I hadn't played games with Seth for money or for the competitiveness; I did it in order to help ease my mind away from what was bugging me. It did the trick at the time, but now that I wasn't mashing buttons, my brain began wandering and I was forced to cope with it all over again. I thought back to what my mother had said about the situation with Raina and the one with Bella and realized that, regardless of my stubbornness, she was right.

I needed to face my problems.

I wasn't sure how to deal with my situation with Bella. Being there for her as a friend was all well and good, yeah, but my feelings were still going to be there. If I didn't fess up to her about them sooner or later, I was worried that I would do something that I'd end up regretting. Since Bella was my first real friend in ages, I couldn't allow myself to fuck that up.

As far as Raina and Sam went…I didn't know. Serena and my Mom were both right about that whole ordeal. I was being bitter and letting it control my life. But what more could I do with it when it was so damn hard to face either of them? I didn't know.

"What's wrong, big sis?" Seth asked. "Gloating isn't fun for you anymore?"

I sighed and sat back down. "No. I got a lot on my mind, that's all."

"The stuff with Bella?" he asked, shutting the TV off. _Whoo boy, he was going to try to talk to me now. I could hardly wait._

I nodded begrudgingly. "That's part of it, yeah."

"What's the rest of it?" he looked up at me with curious eyes. "Your deal with Raina, too?"

I narrowed my eyes. "Seth, you can hear, I _know_ that you know what my problem is."

"Alright, sorry!" he said, holding his hands up dramatically. "I just wanted to double check, that's all." He gave me his signature smile as he stood up and stretched. "I think what Mom said was one hundred percent right. You should go talk to Raina. I don't know what to tell you about the Bella situation since I'm not in your position, but I'd imagine talking to her would be a good idea too. Otherwise, like Mom said, it'll just eat you up."

"It's already eating me up, Seth," I sighed.

"Which is exactly why you really need to get it off your back," he replied.

I glared at him in exasperation. "Don't act like you know what I'm going through. Everything with you in sunshine and bunny rabbits, which, in case you haven't noticed, isn't how the fucking world works."

"C'mon Lee, you know that that's not how it is for me," he interjected. "In case you forgot, I'm in your head every time we phase, so I do know a bit more than you might think. I just don't say anything because I know how stubborn you are." His face grew soft. "I've felt and seen your pain Leah. I know how much you're hurting. Do you think I like seeing you that way?"

I was taken aback by his change in tone and my glare faltered.

"I…" I bit my lip. "No, I doubt it would."

"You see? We might argue a lot and get into all that sibling rivalry stuff all the time, but you're still my big sister. I know that you'd be trying to cheer me up and help me out if I were in your shoes, so I'm just trying to do the same." His smile returned, bigger than before. "The only thing is that Mom totally beat me to the punch on what I was going to say."

I sighed. Seth was right. I hated admitting it, but he was right.

"Fine," I grumbled. "I'll go talk to Raina."

With a quiet huff, I walked out of the room. I paused at the door and turned to Seth, looking him in the eyes with a silent thanks. He smiled and nodded, then turned the TV back on. I walked outside and found myself starting to stress out. I didn't focus on my brain, however, and kept walking, pushing my body forward until I neared the place that I knew Raina would be.

When I saw her, I stopped and took in a quiet breath. The sound of the ocean calmed me, brought me some form of peace, which helped ease me down a bit. Then I thought about Bella, her kind words to me and her friendship, and for some reason, that was enough to push me once again.

Maybe they had been right. Maybe facing my problems _would_ help me.

**A/N: Two left.**

**Just a forewarning, you may not like the next one. But it needs to be done.**

**Few things: I have allowed for anonymous reviewing. I really do prefer that if you review that you do so when signed in, because then I can actually respond to you (I say thank you to everyone that reviews, which most of know by now). But if you'd rather review anonymously, I won't stop you. **

**Secondly, there is a Bellice forum that is in the works (as I mentioned before). Come join and support and post and be merry. Link on profile. :) Also, my dear friend AleinWonderland is starting to write now (I kept pushing her and she finally started). She's new to it, but her story is good and has a lot of potential. It's a R/Em story and there will be Bellice in it! **

**I think there should be an Amara fan-club, don't you? I'd make one, but I don't know how and I wouldn't know if people would support it. I figure that people could do fan drawings or fan stories or other stuff (whatever you see in fan-clubs, I dunno, it was just a random idea).**

**Until next time. Hope you Leah fans enjoyed this.**


	81. Epilogue: Black

**Disclaimer: I don't own Stephanie Meyer's Twilight, I own only my created characters and ideas. On to the villains...hee hee hee.**

**Epilogue: Black**

**Jacob's POV**

I don't understand. Why are they always glaring at me? Why do they treat me as if I'm wrong and that everything I've done is wrong, when I know it hasn't been? It doesn't make any damn sense why they'd all react like that, even my own friends! All I've been doing is my rightful duty as the future of this pack, as the future Chief and protector of the Quileute tribe.

I am Jacob Ephraim Black, the true Alpha. And yet here I am being treated like I'm a traitor.

I gritted my teeth together, watching on as a few of the other wolves bickered amongst themselves too quietly for me to hear. I didn't need to hear, though, because I knew that they were talking about me. No, it wasn't paranoia. I could tell because of the spare glances shot in my direction, usually one of distaste or annoyance.

I scoffed. It really didn't matter to me in the end. They were just a bunch of fools.

Most of the other wolves were mad at me because of the problems that I'd caused with the damn bloodsuckers some time back. They said that I'd jumped to conclusions and it was my fault that not only had I broken the treaty that had just been re-established, but one of our own was injured and a human almost died because of two _other_ bloodsuckers.

That was bullshit! That disgusting little leech had been trying to bite Bella, I just knew it! And yet everyone, including Bella herself, was _defending_ the little monster. Bella had said that she wasn't biting her nor trying to, which made no sense to me. If she was trying to bite her, then why were the little pest's eyes black and why was she near her neck?

Maybe Bella was in denial because she thought that one of those corpses could actually love her, which was probably due to them manipulating her. Sure, they had their looks and that sickeningly sweet way they talked and their disgusting stench that normal humans thought was better than any smell in the world. There were more than enough ways one of those leeches could entice her and convince her into thinking that she was loved and cared for.

That had to be the explanation, didn't it? I mean, _vampires_ couldn't love. They killed, they reeked and they were hard as fuck to kill, but they couldn't love each other. How in the hell could something without a beating heart possibly love? I called bull on that, but apparently none of the other wolves seemed to agree with me. Even Paul, Quil, Embry and Colton, who I'd thought had been on my side, were having second thoughts!

Dumb bastards, all of them.

I scowled when I thought about Bella. I hated how she'd rejected me so blatantly.

Okay, so maybe she was supposedly gay or some shit like that. But all it would take is just a few minutes with me for that to change, I could guarantee her that. If only she would give me the chance to show her that! I could show her that what she needed in her life was a strong man that could protect her, not some wimpy little Cullen leech.

_Alice Cullen_. Thinking of that bitch pissed me off. It made my blood boil, the way she held Bella like she belonged to her. My hands curled into tight fists and I could feel the animal inside of me trying to get loose, but I held it back. I wasn't going to let that little bitch get the best of me, no way in hell. I was better than that, better than her.

I stood up and took in a few calming breaths. I needed to move, to do something other than think about the bloodsuckers. That would help clear my mind up a bit so I wouldn't have to worry about phasing at random. I needed to learn to control this beast, not let it control me. I was _not_ a weakling like everyone thought, and I sure as fuck wasn't like those damned vampires.

I started walking across the sand, unbothered by the sand's rough texture. The wolves who had been talking, Colton, Jared and Kim, all ended their conversation as I neared them. Kim and Jared looped their arms around each other and walked off, leaving just Colton behind.

"What's cracking, Jakey?" Colton asked when I got up to him.

"Don't call me "Jakey"," I growled.

He held his hands up. "Right, sorry, my bad."

"What were you three talking about that was so secretive?" I asked. "I saw all of you glancing in my direction several times. You wouldn't be talking about me, now would you? If you are, I'd like to be let in on the topic. It's not nice to talk about someone else behind their back, especially when they're the future leader, don't you agree?"

He narrowed his eyes, the usual grin faltering.

"Dude, we weren't talking about you," he said, shaking his head. "And even if we were, do you really think we'd do it when you were close by? But seriously Jake, you're starting to get a little paranoid in the head."

I snorted. "I'm not getting paranoid. I can tell by the looks everyone's been giving me that you're all pissed off at me for what happened. Is that what it is?"

"Partially," Colton admitted, which surprised me. "The council got on all of our asses about it because they blamed _us_ for either starting the attack or not calling it off in time. Yet I didn't see them chewing _you_ out when you were the one that started the attack in the first place, especially since _you _were the one that jumped the gun."

"That's not true," I grunted. "They did talk to me about what happened."

He rolled his eyes. "What'd they do, slap you on the hand and send you on your merry way?"

I snarled and grabbed him by the throat with my right hand, clutching it tightly. "You'd best watch yourself, Weaver. I will hurt you if I need to, you got that?"

"JACOB! ENOUGH!" bellowed Sam.

I winced as I felt my body constricted and my hand released Colton instantly. My legs buckled and I fell to my knees, unable to move for a few seconds. Once the effect had worn off, I looked up and glared at Sam, who was walking towards me, my sister right behind him.

"Are you alright, Colton?" Sam asked, keeping his eyes trained on me.

Colton coughed. "Yeah, I'm good. I, uh, think I'll go see what my brother is up to."

He walked off as I got to my feet. The moment I turned to ask Sam what his deal was I got Raina's left fist in my face, sending me flying backwards. My whole face throbbed as I clutched it and growled, the beast wanting me to phase and tear my sister apart for striking me. The pain didn't last long, but the fact that my sister had struck me _again_ royally pissed me off.

"What the fuck was that for?" I snarled, glaring her down.

She stood above me looking high and mighty, glaring straight back at me.

"For being a prick," she replied. "Why were you choking Colton?"

"He's insulted the council," I replied. "I was merely doing my duty and—"

Raina pinched the bridge of her nose and looked like she was about to hit me again. Sam came up behind her and placed his hands on her shoulders to calm her down. I winced in disgust as the two looked at each other tenderly before both looked back at me. Sam looked displeased and Raina clearly wanted a fight. If that's what she wanted, I was more than happy to oblige.

"Jacob, you need to stop with this," Sam said calmly. "You've been out of line for the past few months now and it's getting old. Do you know how many complaints I've been getting from the other wolves, not to mention a lot of the humans here?"

"What's their deal? I haven't been doing anything," I protested. "Besides, you know that I would never lay a finger on any of the humans here. And any time I get into a fight with one of the wolves we just wrestle and that's it. You know that, Sam. You know that I'd never put anyone's life in jeopardy without cause."

Raina took a step forward, growling. "Their deal is that you've been an asshole."

"Tell me how," I challenged.

"Preaching about how you're the future Alpha, how what you did was the right thing because we can't trust the Cullens and going on about how Bella Cullen is your mate when it's quite obvious that she's been mated to someone else," my sister replied.

Sam pursed his lips. "Jacob, you know that Bella Cullen is not your mate. You would have imprinted on her if she were and it's obvious that you haven't. The only thoughts going through your head surrounding her are obsession and jealousy, not love and affection. Were you to imprint on her, we would look at her situation with the Cullens a bit differently, but even then, it wouldn't change that you wronged them and broke the treaty."

"Your arrogance and stupidity never cease to amaze me," Raina sighed.

I clenched my jaw tightly in agitation. Why did she a_lways_ have to treat me that way?

"What is your problem?" I hissed.

She narrowed her eyes. "My problem is _you_, little brother. I may love you, but lately I've been getting pretty frustrated with your attitude. I don't understand what the hell is wrong with you."

"There's nothing wrong with me," I sighed. "And just how do you know that Bella isn't my mate, Sam? Maybe the reason she doesn't know it yet is because she's surrounded by all those disgusting ticks. _Maybe_ if we were to get her away from them to show her, she would see that I'm her real mate and then everything would be fine."

Raina groaned. "Jacob, for fuck's sake, she's a lesbian!"

"That doesn't mean that I couldn't love her and show her that I'm better!" I protested. "Are you really saying that it's a good idea for a human to be with a vampire? Because if you are, you're spitting on everything that the council has worked hard for all their lives and everything that our family has worked for in order to establish peace here on La Push."

"No, Jacob," Sam said. "You misunderstand."

I brought my fists up and cracked my knuckles. "Is that so?"

"What we say is not going against the council," Sam replied. "And seeing as how you didn't have the decency to hear what I said before, I'll repeat myself. She. Is. _Not_. Your. Mate. You did _not_ imprint on her nor does she belong to you, Jacob, and I don't ever want to hear you say or think otherwise."

I flinched at the tone of his voice and realized that Sam was using his Alpha powers on me to make sure that I obeyed. I wanted to shout at them and tell them not to order me around, but I decided to hold my tongue and merely nodded, irritated as I was. A few minutes of tense silence passed, no one speaking or moving.

Sam finally broke the silence, eyeing me warily as he turned to Raina. "We should get to our patrol duty, Raina."

She hesitated for a moment and bit her lip, giving Sam another one of their "looks". After a moment, she resigned and nodded, turning her eyes to me and frowning.

"I'm sorry for punching you," she said, not even bothering to sound sincere.

I snorted. "I'm sorry you're a bitch."

Her lips twitched, but she kept her calm. "And I'm sorry that you are a worthless asshole who puts his hunger for power and control above what's right. I'll say this once and only once since I know that saying more would be a waste of breath." Her face grew series, then. "Don't let what Father tells you get to your head. You may be future Chief, I don't care about that, but don't let him convince you something that you know in your heart is false."

"I don't see how anything Father says to me matters," I mumbled. "But fine, whatever you say big sister. I'm my own man, Raina, despite what you and everyone else seem to think. I'm not weak or foolish. I know what I need to do and I know what needs doing. It's not my fault if the rest of you don't see it for yourselves."

I pushed past her and started walking off. I was done dealing my jealous sister and her pain in the ass mate for one day. They could go off and do whatever the hell they wasted their time with. It wasn't fair that my sister had her mate, yet I, the rightful Alpha and the future Chief, didn't.

My Dad said that it was because "good things come to those who wait". I thought that was crap considering the fact that he told me that I would always get what was rightfully mine. Yet I didn't have what was rightfully mine because she wouldn't accept me. She seemed to think that she was better off with a disgusting leech than with me. I found that hard to believe.

That was why I couldn't accept the reality of it. I couldn't accept that she could actually love a vampire and that a vampire could even begin to understand what love was to begin with. Only beings with flesh and blood could love. They had hearts to carry it with them. Bloodsuckers didn't have hearts; they were walking corpses and nothing more.

That's what the Council had always told me. Ever since I was a little kid, they told me that I was destined for greatness and that bloodsuckers were vile creatures. They knew that I would one day become a wolf and that in the future I would find myself a mate and become the Chief. At first I didn't know whether or not anything they said was true. But after seeing the destruction caused by damned vampires, I knew every word to be true.

Vampires were evil.

I stopped in my tracks and turned to face both Raina and Sam, who were several feet away.

"You can deny it all you want, but I know that Bella isn't there of her own free will. It isn't _possible_ for a human to love a leech and there's no fucking way that I'm about to let an innocent girl that could be my future wife end up dead because of the lies being told to her. I don't know for certain, but I'll be damned if I'm gonna give up just because she's got a bunch of ticks surrounding her, mark my words."

I didn't give either a chance to respond, I turned and walked off.

The beach was fairly vacant today. I spotted several of the resident Quileutes, mostly families spending time with each other. I paid no mind to that, because I knew if I did that I would be overcome with jealousy. And I hated whenever I felt jealous of someone else, because that was a sign of weakness. Jacob Black could not afford to show weakness.

Eventually I stumbled onto another wolf. Crystal. She was lying beneath a tree, snoring loudly as she slept. She'd backed me up when I'd gone after that little bitch, so I wondered if she was on my side when it came to keeping Bella away from the leeches. I walked up to her and nudged her with my foot a few times, eventually waking up the laziest wolf in the pack.

"Wha…?" she grumbled as she came to. Then she looked up at me lazily, rubbing her eyes.

"Hey Crystal," I greeted casually.

She yawned and stretched before scratching her head. "Jacob? What do you want?"

"I just wanted to talk," I said, kneeling down. "I figured that since you were there to help me against the damn bloodsuckers that meant that you agreed with me on my feelings."

"Not really…" Crystal grumbled. "I felt like a douchebag afterwards. You made it seem like she was trying to maul the poor human girl, but from what I saw there wasn't a problem at all. In fact, when I found out that that human got captured and that they were just having a private moment with each other, I was pissed. What the hell, man."

"The leech was near her neck," I growled. "She was trying to kill her."

"Do you know that for certain?" Crystal inquired. "I mean, come on Jacob, since when have the Cullens ever killed a human, let alone put one in danger?"

I stood up and shook my head. "Crystal, they put humans in danger every day by being near them, can't you see that? So what if they claim to have never killed before, that doesn't mean that they haven't done so in secret without us knowing! Let's not forget, too, that they can slip at any given point in time."

Crystal sighed. "Jake, you're sounding more and more like the council members. I mean, I know I didn't like them either at first, but seeing as how they've been taking care of that girl…I dunno, I think that we might be wrong about them. Them meaning just the Cullens, that is. I wouldn't trust any other group of vampires unless they had gold eyes."

I bit my bottom lip, so hard that it drew blood. It healed before I could swallow, though, and I glared down at Crystal. How could she say that? Had she lost her mind or something? Christ, was I the only wolf here with some sense in his head?

"Forget this," I sighed, trying to calm my rising temper. "I would have thought that you would see through the illusion of the Cullens by now. You're supposed to be one of the smartest wolves here, Crystal, not one of the gullible ones. It looks like I was wrong."

I walked off, leaving her alone. She didn't say anything in response and just went back to sleeping like the lazy fool she was. Whatever. I didn't need her on my side. I did know a few people who would be, though. Quil and Embry had been my friends for years now. They'd been on my side before so I had a feeling that they would side with me again. I knew that Paul would too for that matter, since he loathed vampires.

I was so focused on my thoughts that I didn't even notice that I'd ran into someone until I heard them yelp in pain. I immediately stopped and glanced downwards to see Seth Clearwater on the ground, groaning and rubbing his head. He glanced up at me in surprise.

"Oh. Jacob, I didn't even see you there," he muttered.

I rolled my eyes. "Uh huh," I chuckled. "As if you _really _didn't see me walking, Seth."

"I was joking," he deadpanned, standing up. "Well, I, uh, got places to be. Bye Jacob."

"Why the rush?" I asked.

I recalled that Seth used to look up to me and noticed that lately, he wasn't as near me as much. I knew that he wasn't fond of my dislike for his sister, but that was between the two of us. I couldn't help wondering if maybe he still did and didn't show it, or if he'd changed.

"I don't have the time," Seth said urgently. "That's all."

I crossed my arms. "Come on, little man. We used to chill out all the time. What changed?"

Seth paused and thought about it. His boyish face became twisted into a scowl as he stared off into space for a few minutes before he looked me in the eye, still scowling.

"No offense dude, but _you_ did," he replied. "You used to be real cool and funny, the kind of guy that I could look up to. You've really changed, Jacob, and not for the better. What happened to you man? You just aren't the same person anymore."

"I didn't change," I reassured him. "I've gotten smarter, that's all."

Seth didn't seem to believe my answer and silently shuffled off. I had a mind to say something, but I let the kid leave. He wasn't who I wanted to talk to anyways and there was no point in getting into an argument with a kid. I shrugged and pushed his words aside, deciding to go and look for Quil and Embry. Knowing them, they were at Quil's place playing video games.

Quil's house was just a few feet away from where I was standing. I could already hear them bickering with each other as I walked inside. Looking around, I saw that they were in fact playing video games. They both noticed me the moment I was there. Quil looked uneasy and Embry merely frowned as he turned off both the game and the TV.

"Hey guys, what's up?" I asked, grinning.

"Not much," Quil replied, rubbing the back of his neck. "What are you doing here?"

"I just came by to chat with my buds," I replied.

Embry stood up. "We were just about to head out on patrol duty. Sorry Jake."

I frowned. "Sam and Raina are already out patrolling right now, though."

Quil and Embry looked at each other momentarily and I swore that they were trying to communicate without me being speaking because they knew that I'd know what they were trying to say. So I watched on and stared between the two of them until finally I decided to dispel the awkward air by clearing my throat, which caught their attention.

"Look, Jake, I don't know how to go about saying this to your face, but…" Embry trailed off.

I narrowed my eyes. I could feel that this wasn't going to be a good thing, especially given the look in Quil and Embry's eyes. Neither of them were acting like their typically goofy selves and that made me worried. I certainly didn't like where this was going.

Quil finished for him. "We don't really want to sound like jerks or anything, but we'd rather not hang out with you anymore."

My jaw dropped. "What?" I asked, feeling my body begin to shake. "What the hell do you mean you don't want to "hang out with me anymore"? What's that supposed to mean?"

"Calm down, Jake," Embry urged.

"Don't tell me to calm down!" I snapped. "Explain!"

"We don't like the way you've been acting, man," Quil said. "When you phased, we were glad because that meant you were one of us and we wouldn't have to keep the big secret anymore. I don't know when things started changing, but we've both noticed it lately. It's like you're an entirely different person now than you were when you first phased."

Why was everyone going on about me changing? I _hadn't _changed!

"Embry, you feel the same?" I asked quietly.

He nodded. "Sorry man, but it's the truth."

I felt a surge of anger shoot through me as I lifted up a fist and slammed it down on the table that was next to me, destroying it in an instant as a snarl erupted from my mouth. My hand throbbed in pain for a few seconds before it healed. I could feel my whole body quivering, enraged by the betrayal of two people that I had thought to be my friends.

"Leave Jacob," Embry growled, his eyes darkening.

"Now," Quil added in a low growl.

As much as I wanted to thrash them for their stupidity, I realized that it wouldn't be smart. Two against one was never good odds, even for me. So I stormed out of Quil's house, slamming the door roughly behind me, unable to keep the curse words from flying across the back of my head.

"Ungrateful bastards!" I growled. How could they do this to me? Damn it. I thought I knew them better than that. Was I that wrong about everyone around me? Or…

My body froze. Was I wrong? Had I really changed so much that everyone, from the people that I once called friends to even people I didn't speak with, noticed it? I thought about what they'd all said and wondered to myself: were they right?

_No! I can't…they can't be…but…_

I couldn't take this. I needed to get home and rest or something. This was too much for me to think about right now. I tried to clear my mind as I made my way back home, the only thought on my mind being my bed. Anything but being out here with all the glaring and jeering that people I once considered friends and allies were aiming at me.

I caught sight of Paul as I moved and debated on whether or not I wanted to talk to him. He wouldn't turn on me, though, would he? No, of course not. He lost his parents to vampires a few years ago and he clearly didn't like the Cullens. He wouldn't just randomly start liking the leeches, I knew that well. He would agree with me.

"Paul!" I shouted.

He stopped whatever it was he had been doing and glanced at me. As usual, his body looked tense and he looked irritable, which only seemed to become more pronounced when he spotted me. That was nothing new, though. Paul was always in a bad mood, that was just the way he was, not that I could blame the guy.

"Jacob," he greeted evenly.

I grinned. Finally, a reaction that meant he wasn't against me.

"What're you up to, man?" I asked.

"Thinking," he replied. "Sam says that I should work on my temperament, so I've been thinking of ways to try and train myself."

"How's about tearing some ticks up, what do you say to that?" I inquired.

He narrowed his eyes. "I'd say I'm game _if_ you can find some that need it."

"Good. I could use a partner if I ever decide to go after those damned Cullens. They think they're all high and mighty because they have some with powers, but we're far superior to them and a hell of a lot stronger, too. All we need is to get one of them alone and—"

"Hang on, this is about the Cullens?" Paul asked, scowling. "Man, forget them. They aren't worth the time and energy. I thought you were talking about actual bloodsuckers that were around our territory or something."

"What the hell are you saying?" I asked. "That they aren't a threat?"

"All I'm saying is that you're a little obsessed with them," he replied.

I threw my hands in the air. "How am I obsessed with them? They're vampires for God's sake; we shouldn't be letting them live to begin with. Why can't anyone but me see this? You've all gotten soft because of a few "good deeds" if you even want to call it that!"

Paul scoffed. "You're just saying that because you want that Bella chick. Face it, Jacob, that's never going to happen and you just have to deal with. And really, what kind of girl would want some crazy stalker psycho like you to begin with?"

He pushed past me once he'd finished talking, leaving me utterly speechless. Again. It had happened again, and from _Paul _of all people. It seriously felt like every one of the wolves was against me now. They were defending the bloodsuckers as if they were their best friends, which disgusted me and made me wonder if they'd all lost their minds.

I didn't waste any more time getting back to my house. I needed to clear my head.

"Hello son," my Dad greeted as I waltzed inside.

"Dad," I said back, plopping down on the couch.

I rested my head in my hands and chewed on my lip as I tried to calm myself down. The animal within wanted out and my temper had gotten worse from Paul's comments. My Dad didn't say anything to me, clearly aware that I wasn't in the best of moods. After a few minutes, I was able to push all the anger down and I let out a breath.

"What's the matter, Jacob?" he asked.

I looked up from my hands to see that his forehead was creased with worry.

"Do you think that I've changed?" I asked.

He looked thoroughly confused, as if I'd asked him an easy riddle. "Why yes, Jacob, you've changed in many ways, including—"

I held up my hands. "Not like that, Dad. I mean…has my personality changed to you? Everyone that I talk to says that I've changed for the worse. That I've become blind and paranoid and that I'm obsessed with trying to get Bella away from the Cullens. I mean, I don't think she belongs there, but everyone else seems to think that she does. I don't know anymore."

My father pursed his lips and folded his hands together in thought. I wondered whether he agreed with what they were saying or not. Could he?

He sighed. "Son, I think that maybe you might be taking this a bit too far."

I ground my teeth together. "So even you think that I'm wrong in what I did?"

"No," he replied sternly. "You saw a vampire near a human's throat, so you acted accordingly and that is justifiable. Perhaps things might have gotten a little out of hand because of it, but if that had truly been the case, then I'd rather you have done that than nothing at all."

"Then why…?"

"You must understand, not everyone feels the same about vampires as we do. Some don't understand what they're capable of because their families are new to knowing about them and others are more…naïve. Most of the other council members know how despicable those creatures are and we know that they cannot be trusted."

"And yet you still make treaties with them," I pointed out. "YOU are the Chief, therefore YOU have a say in what happens, Dad. You could've had all of those leeches wiped out the first time we met with them, it would've been easy."

My father frowned. "It's not that easy, Jacob. I had to fight with the others in order to allow for the treaties to begin with—"

"What? You _wanted_ the treaties?" I asked, appalled.

"To show that we aren't the mindless barbarians that they think we are!" he snapped. "Don't you understand why order is necessary, Jacob? If there is no order, there is chaos. And vampires thrive in chaos because it is part of their nature."

His words made sense to me, then, and I nodded in understanding.

"Do you agree that Bella shouldn't be there?" I asked. "They have to be controlling her somehow, I just know it. Leeches can't love. It's not possible."

He glanced downwards and pursed his lips again. There was something in his eyes…remorse, pain and worry…I couldn't make it all out because it vanished after a few seconds. He steeled himself and took in a deep breath before looking into my eyes.

"Son, listen," he said. "I want you to not think about that right now. The Council and I have been talking recently and we've all began to sense that something is…not right. Something big is going to be happening soon, and I need you to be ready when it does. Perhaps dealing with the Cullens will be a part of that, but either way, you need to be ready. Understand?"

I didn't like where this was going and I liked even less that he hadn't given me an answer. Still.

"Fine," I replied. "I'll be ready for it, whatever it is."

"Good." He nodded in approval and gave me a small smile. "Do not worry, son. The Cullens will be dealt with in the future and you will get your mate, of that I am certain. And then, when all is right in the world, you will become the Alpha of the wolves and Chief of the Quileutes. I know for a fact that you will lead us into a new age, my boy. I've seen it in my dreams."

I stood up and nodded, smiling to myself. He was right. It didn't matter right now what anyone said or did. I knew in my heart what was real and what was true. It would only be a matter of time before Jacob Ephraim Black became what he was meant to become. And no one, not human or wolf or vampire, would stop me.

**A/N: Do you think I did a good job making Jacob evil? :D**

**I'm sorry you had to put up with that. But like I said, it needed to be done. There's only one left now.**

**I'm running out of witty things to say...and stuff to ask...oh dear. Oh well. I've said everything else a bunch of times now. No reason to keep repeating. Hope you enjoyed.**

**Oh, but I will mention (for the fiftieth time) Alexandria1 on YT doing a Blood Solstice audiobook. She needs someone willing to voice Esme. So if you have a mic and want to voice Esme, let me or her know. Thanks!**


	82. Epilogue: Solstice

**Disclaimer: I take no claim for Twilight or its characters, only for my own characters and ideas. They be mine. No stealing.**

**Epilogue: Solstice**

**Victoria's POV**

There is one very important rule to follow when forming a coven: make sure that you don't allow idiotic fools who care more about their own stupid goals than they do listening to what is instructed of them. Unfortunately, desperation sometimes calls for one to disregard that rule.

Thus how I ended up allowing James to work with me.

Then again, I suppose that it wasn't the worst choice I'd ever made. Even though he traded intellect for insanity, he did come in handy in finding me pawns, whether or not he did so intentionally aside. Of course, he had a bad habit of getting my pawns killed, including my latest pawn, who ended up in the Cullens' hands. Apparently she betrayed him, too. Typical.

I sighed as I glanced upwards at the dark gray clouds above. I was leaning against the outside wall of a large warehouse that had recently been…vacated. Normally I wouldn't be as close to civilization as I was, but I had my reasons for it today. Two of them, actually. It was a matter of time before one purpose was fulfilled. The other was becoming annoying to wait for.

My pant pocket started vibrating and I whipped out the offending cause; my cell phone. Well, technically it wasn't mine; I was borrowing it. I didn't even bother looking at who was calling because I knew who it was already.

"You're a dumbass," I hissed into the phone once it was at my ear. "Not even worth my time."

There was a growl on the other end. _"Shut up you bitch,"_ came the reply. James sounded rather ragged and I already knew why. It brought a smile to my lips knowing that he'd gotten his ass handed to him for being so dense.

"You got what you deserved, fool," I sneered, trying hard not to laugh at him. "Be thankful I was grateful enough to repay the favor I owed you. In fact, be thankful I even bothered having one of my newborns save your ass to begin with."

"_Whatever,"_ he growled. _"Don't be so full of yourself."_

"James, do you want me to send Aylen back there so she can rip your head off?" I asked.

Aylen was one of my newest pawns. I'd found her a month prior and turned her, knowing from her scent that she was…special. I was delighted to discover that her gift was the power of teleportation, which allowed for her to move from place to place with ease. I'd sent her to go and collect James when he was close to dying, merely because I owed him a favor.

"_No,"_ he grunted. A few seconds later he laughed and I could just imagine his lips curling into a twisted smirk, which he used quite frequently. _"I got you your information, you know. You wouldn't want to kill me with that in my hands, now would you?"_

I snorted. "I could easily beat if out of you if I wanted to, James," I pointed out, which was very true considering the difference in our abilities. He may think he's tough, but I am far superior to him in just about every way possible. "Now be a good little boy and spit it out now before I lose my patience. I have important things to see to and you don't happen to be one of them."

"_Fine, fine,"_ he grumbled, knowing that I was one in control.

"Good. Now tell me what their gifts are and be quick about it," I commanded.

"_I learned that the shorter girl with the black hair can see the future,"_ he replied.

My eyes widened at this new information. It all made sense now, but yet I wondered how she hadn't been able to know about our previous attacks. Perhaps there were flaws to her gift. There had to be, otherwise I would be dead right now.

"Go on," I replied.

"_The bronze haired guy reads minds, I think,"_ he said next, growling as he did.

I had suspected that. I recalled our encounter in the forest and I thought it seemed odd that he was somehow able to know what we had been thinking. So it made sense that he was a telepath.

"Any others?" I inquired.

"_Not that I know of aside from that chick with the fire powers,"_ he replied. _"She wasn't there."_

_Of course not_, I thought. _You'd be dead if she had been._

"_That's all I know,"_ James growled.

I sighed and twirled a finger through my gorgeous mane of curly red hair.

"Then you are no longer of any use to me, dear James," I replied, grinning. "I'll be nice and let you live, but I don't want to see your putrid face anymore. If I do, I will not hesitate to end your worthless little life, and I will do so slowly and painfully. I am not going to burden myself with babysitting you, James. Go and find someone else to bother. Goodbye."

I snapped the phone shut without giving him a chance to reply and stuffed the cellular device into my pocket. Dealing with James always seemed to give me a headache, but at least now I wouldn't have to put up with him anymore. I'd grown tired of his games, anyways. They were only fun when I was the one making the rules, not him.

With another sigh, I decided that standing around had no purpose. I could feel the burn in my throat beginning to rise and realized that now was the time for hunting. I grinned. I did _so_ love hunting. The thrill of the kill, the blood, the stalking, the blood…well, alright so the blood was my favorite part. It was like the nectar of the Gods; a drink that was all satisfying, but was gone before I could even begin to enjoy the taste.

Other than their blood, the occasional entertainment brought on from watching them struggle with their petty little lives and the fact that there were some that could be used as pawns, they were weak, fragile and utterly pathetic creatures.

I moved forward, sprinting up the wall of the nearest building to the roof. I started to jump from rooftop to rooftop, keeping my movements fast and lithe while scouting out the area with my eyes and nose for a potential meal. It didn't take long as I spotted a single human male, a dockworker judging from his attire. I smiled and immediately landed on the ground, crouching down as the unsuspecting fool grumbled to himself while looking around.

No one else. He was alone. Perfect.

I leapt forward and let out a guttural snarl, frightening the human. He leapt into the air and yelped in fright, but I already had my teeth sinking into his neck by the time he started to land, using the force of my jump to snap his weak neck. I drained him of his blood, letting a quiet moan escape my mouth as I did. Delicious, simply delicious.

Once he was devoid of blood I tossed the body into the nearby water and watched it sink. Once I'd double checked to see if the body was gone, I hastily made my way back to the warehouse, sticking the shadows just in case any humans were in the area. I wasn't afraid of them seeing me, no, but I didn't want to make the extra effort to silence them if they did.

A few seconds later I was back at the warehouse. After briefly making sure that there were no eyes watching me, I slipped inside. I was greeted by a cacophonous scream filtering through the warehouse, aggravating my ears. I was used to the noise, however, and cautiously made my way over to the source of the screaming. It was a human that I'd found three days ago. I'd been able to tell from the scent that this human would be special, so I came here for the biting.

The changing process was nearly complete. It wouldn't be long now.

I only hoped that this human would be more useful than the last one. It was a pain having to find good pawns among humans. I had to make sure that any I bit was competent in some way, otherwise I would end up with a complete moron that I'd have to babysit until they could think on their own. Luckily for me, my gift did come in handy for finding useful humans.

My gift, which I hadn't known about for quite some time, was the power of survival. A sixth sense so powerful that my body would automatically know when danger was nearby and how to avoid it with ease. There was also the benefit during battle that it gave me, since I could easily avoid anything my enemies threw at me. I had to admit, it was fun watching them squirm around while I showcased my superiority. Even without my gift, I was more powerful than most.

But there was another use for it and that was pinpointing humans of interest. I could tell from their smell if they had any potential within them, whether that potential was a gift or not, I wouldn't know. All I knew is that I could tell when a human had some form of specialty, which was more than enough for me in choosing pawns.

Very rarely had I ever lost a pawn. In fact, only once had a pawn ever escaped from me. Bella.

When James had first convinced me to make her our plaything, I agreed. I could tell by how clumsy and weak she was that it would bring me great enjoyment. I intended to turn her after I'd had my fill of fun, but that never happened. Part of the reason was James. He had wanted her for himself despite our agreement, which pissed me off. I couldn't trust him.

The other reason was that I never would have guessed that she would find another vampire coven. The irony of it all hit me later and I was beyond frustrated by the fact that I had lost a potential pawn like that. That is why I wanted to get her back, because not only did I not like losing, but I wanted to turn her and make her my pawn.

It didn't end up happening, though. I had not anticipated the size of the coven she'd somehow become a part of, and I ended up underestimating what they were capable of. To think that an entire coven of vampires with strange gold eyes and an odd scent would dedicate themselves to protecting a human of all things. It was preposterous!

I mean, sure, she smelled good, but what in the fuck were they going to do? Share her?

I thought that an entire vampire family wanting to keep one human alive was insane, confusing and beyond annoying. But when I saw that she also had been made the _mate _of a vampire...

Suffice to say, my original plans of capturing Bella failed miserably and I was nearly killed by a vampire that could control fire. The fact that I survived was something I attributed to my gift and to the convenient falling out that the pyro vampire woman had with her powers. I was lucky to get away, but I decided that I was no longer going to play around with James.

I swallowed my pride and fled the immediate area, though I was still in Washington. I had other things to deal with, anyways, not trying to waste my time on some pesky human. I knew that if I slacked anymore, it would upset _her_ anyways. So I decided that it had been time to make my hunt for good humans to turn into newborn pawns my top priority.

The number of newborns that I had currently wasn't much. I had eight newborns which would soon be nine once the human screaming several feet away was turned. The first human I'd found was a promising eighteen year old boy that I'd discovered wandering out in the rain. He was the "second in command" of the other newborns since I had no interest in dealing with them.

I'd been worried that he wouldn't be up to the job, since it took a lot to persuade him to join me in the first place. But he'd proven to be both intelligent and surprisingly controlled. He didn't have a gift, but he had a very keen mind, which is precisely why I put him in charge. He was also in charge of finding humans for me to turn, though he had yet to do so.

Competence and intelligence may be Riley's forte. Keeping control over a group of bloodthirsty and crazed newborns, on the other hand, had not been. I'd already lost four newborns in the past two weeks and been forced to make new ones. I was getting fed up with losing newborns because if that kept happening, then the goal I had in mind would never be achieved.

That irked me.

"Victoria?"

I snapped out of my thoughts and turned to see one of my created newborns standing near the entrance to the warehouse, staring at me with somber eyes. She was a shorter girl, about 5'2, with long black hair and a youthful face. I recognized her as Bree Tanner, the second newborn that I'd created, though I had forgotten why. She was strong for someone so small, very strong, but her lack of control and her attitude were not things that I liked.

Thankfully, the fool was beyond petrified of me, which made dealing with her easy.

"What do you want?" I asked, lifting an eyebrow. "As you can see, I'm busy keeping watch over a future member of the army. So unless you've come to report something of interest, I suggest you scurry on back to where you're supposed to be."

She gulped nervously and licked her lips. "I-I-I just wanted t-to come and tell you that Riley made t-two new n-n-newborns for you," she stammered feebly.

I blinked, surprisingly thrown off guard by her comment. Riley was finally starting to be useful for once, which amazed me. That also meant that things were finally starting to look up for me and my growing entourage of minions. Good.

"Excellent," I said. "Tell Riley to keep up the good work. Oh, and make sure that he enforces my rules on the newborns he made. I don't want any more casualties on our side just because a damn fight breaks out for no reason. I am sick and fucking tired of having to replace one of you, do you understand me, Bree? No more of it, or there will be hell to pay."

"It's not my fault that some of the others are assholes," she grumbled, rubbing her neck.

"What was that, Bree?" I inquired. Bree flinched and ducked her head, knowing that she had no reason to talk that way. "Given the fact that you were responsible for two of the deaths that I had to deal with, I sure as shit would be keeping my mouth shut if I were you. One more fuck up and I swear I will tear your limbs off until you learn some self-control"

"Yes ma'am," she said, curtly bowing again. "I'm s-sorry Victoria. I really have been trying to keep my temper in check. It's hard, though. Sometimes one of them mocks me for some reason or they steal one of my meals. I just...snap. And I've been trying to keep my bloodlust in check, too, but that's ten times more difficult…"

Her red eyes stared at me, pleading for understanding. I put my hands on my hips and glared at the little cretin, but I suppose I could empathize with her feelings. I'd had trouble learning self control when I was a newborn, too. I'd slaughtered countless humans for blood. Of course, my gift and my own superiority helped me escape without ever being caught.

I pursed my lips. "Don't worry about your bloodlust, Tanner. I just want you and those other imbeciles to clean up after yourselves. Leave no traces of evidence ever and make sure that you keep low profiles. So help me God, if I ever find out that one of you forgot to clean up after your meals or got caught by other humans…"

I let my threat sink in and watched as the gears in her messed up head turned rapidly. She comprehended the fact that I was both stronger and much better than she was and she knew that I was more than willing to kill her and any other newborn that failed to meet my expectations. I heard her take in an unneeded breath and gulp again, which was also unnecessary.

"I understand," she whispered. "I will t-tell Riley and the others. I'll be good, too."

I smiled, flashing my teeth. "Good girl. Now if you would just—"

I was interrupted by the cell phone vibrating in my pants again. I scowled and pulled it out, glancing at the caller ID. My eyes widened when I saw the number calling me and I shooed Bree away with my hand as I put it at my ear.

"Hello there," I greeted. "I did not expect you to call me so soon."

"_You know you're happy to hear from me," _replied the sweet voice on the other line.

I licked my lips. "That is true. Can you blame me, though? It's been far too long since I've seen my beloved hellion. We haven't made love in so long I've had to substitute you, and let me just say that it cannot compare."

The sound of laughter echoed through the phone. _"My sweet dove; you are truly one of a kind."_

I grinned. "But of course I am. It is why we go together so well, don't you agree?"

"_Indeed,"_ she chuckled. _"However, we should get down to business. Have you been able to locate the person that we were after?"_

I thought back to when we'd last discussed this topic and, after a moment, I realized that I had in fact seen the person that we'd been searching for. She'd been adamant on finding this man because she believed that he would be able to help us, but I sincerely doubted that now.

"Yes," I replied. "But I'm afraid that I won't be able to contact him. I've already had a run-in with him and his coven and it…didn't go over too well. You will have to be the one to do it."

She sighed. _"I understand. I am planning on flying over there soon, though, so it won't be too much trouble at all."_ Somehow she sounded as if she'd already known that I was going to say that and didn't act as surprised as I initially thought.

"You're going to fly over here?" I asked, astonished."Well, good. It's not the same without you around anymore."

"_True, true,"_ she laughed. _"Do not worry, my dove. We will be together again very soon. Then we can bring our plan to fruition. Even if he won't help us, we will have what we need. Tell me, have you been creating newborns as I asked?"_

I grinned again. "I have. Hold on one second." I covered the cell with my hand. "Bree!"

The dark haired girl reappeared instantly, stopping a few feet away from me and kneeling down.

"Yes, Victoria?" she asked quietly.

"I want you to call Aylen. Have her bring the others here at once," I commanded.

She nodded and vanished once again. I became distinctly aware that the screaming behind me had ceased. I peered over my shoulder at the unmoving body and could hear the heart pounding away like a raving drum. It wouldn't be long now before the heart would stop altogether and another newborn would awaken into the world as my newest pawn. I smirked at that thought.

"I have a good number created," I said into the phone at last, displeased with myself for my own slacking. "It's not the amount that you wanted, not quite yet, but it's almost there. I've had my hands full of other issues for the past few months. I am sorry for that. Now, however, I am focusing solely on our mission, I promise."

"_Do not despair, my dove,"_ she chuckled. _"There is still time."_

"Perhaps," I mused. "But the more time we waste, the less of a chance we are going to get."

"_Relax,"_ was her soothing response. _"We will succeed, I promise you that much. You need not worry about it. I will be there within the next few weeks and we can continue from there. Rest assured, we will achieve our goal in the end."_

"You're right," I said. "We will."

"That's what I like to hear. I will see you soon, Victoria. Goodbye."

"Goodbye, my demoness," I cooed.

She laughed once more before hanging up. I hung up shortly after and speedily stuffed it back into my pant pocket. Knowing that my mate was going to be with me again soon was something I looked forward to. Not to mention the sex. Oh yes, the sex was always the best part alongside hunting with her and having some fun. I could hardly wait. That wasn't the only thing that excited me, though. I smiled at the thought of what was to come.

My mate and I were doing something that was incredibly dangerous, yet the reward that we would reap from doing so was far more massive in scale. We were creating a newborn army.

I'd heard of such things in the past, including armies being formed in the south several decades ago. Of course, most of the people who formed those armies ended up dead because it went against the largest coven in the world's laws. Fortunately, I was fairly certain that they had yet to catch on to what was happening now.

The various scents of vampires entered my nostrils and I knew that my newborns had arrived.

"Victoria."

I recognized the voice as Riley's and walked outside to see him standing with the other newborns, Bree twirling a finger through her hair on the side while the others looked at me expectantly and curiously.

"There is a reason for my summoning you here," I began. "First things first, though. Aylen."

The orange haired girl stepped forward, cocking her head to the side. Had I not been mated, I might've found the dimpled girl attractive. Well, I did sleep with her several times, both when she was a human and when she had turned. She wasn't as bad as I thought she'd be, and I wasn't above admitting that fact, even to her.

"Go and find me a human. Any will do, but make it quick," I ordered. She bowed and, in a flash she vanished into thin air, her body dissipating like mist. "The rest of you I want to go onto the rooftop until I give you further instructions. Your newest member is about to awaken and I don't want any casualties, so begone."

I noticed that there were indeed two vampires I didn't recognize. They looked at Riley questioningly as I barked out my orders. I scoffed.

"You two," I pointed at them. "I will speak with you later. I can assure you now, however, that I am stronger, faster, smarter and far more vicious than either of you combined and I do not want to hear any shit because you think differently. You will follow my orders or I will rip your limbs off and torture you until you do. Just ask Bree."

Bree flinched again and stopped playing with her hair. Her face looked pained and humiliated, enough so that both newborns clearly saw that I was not joking. Without a word all of them blurred up the warehouse, scaling it with ease to get to the rooftop. A few moments later, Aylen reappeared with a female human in her teens on her back, unconscious.

"Here you are," she sang, tossing the human on the ground like a toy.

I couldn't help smiling at the fact that my personality had started wearing off on these newborns.

"Good. Go wait with the others. You'll know when I want you to come inside."

She nodded and did as I asked while I grabbed onto the unconscious human and picked her up. I carried the body inside the warehouse, knowing full well that the newborn was going to be hungry, confused and most likely violent. I had had some trouble in the past with a few of the newborns I'd created, so I knew from experience what to expect.

There was no longer a heartbeat. It had stopped when I had closed the phone. The body needed a moment to harden fully and a chance for the venom to begin circulating before one would actually wake up into their new "life".

No sooner had I thought that did the body stir and I watched as the newest addition to my army sat up slowly, looking around with ruby red eyes like an infant would. She whipped her head around from side to side, a million different things being processed by her much sharper, and much cleared mind. Even I couldn't help but take in the sight. There was no way of describing neither the experience nor watching it unfold.

Her eyes fixated on me. For a moment she just stared, but it didn't take long for her red eyes to turn black as she curled her lip back and snarled, threatened by my presence. I feigned a yawn and held up the human with one human. Eyes bulged, mouth opened and venom began drooling down her lips as she stared at the human hungrily.

"Here's your first meal," I said. "It's on the house. Enjoy."

I tossed the human over to her and watched as she growled and pounced on top of the body. The sounds of snapping bones filled the air as the ravenous newborn sank her teeth into the girl's neck and drained her of blood. The human would die without feeling a thing. I had a feeling that it was Aylen's doing, since she was far more merciful than I was. Not that that was saying much.

Once the human was drained completely, the newborn growled and threw the body against the nearest wall, irritated that there wasn't more blood for her to drink. I chuckled, a sound that grabbed her attention and caused her to growl at me once again.

"Don't you growl at me," I growled back. "I am the one that changed you, girl. I took you from a boring life of pain and suffering and turned you into a demi-God. I know that this might be hard for your brain to comprehend right now, but I am Victoria Sutherland. You are a vampire, an immortal being that will forever crave blood and death. I am your creator. Your master."

I watched as my words slowly sunk in to her head. She obviously didn't fully understand everything I had said to her, not at first, anyways. For a few minutes the newborn said nothing, instead remaining still as her mind raced. I wasn't sure if my words had done anything, but after those minutes passed, she blinked and slowly stood up.

I could see that she was at least making an effort to understand. More than most would. Still, it would be unwise to approach her yet, so I began doing what I always did when I was in the presence of a newborn; entice.

"Do not let your instincts control you. I am not your enemy," I informed her. True, what I was about to say wasn't soothing, but I needed to get my point across. If she attacked, I wasn't going to just stand around idly like a moron. "If you try to fight me, I will fight back and I will not be merciful. I won't kill you, no, but I won't tolerate being assaulted by my servants."

I pushed my scent outwards and watched as it did its trick. It didn't matter if she were gay or straight; humans could not resist a vampire's charms. Our smell, voice and appearance was more than enough to pull in even the strongest willed human, which is what made us so deadly. The newborn's nostrils flared and I watched as my scent overtook her.

"That's it," I cooed. "Just relax dear. I am not going to harm you. I am your friend here."

She struggled at first, trying to choose between believing me and attacking me. Seeing that I needed to make certain that she chose correctly, I snapped my fingers. In mere seconds the other newborns filled the room, all of them standing behind me, crouched down and ready. The newborn girl jumped back and growled, crouching in a defensive position.

I held a hand up. "Don't be foolish. You are outnumbered and outmatched, dear. But this is not a show of power on my part. This is a show of what you can be." I waved my hand at the newborns behind me. She looked confused. "I have helped all of them in their struggles. I will do the same for you if you choose to follow and obey me."

The signs of struggle were still there. I pursued trying to get her to understand.

"I know that you are confused. You don't know where you are, you're unable to think clearly and your instincts are telling you to fight. I'm warning you not, don't listen to them."

Eventually the newborn calmed down a bit. Not much, but enough to where it was clear that she was giving me a chance. That was a good sign; it showed that she was willing to cooperate. My sixth sense was telling me that she was still untrustworthy and that I should be cautious. I took one small step forward, watching her carefully.

"What is your name?" I asked.

Her brow furrowed and she scowled. "I…I don't…know…" she replied. I watched the surprise form on her face, likely from hearing her voice. I'd expected that much. "T-this…voice is…_is _this my voice?"

"Yes," I replied. "You will soon discover that you look different as well. Not too much, but enough to where you likely won't recognize yourself. Do not despair, you will get used to it as time goes on. However, I want you to think hard. Think about who you used to be. I want you to remember your name for me."

She nodded slowly as I turned to face the others.

"I wanted you all here for a reason," I told them. "As of now, our movement has been lax. I am the blame for this and I accept that fact. Things change starting now, though. I want all of you to do as I tell you and to keep yourselves in check. We will be leaving this area very soon because we cannot stay in one place for too long. I need to build this army up."

"As you wish, Victoria," Riley said, bowing his head.

I smiled. "Good. Any who do not cooperate will be killed. I am no longer tolerating foolishness and that includes getting into petty fights. I will begin formulating a plan as we move. We will be returning here eventually, yes, but the farther away we are from this place, the safer we'll be."

"Why is that?" Aylen asked.

"I'll explain it later," I sighed. "Now then…"

"This has to do with the Cullen clan, doesn't it?" Riley inquired.

I lifted an eyebrow. "How did you know about them?"

"I overheard you talking about them once," he replied, shrugging. "I was going to bring it up with you when you were alone, but I didn't have the chance. I apologize, but I must admit that I am wondering about them."

I grimaced. I'd not mentioned the Cullens to any of the newborns yet. I had planned to, yes, but I intended to wait until their numbers had grown.

"They are a part of the problem," I admitted. "They are far more dangerous than I would have imagined them to be and because of that, we must vacate the area. If we get too close, they'll come after us and destroy us all. We can't let that happen, not yet. I will explain more about them later on when our numbers have grown."

Riley frowned. "Are they that dangerous?"

I held my hands up. "We will discuss it later, I promise."

And I would. Because it would only be a matter of time before the army was complete and my mate and I would be able to do what we'd been planning on doing. Of course, we would need to make sure that there was nothing standing in our way. Those poor Cullen fools had no idea what they were in for. They would be the first to fall to our army.

I turned to the newborn girl and gave her a questioning look. "Do you know your name yet?"

Her eyes narrowed and she nodded. "Yes."

"Then tell me, what is your name?" I asked.

"Vanessa."

Let the planning begin.

**A/N: Worst. Ending. Ever. You must be all "why do you keep doing this to us" or "there better be a sequel" or whatever. **

**First off, quit the crying. There will be a sequel. Eventually. ;)**

**But now, let me get serious. Yes, this is the part where I get emotional and whatnot. Don't want to read it, then stop reading now. **

**This is the ****last "official" chapter of my first ever Twilight/Bellice/romance/completed fan fiction. I know that it has been a bit rocky at times. It isn't perfect and I'll be the first to admit that fact. But I'll be damned if anyone says it's a bad story, because I think I did pretty well for it being my first time. And I must say, it has been an amazing experience for me both as a person and as a writer. I have learned a lot from writing Blood Solstice and I hope to continue to learn and grow as I continue to put my crazy thoughts down on a word document for all to read.**

**You know, when I first started writing this, I didn't think it'd get anywhere. I was afraid of posting it on this website because I was afraid of getting bad reviews or never getting reviews at all. Yet here I am now with over 2500 reviews and nearly 600 people with this story in their favorites. I can say without a doubt that my initial fears were pointless and they've practically vanished. There were times that I was afraid of how people would react, that is true, but I knew I shouldn't have been. I shouldn't have let my fear of what people would say affect me the way I did, but I got over it. **

**Let me say this now. I will write what I want to write and if you don't like it, then don't waste your time or my time. It's that simple. I don't want to hear any crap about how something is gross to you when no one else complains or if you didn't like this, etc, etc. You're entitled to your opinion, yes, but unless you're giving me some constructive criticism, I really don't want to hear it. But anyways, on to the lighthearted stuff.**

**First and foremost, I want to thank all of you readers. Those of you who review every chapter whether it's the obligatory "great chapter!" or a much longer, much more in depth review (my favorites). You have all been a positive influence on me and my writing and I dare say that if I had not had all of you, I don't know if this story would have ever really gone anywhere like it did. But there's no reason to think like that because thanks to all of you, Blood Solstice is one of the top rated Bellice romance stories on this website. Who knows, maybe it will continue to grow despite the fact that it's done. I would hope so. I would also hope that this story serve as a beacon for other Bellice writers to get our favorite couple out into the open. Screw Team Edward and Team Jacob, everyone knows Alice is superior (maybe not everyone, but they will. Oh yes, they will).**

**I also would like to thank a few people in particular. First of all, my Beta(s). Bleed4her was my first Beta and I owe her a lot of thanks. She couldn't keep it up because of personal life, but I am thankful for what she did for me. I wish you the best of luck, my friend. I also owe thanks to megster1992, the evil little monster that she is. She took over for Beta-ing my story and has been a decent enough help in catching things that my brain and stupid computer didn't. Funny how I wished I wouldn't need a Beta at first, yet I did in the end. In all seriousness, thank you both from the bottom of my heart for helping me out. It made quite a bit of difference. **

**Lots of love goes out to kyraaah1992 for making the wonderful Blood Solstice trailer on Youtube, I thank you for taking the time to do that. I also would like to thank vamp-haruka for being awesome and starting the first Blood Solstice audiobook and to those offering their voices for that. I also would like to extend a big thank you for those who have contacted me and are planning to do an audio book for Blood Solstice, because the more, the merrier. That just means that Blood Solstice will keep growing, too, which is always a good thing. **

**And of course, I would like to extend a lot of thanks and love to AleinWonderland, who has been my constant support system since we first started chatting a few months ago. She helped give me ideas, she helped correct some of my stuff and she made the banner, the Youtube channel and all the amazing art edits of my original characters, which you now see on my Tumblr pages. I owe her the most because she was helped me the most and I would have never gotten anywhere had it not been for her. So thank you, big sister, for being there for me when I struggled and putting up with me whenever we chatted. Lord knows you need thanks for that. :P**

**Lastly, there are a few stories that I would like to honor here, all of which served as inspiration for me. Who knows, maybe the authors of these wonderful stories might drop in one day. That would be a treat. Anyways, the stories are:**

**Forever by Jocelyn Torrent; my first Bellice story and the one that really got me into the wonderful pairing that is Bellice.**

**Equilibrium by YourResidentFreak; another of my faves, this story is the one that inspired me to go in depth with the mate aspects of the vampires, the ferality too.**

**Age Doesn't Matter in Love by XxKelleyxX; a great story, I do believe that this surpasses mine. She does a great job with the emotions of her characters and I tried as best as I could to emulate it. **

**The Edge by fembuck, What Goes Up by shamrock317, The Looking Glass by beth bluth, Alice in Blunderland by Melancholy Ink Splatter, Fire's Angel by ManaMila, When the World is Dark by Departed...all of these stories helped inspire me. I extend a thank you to each author for crafting these stories and for helping give me inspiration in writing one of my best stories ever. I owe pretty much everything I've written to all of you, in fact, and my love for Bellice as well.**

**Alright, that's it. One last thank you again to everyone who has supported me and this story. It's not over yet, remember. There will be a sequel. And the oneshots. And those three bonus chapters will be added on to this, so look forward to those if you like the characters.**

**Is there a next time? Yes, there will be. But for now, I simply say ado.**

**Oh, yes. Plugs. Number one, Bellice Heaven, a forum that needs YOU to join and support so that it grows. Two, AleinWonderland's first story. And three...well, look forward to what comes next for Blood Solstice and for a future update to Broken Aurora. Peace.**


	83. Bonus: Hunter

**Disclaimer: HA HA HA HA HA HA HA! Wait, wrong disclaimer, sorry. Ahem. I don't own Twilight or any Twilight characters, only my own characters and ideas.**

**Bonus: Hunter**

**James' POV**

I am not the kind of person that should ever be double-crossed. I should know, I killed my own parents because of the way they treated me when I was a human. And yet, I seemed to be getting betrayed a lot lately. First it was Sarah, the ungrateful bitch that she was. I had given her the honor of calling me her "mate" and she repaid my kindness by ripping my damn arm off.

Now I'd just been abandoned by Victoria, who I'd allowed to travel with me for quite some time yet she blamed me for her shortcomings and for being turned on. Feh! I wanted nothing more than to rip her apart for blaming me when it was clearly her thought, but I couldn't because I didn't know where the bitch was.

I was thinking all this as she yakked into the phone I was holding near my ear.

Her feral tone mocked me as she spoke. _"Then you are no longer of any use to me, dear James. I'll be nice and let you live, but I don't want to see your putrid face anymore. If I do, I will not hesitate to end your worthless little life, and I will do so slowly and painfully. I am not going to burden myself with babysitting you, James. Go and find someone else to bother. Goodbye."_

Then she hung up and I let out an irritated growl, crushing the device in my palm. It wasn't mine to begin with; I'd just stolen it from my last meal and used the number given to me by the newborn she'd sent to "rescue" me. The nerve of Victoria!

"I should kill her," I grumbled to myself. I wanted to. I wanted to hunt that fiery haired whore down and rip her into pieces, starting with each curly lock of hair—I'd keep one as a souvenir since she did smell ravishing—then I'd go for the limbs and finally the head. It was the least she deserved for pulling this crap on me, the traitor.

This is why I preferred traveling alone. I hated deadweight. Perfume, too. That crap was nauseating and it ruined a perfectly good scent. Damn humans.

Seriously, why was I always surrounded by fools? It seemed like a consistency since from years back when I had first allowed someone to travel with me. The oaf had ended up trying to tell me that what I was doing was "wrong" and that we should find a "better way to live". I almost killed the stupid bastard for spouting his nonsense, but I just left him instead. I was above that.

Then there was Victoria, but I didn't want to think about her. Just thinking about her name and voice was enough to anger me.

I needed to do something to clear my head. I thought on it. Perhaps if I found a human that I could play around with, that would do the trick. I wasn't thirsty, but that didn't mean I couldn't have some fun, now did it? After all, that was all humans were good for. My games.

Yet for some reason no one else seemed to understand why it was a game, or the rules of the game for that matter. It was either that they didn't bother trying to get it or they simply were too foolish to get why my games were so much fun. It was their loss, I suppose, but in the end it didn't matter. I was the best at the game. No one could ever beat me at it.

I clenched my fists and closed my eyes, letting out a breath. I couldn't say that. Because despite the fact that it shouldn't have happened, despite all the irritations that were involved, there had been someone that had beaten my game. No. Not beaten. No one but me beats the game. There had simply been two times where there had been…complications.

Damn those golden eyed freaks. Damn Victoria. Damn that stupid blonde bitch Sarah.

They had cost me my chance at killing Bella. She had smelled so divine and been an easy target with her clumsiness and obvious bad luck. Hell, she wasn't too bright either and she was a total wuss, which made it all the more enjoyable for me. Ah, how I missed the sound of her whimpering and crying in the night. Such a joyous melody mixed in with her pleading for her pitiful little life and how easily manipulated she was by Victoria.

Damn it, I thought of her again. Well, she did come in useful during that time. I just wished that she would've let me have some fun with the human runt instead of hogging her to herself. But did she give me a chance? No, she said that I didn't "have enough self-control" and that I'd "kill her before the real fun could begin" and blah, blah, blah.

Words! Her and her blasted words, time and time again.

Always trying to convince me to keep my distance and let the human go and this and that. It pissed me off that she thought she had the right to boss me around. I was trying to play my game, not listen to some ninny bark orders at me like I was some kind of slave child.

I wanted to show her who the real boss was. I wanted to, but never did. Maybe I should've proven to her that I was the best between the two of us when I'd had the chance. Sure she'd foiled my previous attempts at beheading her in the past, which I couldn't blame her for. That was all luck though, I knew that and I'm fairly certain that she knew it too.

Why else would she run away like a frightened little girl after she had nearly gotten the both of us killed by those blasted yellow eyes and their pyro powers?

I couldn't believe that such a vampire existed. I _would _have considered her a potential target for my game, but considering the fact that she was clearly capable of torching me, I decided not. A shame that she was already mated, I could've used someone like her. That would have been an ally worth keeping around. Not to mention that fine body of hers. But then she was obviously a poor choice. In fact, I was better off single. James the hunter did not need anyone else.

Besides, I had my game. And that never got old.

I did so enjoy myself. The thrill of the kill, the entertainment in watching helpless prey struggle and squirm before the mighty hunter. That's what I was, the hunter, the master of the game of life and death that all were welcome to play, but only one would ever come out on top; me.

I couldn't help it. I burst into a fit of laughter. I recalled all the humans I'd hunted in the past and the number of times I'd given them a ray of hope just to watch their spirits lift as they fought for that one slight chance of escape. And then I reveled in the feeling I got when I brought reality crashing down on top of them. There was never any escape from me. I wouldn't allow it.

I was greatness. Ruthless, powerful, intelligent, skilled. But yet, for some reason, even I had been unable to kill not one, but two of my pre-determined prey. That stupid future seeing little bitch Alice and that klutzy human Bella. How two insignificant little insects managed to escape my grasp through sheer luck was beyond me. I did notice one thing in common with both cases: they both had "friends" there to protect them, weak vampires that flocked to protect their little human.

"Fools," I growled to myself. I started to move forward, mentally reenacting the scenes that had played out each time I'd gotten one of them in my clutches. The first time had been the most irritating because it had just been one measly vampire weakened from thirst. The bastard had put up a fight, however, for reasons I would never understand. Not that I even cared to.

_I'd cornered the bastard. He'd hidden away in a cave, the human girl lying on a flat sheet of rock as the venom moved through her body. She was screaming beautifully, but the fact that I wasn't the one conducting the symphony pissed me off. The foolish vampire stood in front of her body, his eyes black and boring into mine fiercely._

"_You won't touch her, boy," he growled. "I'll fight you to the death to make sure of that."_

_I scoffed. "And what are you going to do about it, you piece of shit?" _

"_Whatever it takes to stop you, even if it means giving my life. I would rather die and make sure that she is turned than allow filth like you to get your hands on her," he replied, lunging for me._

"_How sweet, you've grown attached to her!" I cackled, dodging him effortlessly. "What is she to you old man, your pet? How laughable!"_

"_Silence!" he snarled._

_I fought him, surprised that he was able to put up the fight he did. I remembered each time he struck me and each time I struck him, the number of times we sank our teeth into each other and the way he looked at me every time I glanced at the meal several feet away from me, slowly turning into a vampire when she would lose that delicious blood forever._

_Damn it, I'm the hunter. I have hunted down humans all across the world and killed a load of vampires, any that got in my way. I am elite, better than anyone else on the face of this rock in hunting down my prey. No one, I repeat, no one beats me!_

"_Why are you protecting her for?" I asked. "She's a human, you imbecile. She's our food and my prey, not some little creature for you to care for. Give up and go now and I might consider letting you live, but if you keep this up, then you will die with her. In fact, I'll kill her first while you watch and then I'll kill you, too."_

_He shook his head as he avoided one of my attacks. "She is a living, breathing creature with a heart and soul, unlike demons like you. You only want her because it is a game to you, and that's not how the world works, boy. This is no game."_

"_Says you," I snorted. _

_The fool kept at it until I tore his head off and burned his body to ashes. By then, it was too late and the girl had already become a vampire. My game had ended because the magic of killing a human was gone. There wasn't as much fun in hunting vampires. There was more of a challenge to it, sure, but when I couldn't enjoy the feeling of their bones breaking and their blood gushing, there was no point in bothering with it._

I slammed my fist into a nearby tree when I thought back on that. How could a vampire say that a human should be spared just because "she has a heart and a soul"? If that wasn't the most ridiculous garbage I'd ever heard, I didn't know what was.

I suppose I couldn't blame him. He didn't know me. He was uniformed when he took me on, not knowing that I was a hunter and that all the humans on the planet were my prey. Every human—male, female, cross gender, it didn't matter—they were all made to be my prey.

Why else would I have been gifted with such amazing senses and skills?

I couldn't see any other reason for having all that talent than to enjoy myself as a vampire by hunting down humans. It was like chess. No, wait, not chess. That wouldn't work because there was only one king and millions of pawns to sacrifice for the sake of the king's entertainment. It was a shame that the world didn't know about it, but then, I suppose that added to the fun.

But why were there fools out there that protected humans? I didn't understand that. It made no sense to me when I killed the bastard that prevented me from killing that bitch and he sputtered his nonsense about me being a demon. Well, alright, I was a demon, but I wasn't complaining. If I recalled correctly, he'd said something else, right as I went for the kill…

"_You'll never understand, boy," he had said. "And you'll never have her."_

"_That's what you think," I growled back. "No one defies greatness."_

My last words to him right before I killed him. I'd say that they were befitting for a maggot like him, though I probably should have done some more tearing first off. I think making him suffer for ruining my hunt would have been a bit more satisfying seeing as how it was too late to kill her by then anyways. Oh how pissed off I was. And I still am, for that matter.

The situation with little Bella was what baffled me the most. How she had managed to find an entire coven of vampires to protect her…that was unnerving. Maybe that spiky haired brat had gotten a group of softies together because she knew I was after the little runt. The fact that she was claiming to be her mate was laughable, but at the same time, it was perfect.

I could kill two mice with one stomp of the foot. Or so I had thought until I discovered that one of the vampires in the coven could manipulate fire of all things. Not only that, but with that bronze haired boy able to read minds and my past prey able to see the future, my initial plan on killing both of them backfired horribly Victoria's idiocy and Sarah being a useless pawn did me little good in the end, too.

Mind numbing as it was, I now had a goal for the future; revenge. I had been humiliated not on one occasion but twice by those damned Cullens and I'd missed out on finishing off two of my previously started games. I would not be denied again, no way in hell. I would find a way to get to them and I would kill them both. I'd rip the seer bitch apart first and make sweet little Bella watch as her precious girlfriend was torn limb from limb.

And then I would kill her. I would make her death slow and painful, vengeance for all the trouble that she'd put me through. Seeing as how I had nothing but free time on my hands, I believe that I should begin devising how I would kill her. There were so many ways I could do it, so many different methods that I'd used in the past and enjoyed thoroughly. What to do?

I pursed my lips as I moved speedily through the forest area that I was in. I had fled Forks once my arms had been reattached and healed, which I suppose I owed Victoria for. No, I didn't owe her shit; it was the newborn that had come to my aid while the Cullens had been having a nauseating "family" moment amongst themselves. Regardless of that, the fact remained that they were both alive. I had failed. _I_, the greatest hunter in the world, had _failed_ to kill my prey. That was unacceptable and just plain wrong.

I needed a good plan, something that would allow me to surprise them without that shrimp using her gift to see it beforehand. I growled under my breath in frustration because I didn't know if there were any limitations to her power or not. Damn it, that meant I would have to wait longer and plan more carefully. I hated waiting around, especially when there was a potential bit of fun to be had hunting someone down.

"I might have to find someone else to pass the time," I grumbled to myself as I leapt over a fallen tree, keeping my pace even. I didn't have anywhere in mind to go, but I figured that keeping myself moving was a good idea. There was no sense sitting around on my ass.

I glanced down at my hands as I moved and clenched both tightly. The memory of each arm being torn from my body and the pain that I'd felt were both fresh in my head and it brought a wave of rage upon me to think about it. I'd given Sarah everything and she'd betrayed me. But then, I should've seen it coming. She'd been questioning me about her ordeal for some time.

It had taken more effort than necessary to manipulate her. And even that hadn't been enough to keep her on my side. She was an idiot, though. I told Victoria that we should have just killed her when we discovered she was alive. She disagreed and wanted to keep her as a pet. We had argued over it until deciding to just make her a pawn. I had agreed at the time because I thought it would make things more fun. I'll admit, for a while, it did.

The fun didn't last, though. The bitch turned out to be useless in the end. Shows how much Victoria knows about choosing pawns. She thinks she's so smart because her control is better than mine and because she's got a mate. I couldn't care less. And now she thinks she's great because she's starting up an army of newborns. Ha!

She'd actually tried convincing me to join her cause. This was after she'd turned Sarah and sent her ahead to find Bella while we took our time. I didn't want to travel with her, but I had nothing else to do with my time.

"_This is big, James," Victoria had told me. "If this works, we'll crush the Volturi and take over the vampire world. All it takes is a little bit of manipulation and a lot of skill, which only my mate and I possess. If you help us, maybe we'll be nice and give you some territory and a batch of humans to do whatever you please to. What do you say?"_

"_What makes you think that I want to continue my dealings with you when I can barely stomach them now as it is, whore?" I shot back. Her facial expressions amused me as she growled, low and threatening to try and scare me. Oh, please._

"_Or I could just kill you now. It's not like I need you," she hissed._

_I scoffed. "Without me, there's no point in keeping Sarah around."_

"_Perhaps," she said, grinning. "We'll just have to wait and see."_

"_So you say. But what makes you think this will work? The Volturi crushed the last idiot that tried it years ago, what makes you think you'll fare any better?" I laughed._

_She narrowed her eyes. "For one thing, it wasn't me doing it. Secondly, I have my mate helping me and we both know how fearsome and intelligent she is. And if anything, we know of ways to keep the Volturi from finding out. If they do discover, we'll just speed our plans out. They won't find out until it's too late, though. I'm certain of it."_

"_You're pretty arrogant," I sneered._

"_That's a compliment coming from you, dumbass," she retorted, clearly offended._

"_Now why are you being so serious?" I asked, laughing again. "It's not like you'll actually succeed or anything. You're too dense and weak to take on the Volturi, let alone create an army of newborns capable of doing so."_

"_Shut up, you gutless oaf or I'll rip your fucking head off!" she snarled, grabbing my throat._

_I laughed in her face. "Yeah, right! We both know that I'm better than you are!"_

"_Please," she scoffed, throwing me aside. I landed lithely on my feet and rolled my eyes. Her eyes darkened and narrowed. "You know, you've been a royal pain in the ass ever since we decided to "work together". So I've decided that once I've gotten what I want, this alliance of ours will end and I will never deal with you again."_

"_Fine by me, bitch," I chortled. "Just so you know, the girl is mine."_

_Victoria smirked. "Oh, but that's where you're wrong, boy. She's mine. And if you get in my way in getting what rightfully belongs to me, you will die. I don't care what you do or say, I will make your life a living hell and watch you suffer as you die a slow, painful death. No one messes with Victoria, do you hear me you arrogant rat?"_

"_What say we make this more fun, Vicky?" I asked, an idea forming in the back of my head and making me grin with excitement. "Whoever can get to our target first gets to keep her and the other has to accept to defeat and leave with their tail between their legs."_

_Victoria pursed her lips and considered that for a moment. I thought about going for her throat while she was vulnerable, but knowing her gift, it wouldn't do me much good. So I waited for the curly haired slut to figure out whether or not to accept my offer. If she did, then it pretty much gave me the victory already. I was better at hunting than she was._

"_Deal," she replied. "I look forward to you losing."_

"_We'll see, Vicky. And just so you know, when you do lose to my greatness, I'll be nice and spare your miserable life. If anything, I'd love to watch the Volturi tear you and your mate apart."_

Thus a game between the two of us began. We never spoke of it to Sarah when we met up with her and we never spoke of it again. It was obvious that Victoria was hell-bent on making sure that I lost my proposed game. I even gave her the opportunity to try and succeed, knowing that she would end up failing in the end. Why? Simple. She wasn't me.

It didn't matter in the end, since I ended up here, my pride wounded and thirsting to get what was rightfully mine while Victoria hid behind her newborns. I swear, the world works in funny ways sometimes. Pity that it didn't adhere to my rules. Things would be much easier for me then and I would have had a more successful time.

I snorted as I jumped over a rock. We'd made that pact and both vowed to sever our connections once we'd finished up. Neither of us could stand the other despite what we made humans think, which had actually brought on some people thinking that we were mates. Disgusting. She screwed any human female she could get her hands on.

I had more class than that. I only went after the ones that screamed the loudest and struggled the most. _They_ were the most fun to play around with, which was a real treat for me. I had no interest in doing that with human males. They were boring and not as soft. I think the softness was what really drew me to women. They were so easily breakable and so emotional. I loved the taste of their tears, ooh, and the smell of their hair. Very fragrant and always memorable.

I used to keep souvenirs from each of my hunts. I still remember the stash I had. Oh what fun it was to look over them and reminisce. Unfortunately, it became too tiresome to carry them around so I ended up doing away with it. Besides, with my memory the way it was, I didn't even need a souvenir because I could recall everything from each kill.

Victoria had said that I was a freak for doing what I'd done. She had no right to call me a "freak", even though she was one hundred percent correct. I knew I was a freak and I knew that I was insane, too. Sanity is so overrated. Being crazy is much more fun. There wasn't anything wrong in knowing what I was and being okay with it, just like there was nothing wrong with a hunter keeping a trophy as a sign of a successful hunt.

I grinned. When I got my hands on Bella and Alice, I would be keeping trophies of them. I had to decide on what to keep, though. Something small, of course, since keeping their heads would be too much of an annoyance. I'd tried it before. It didn't work out very well.

No, I would want something memorable. I guess I'd just have to think on it. I had a lot of time to consider my options. Since I wouldn't be going after them until I had a better plan, I would just give it some time. I'd think of something eventually. And when I did, the fun would really begin.

I could vaguely hear the sound of cars in the distance and smelled the leftover gas and faint scents of humans. Knowing that, I figured that I must be nearing a road. A minute later I came to a roadside. I looked around and noticed a large sign with directions splayed on it. They meant nothing to me, but I figured that I needed to decide where I was going.

I _could_ head north. I'd been to Canada in the past and had quite a bit of fun there. I tapped my chin in thought, hiding near a few trees so that no humans could see me. After considering it for a few seconds, I decided against it. I wanted to go somewhere new. Going west was out of the question and I'd already been south. Maybe to the east. Decisions…

I furrowed my brow and walked forward while trying to think. I knew that I couldn't go after my intended prey right now. I kept reminding myself of that because every few seconds my thoughts switched to imaging myself grabbing a hold of Bella's weak throat and sinking my teeth into her flesh to taste her blood. Oh how I wanted it so…

Damn them. Damn that future seeing shrimp. Damn that freakish redhead and her fire powers and all the other vampires who protected her. I wanted her badly. Ugh! I groaned in agitation and pushed the thoughts away. Anger wasn't going to help. It'd only make my body want to go back there for a fight and I was smarter than that.

I _was_ a genius, after all. A genius whose body sometimes disagreed with his thoughts, I'll admit, but a genius nonetheless. I suppose even I wasn't perfect in every way. In most ways, yes, but a little flaw here and there added to the dynamic of my character. I liked that. If I were perfect, I'd probably get bored too easily. I liked seeing it that way.

I needed a plan. Plan, plan, plan. Something. I started pacing back and forth with my hand stroking my chin for reasons I didn't understand. To help, I guess. The more I thought, the more I couldn't get the thoughts of my escaped prey out of my head. I snarled and punched another tree, watching as it collapsed onto the road. I turned my attention elsewhere and, after giving it another minute, came to a conclusion; I needed to take my mind off of them.

Pursing my lips, I saw that there was only one method for me to do that and that was to find another human to make my prey. Create another game to alleviate my frustration and get the creative juices flowing.

"Yes, that's it!" I exclaimed, clapping my hands together. "A new game, with new rules and new prey to keep my mind off of the past. Perfect! What a wonderful idea! I'm glad I thought of it."

That's what I would do, then. I would head east to find myself a new target for a new game. I needed to hone my skills a bit, practice new techniques. Most importantly, I needed to forget about my lost prey and focus on proving that I was still the greatest hunter in the world. I knew that I was, but no one else did. They needed to know. I'd make sure that they did.

Having made a plan, I smiled and started moving east. I was glad that I'd developed a keen sense of direction from hunting in the past. I didn't have an exact destination yet, no, but with my senses I would likely be drawn to an exquisite human that would entertain me for days on end. It had always been that way and I doubted that it would ever change.

Not too long later, I came across a large sign that had the words "You are now leaving Washington" etched onto it. I smirked when I saw that, glad that I had managed to get away without having to deal with any unnecessary distractions. Before I started to move again, I paused and turned around to look in the direction that I'd come in.

My eyes narrowed as the memory of my defeat at the hands of those wretched Cullens flashed before me, as if my conscience was mocking me. I knew that both of them were out there still, oblivious to the fact that I would come for them eventually. I didn't know when, I didn't know how, but I would get my revenge on them.

My lips twitched. Perhaps I could send a message, a warning for the future seer.

"If you can see this, bitch, I'll be back," I hissed. "Tell little Bella to enjoy herself with you while she can, because mark my words, I will come back for her and for you, too. I'll enjoy killing the both of you and I'll make sure to make both of your demises slow and painful. No one beats James Witherdale, you hear me? _No one_. Consider this a warning and a promise. Have a nice day; I'll be seeing you both soon enough."

I didn't know if that had even worked, but it wasn't like I'd never talked to myself before. Either way, I was satisfied and turned my gaze forward before running off. I could just imagine her pretty little face, too. Her eyes widening in shock and horror, knowing that I would be back for both her and her mate. Oh what fun. My only wish was that I could see the look on her face for myself when she saw my message. Such a pity I couldn't.

I wouldn't have to wait long to get what was rightfully mine. It would only be a matter of time and I knew it. It was only fair that her and Bella know it too, right? That made things much more exciting because then they'd fight more to delay the inevitable. With that thought in my head and a grin on my face, I pushed myself into a sprint, the excitement growing with each step.

I was and am the hunter. They were my prey. And there would never be any escape for them.

Ready or not girls, I'll be coming for you soon.

**A/N: I told you I wasn't done with Blood Solstice! You peeps can consider this an early Christmas gift. :)**

**Well, technically this is just an extra for all of you to enjoy. And it's the psychopath's point of view, too! I have to admit, though this was somewhat hard to write (mostly because I didn't know what sort of content to put in), I thoroughly enjoyed writing as James. I figured that there would be a small number of you that would like to get inside the head (somewhat) of good ol' James. Crazy bastard.**

**I guess it does kind of give you a bit more information, too. And it sets up the future, proving that James will be back eventually (key word eventually, meaning only I know when and I'm not telling you :P). A lot of people were wondering how James got away last time, so you have your answer (you had in the last epilogue, but just in case you missed it, I mentioned it in passing here, too) and I personally think it works. Plus you got an inside look at James' personality. The dude is crazy and has a superiority complex, but really, what were you expecting from James? :P**

**And yeah. The first of three planned bonus chapters. Unless you peeps can think of another character (that isn't a Cullen) that you'd like to see. I thought about Charlie, but I doubt anyone would want to see that. But then, I'm not you. So if you have any suggestions, let me know.**

**Lastly, thank you to everyone for such wonderful comments. It means a lot to me that you've all enjoyed this story. And that I've inspired some of you. Thank you.**

**So who do you want to see next, Raina or Sarah? **


	84. Bonus: White

**Disclaimer: I don't own Twilight or any Twilight characters, those belong to Meyer. I do own Raina, however, and I am happy to have the chance to flesh her out a bit.**

**Bonus: White**

**Raina's POV**

Life isn't meant to be easy. Those were the words my father told me when everything in my life was turned upside down. It all started the day that I phased and became a wolf, not only discovering who my true soulmate was, but also that there were great things in my reach that were actually meant for me, but I was forbidden from having them.

By blood, I was the rightful Alpha and the heir to the title of Chieftain. It had always been that way for every firstborn in the Black family. But I was not allowed to be those things because a woman could not lead the pack nor lead the tribe. Not in the eyes of the Council and not in the eyes of the only parent I had left in my life, my father.

I tried to fight against it. I was outnumbered, though. So I ended up losing.

I didn't just lose what was meant for me. I lost my best friend. Leah and I had been closer than friends and sisters, lovers even, but that was shattered when I broke her heart. I hated myself for doing it and I knew that Sam did as well. I wanted so badly to reach out to her, but I could not.

By the time I had the chance, it was too late. Leah turned on Sam and I. She attacked me and I was forced to do my duty in fighting her off. My father already thought I was weak, so I could not allow myself to be defeated by her. I loathed hurting her, but she wouldn't listen to reason and we fought. We fought countless times, the end result always being the same.

I always wished that things could be different. But her bitterness became my bitterness and the seeds of disdain and contempt grew between us. She wasn't the only one that I lost, though. I also lost the person I was even closer to; my brother.

Jacob used to be a happy kid. He was a punk, but a good punk and I loved him. We argued, wrestled, bickered and played like siblings should. Then I phased. And then he phased. That was when our relationship slowly went downhill.

It was all because of the damned Council.

Ever since we had been kids, they'd pandered to him and spoiled him. When he phased, they treated him like he was the King of the fucking world. It went to his head and turned him into what he was today; a selfish, self-righteous jackass that believed that he was the future of La Push and the wolf-pack and that he could get anything he wanted. He was delusional, but the Council pushed him onwards, crafting him into their own tool.

The worst part was that I watched it all happen over the years. Through his thoughts, I was able to see the way they spoiled him rotten and hear his thoughts as he slowly began to think the way they wanted him to think. I saw it all unfold and nothing I said was able to stop it.

Jacob had initially laughed off my concerns as a joke.

"_Aw, Raina, don't be that way. You know they mean well. They're just being nice."_ He'd said that when it first started and I'd first noticed. We were younger.

"_Can you believe it? Me, the future Chieftain? I don't know, I don't think I'd be good for it."_ Those were his words after they'd informed him that he was going to be Chief. For a moment, I had actually thought that my brother was still there. That changed soon enough.

"_I'm going to change things when I become the Chief. I'll expand our tribe. Everything will be better and everyone will be happier, you'll see. You'll help me, right sis?"_ He'd asked that a few months later after he'd decided that he wanted to be Chief. I wondered how he'd been persuaded.

Then we both became wolves. Things became worse.

"_The future Chief and the future Alpha, can you believe it? No offense, but Sam had better enjoy his time while he can. Once I'm ready, I'll be taking over."_ He'd boasted that a month after he'd become a wolf. Up until then, I'd listened to his thoughts get progressively worse and I bit my tongue to keep from lashing out at him for his stupidity.

"_You're just jealous because I'm better than you."_ Those words pissed me off. I punched him in the face after that and dislocated his jaw. We fought afterwards as wolves. That fight was worse than the fights I'd had with Leah. It took the whole pack to break us apart; Sam even had to use his Alpha voice to force us to stop from tearing into each other.

As it stood, recently our relationship had only worsened. His obsession with killing the Cullens and taking Bella Cullen because he felt she was his had driven him to a new level of jackassery that continued to get on my nerves, Sam's nerves and had gotten on the other's nerves too.

I shook my head as I leaned against the thick oak tree, staring up at the sky. Thinking about these things always made me feel depressed and I didn't need that crap right now.

"You okay, Rain?"

I turned a little to see Sam standing a few feet away, appraising me placidly.

I sighed. "Yeah, I'm fine Sam. Just thinking, that's all."

He came over and sat down next to me. "That's a lie and we both know it. I know when there's something bothering you, Raina. Our imprint connection lets me know whenever you're feeling down or upset, just as it does for you with me."

"I'd try to tell you differently, but I know it's useless." I let out a quiet chuckle. "You are just as stubborn as I am and there's no way around it."

"True," he agreed, smiling. "So what's bothering you?"

"My past mistakes, the way things used to be, same old stuff as always," I replied. "I try not to dwell on it too much, but it's like a disease. It keeps coming back and it won't go the hell away no matter how hard I try to keep my mind on other things. It's a pain in the ass."

Sam nodded. "I know the feeling, Raina. But you shouldn't let it get you down. You've got me here by your side to help you, remember that. It's not your burden to bear alone, I promised I'd carry it with you and I meant what I said. We'll carry on and fight on together, that I promise."

I smiled and kissed him. "Thanks Sammy, I'm glad you've got my back."

He laughed and stood up, offering me his hand. "Sammy, huh? Real cute."

I playfully batted his hand away and jumped up to my feet, grinning. "You know you love it and you know that it fits you. It's my personal nickname for the "big strong Sam Uley", who is, in fact, a big softie on the inside but doesn't show it because he likes to play the tough guy," I teased him, elbowing him in the side.

We both laughed and started walking off. It was mid-day now and a lot had happened. Earlier on in the day Sam and I had had a confrontation with Jacob. I ended up socking him in the face because he'd been pissing me off so badly and I wanted to do more, but Sam kept me from it. In the end it was better, since I would only get myself in hot water if I "hurt" Jacob.

The only thing I wanted to hurt was his ego. No one would miss that.

"Raina, what's bothering you?" Sam asked as we walked. "I can_ see_ that there's something wrong from the look in your eyes. And you're clenching your jaw, which you do when you think about unpleasant things. You're starting to worry me. Is this about Jacob?"

"Yes," I admitted. I couldn't lie to him because he'd just find out later. "Of course, Sam. What else bothers me day in and day out as I watch the person I was closest to in the world turn into this egomaniacal jackass that I want to punch in the face again and again? I hate it. I hate thinking it, but I can't stop myself because of how he acts."

"He's changed," Sam muttered gruffly. "I've heard some of his thoughts reflected through a few of the other wolves. He's thinking more and more about becoming the Alpha before the Council tells him to so that he can have us go after the Cullens."

I scoffed. "The idiot's obsessed. You think we should warn them about that?"

Sam shook his head. I shot him questioning look, at which point Sam sighed. "Raina, there's no possible way for us to get in touch with them without breaking the contract. We just finished having it re-established twice now, so our opportunity is shot. And even if we did,_ they_ would find out and I don't want to see you get hurt anymore."

"I can take pain, Sam," I grunted. "I'm the most durable wolf in the pack."

"You're also the strongest," Sam pointed out. "You just hold back."

I stuck my hands into my pockets. "There's not much I can do there. If I show that I'm the strongest wolf, then the Council will get all pissy with me. They always do. It's like my very existence pisses them off and they aren't afraid to let me know, even my own father. It stinks."

Sam placed his hand on my shoulder. "I know, Raina. I know it hurts. I wish there was something I could do to help you out."

"Thanks," I murmured.

Sam removed his hand. "You could become the Alpha, you know. To be completely honest, they can't stop you from taking what's rightfully yours. And if you did become the Alpha, you would have control over all the wolves, your brother included. No one could tell you any differently because it's yours by birthright."

I thought about it. I'd been thinking about it a lot as of lately. But would it even work?

"They'd go against me if I did."

"Who gives a damn if they did?" Sam asked, growling a little. "They couldn't make you stop from being the Alpha. They could do nothing at all except accept the fact that you were the one calling the shots because it's your rightful place."

Sam continued. "Let's not forget that there are two people on the Council who would openly support you becoming the Alpha. If the others, your father included, didn't like it, then they would simply have to step down and allow someone else to take their place. We would have a newer, fairer Council, you would be the Alpha and things would be much more at ease."

The idea sounded amazing and I desperately wanted it. I wanted to shut the old bastards up once and for all and show them that a woman could lead just as well as a man could. I was tired of their sexist bullshit and tired of being tossed around because I was a woman. My brother wasn't Chief _or_ Alpha material and he needed to be told that.

I just wasn't sure, though.

"I don't know, Sam," I mumbled. "I think it could work, but I wouldn't know where to begin."

"I really wish you wouldn't think like that," Sam said softly, wrapping his arm around my body to pull me closer. "You doubt yourself because of everything they've said to you over the past few years. You don't think you could be the Alpha because they don't think you could be."

I snorted. "Sam, don't try to pull that on me. You and I both know I've never given a damn about what the Council has ever said to me. They told me I couldn't be the Alpha, so I fought it and I got my ass kicked because of it. So I stopped fighting it and I just went along."

"I've been in your head, Raina," Sam stated. "I know that's not how you feel."

"You think I haven't thought about taking over the pack for these past years?" I asked, looking him in the eyes as I balled my hands into fists. We'd stopped moving. "It's on my mind every day. I _dream _about taking over and kicking the damned Council to the curb. I would love to, but I'm just not sure if it would work out the way that either of us wants it to."

Sam was silent for a moment. "I'm sorry, Rain. I…don't mean to push this on you. I just get sick of your brother's arrogance and I'm tired of the Council. I'm surprised I'm still the Alpha to be honest with you. It gets frustrating sometimes, that's all."

"I don't blame you," I replied. "I'm not mad at you either, Sam. I'm just moody today. I think it's the whole "wolf" thing. How'd you learn to keep yourself calm so well? It's like my fuse was cut in half when I became a wolf and it hasn't gotten much better since then."

Sam laughed. "It takes a lot of time, let me tell you. Don't worry; you'll get it in check. You aren't the wolf I'm most concerned about as far as temperament goes."

"Is Paul acting up again?" I asked. Who else?

"It's the anniversary of his parents' deaths soon, so he's even more irritable," Sam sighed.

I thought about my mother's passing. Her birthday would be next month.

"I don't blame him for being upset," I murmured, my mother's smile flashing before me.

"Sorry."

"Don't be," I shrugged it off as we continued walking. We were back at the beach now. "I don't dwell on it as much as I used to. Now that I know what really happened, I've come to terms with her death and I've moved on a bit. I still think, but I know she'd want me to not to worry or mourn about her for too long. She'd want me to be the headstrong girl she raised and loved."

"Well, you are and then some," Sam said, kissing my cheek. "You're also the crazy bitch that I love with my whole soul and I am beyond honored to be stuck with for all eternity."

"You say it so meaningfully," I smiled wryly. "What's that about me being a crazy bitch?"

He smiled sheepishly. "You know I mean it lovingly."

"Oh? Then it's Queen Bitch to you, mister. Let's not forget, I'm the future Alpha."

His smile broadened and I found myself smiling wider too as we linked arms. I could hear the sound of the ocean grow louder as we walked to nowhere in particular. Honestly I didn't care because being with Sam was one of the few things that brought me peace. With everything else that had been going on, a little peace was a good thing.

I stopped when I heard the sound of approaching footsteps and turned to see Leah moving towards Sam and I at an even pace, her eyes turned downwards to the sand.

Sam noticed her and I could feel his body tense up with worry. I stood completely still, waiting.

Leah lifted her head up and stopped a few feet away. Her eyes stared back into mine. For a few minutes none of us spoke or moved and for a moment I worried that Leah was going to snap and that there would be some kind of argument between us.

There wasn't, though.

"Sam. Raina," she greeted us both neutrally.

"Leah," we replied in unison.

It went quiet again for another minute before Leah sighed. "Fuck, why is this so difficult?" she muttered under her breath. I furrowed my brow, wondering why she was here in front of Sam and I without getting temperamental and throwing accusations or insults our way. That was usually the only communication we had with each other.

"Is there something you want to talk about, Leah?" Sam asked softly. He was a little tense because he didn't want Leah and to get into a fight and he always got nervous whenever he was near Leah. She had a habit of bringing the past up and it made him feel guilty. I tried to hide the fact that I felt horrible for it too, but we both knew that I couldn't keep that hidden.

"Yeah," she replied, shaking her head. When she looked at me, I saw a determination in her eyes that I hadn't seen in a long time. I wondered if that was a good thing or not. "Hey Sam, is it cool if I have a moment alone to talk with Raina? This isn't going to turn into a fight, I promise. I just want to talk with her about something in private."

Sam glanced at me. I wasn't sure whether to be shocked or eased by Leah's tone of voice, since it was the complete opposite of what I was used to seeing. I nodded to him after a moment of consideration and he kissed my cheek before walking away.

"What do you want to talk about?" I asked.

Leah bit her lip. "Can we walk and talk?" she asked.

"Sure."

We started walking along the beach, Leah closest to the water. She didn't look at me for a while and instead had her gaze out to the waves, watching them move. I could see that she was nervous about something and that the ocean was helping calm her down. It was such a rare thing, seeing Leah calm, so I kept my mouth shut and waited for her to say the first word.

"I've been thinking a lot lately," Leah said, breaking the silence at last. "About us, about Sam and I, about all the things I've said and done to the two of you in the past."

That caught me off guard. "Same here," I admitted. "It's been on my mind constantly."

"Yeah, it's not fun," Leah mumbled. "But…" She sighed. "I know that a lot of that shit was my fault for being an embittered bitch. I was so caught up in my own world of anger that I never really thought much about what was going through your head and through Sam's. I thought that if I could make you feel the way that I did, I'd feel better. It never did, honestly."

Leah finally turned to face me. There was something in her eyes that I couldn't read, but it wasn't the bitterness or hate that I'd known for so long. It was…gentle, almost the same way that she used to look all those years ago before we became wolves.

"I fucked up," she said bluntly. "I realize that now and I…I wanted to apologize to you."

She stopped moving and I swore that, if it were physically possible, my jaw would have dropped to the ground in utter shock. Leah crossed her arms. Her facial expression was torn between discomfort and some other emotion as she looked me in the eyes.

"I'm sorry, Raina," she murmured, her eyes burning with sincerity. "I know that two little words won't make up for all the things we've said and done. It won't heal the scars on our bodies or our minds, but I'll be damned if I don't feel the need to say them. I'm sorry. I wish I could take it all back or pretend that it never happened, but we both know that can't happen."

"I just wanted you to know that I regret what's happened," Leah said.

I was speechless. I mean shit, I never expected this. I had to take a moment to absorb what I'd just heard before I could give her a response. Leah didn't seem to mind, she seemed just as surprised that she'd actually just said all of that to me.

"Er…" That was my brilliant response and I mentally smacked myself. "I honestly don't know what to say, Leah. What brought this on?"

Leah's lips twitched. "Let's just say that I had some help from some friends in making the decision to be a good friend and to become a better person."

"I see," I rubbed the back of my neck, feeling awkward. "You know Leah; it's not entirely your fault for what happened between us. I'm partially to blame too because I let my emotions get the better of me and all I did was egg you on. I hated fighting with you. I hated it because I blamed myself for what happened between us and I was too stupid to ever say anything."

"I guess there isn't a point in dwelling on it," I continued. "I accept your apology and I extend my own apology out to you for all the hurt that I caused."

"Don't sweat it, Raina," Leah shrugged. "The more that I think about it, the more it's mostly my own stupidity and I've come to terms with the fact that I needed to change. It took a few years and the words of some people that I love to wake me up, but I know now and I don't hold anything against you or Sam. You were meant for each other, and that's that. I accept it."

I extended my hand out to her. "Do you want to call this a truce?"

She smiled and nodded, taking her hand in mine and shaking it. "I do. I'm tired of all the fighting with you and I'd like to make amends. Hell, if it's possible, I'd kind of like to try and re-forge our friendship. I know it'll be hard and it's definitely going to be awkward, but I'd like to try."

Awkward? I still couldn't get it through my skull that Leah had just apologized to me and here I was shaking her hand in an attempt to try and go along with it. To be honest, I was elated that this was happening. Shocked, yes, but elated even more so. This was the first good thing to happen for me personally since I'd talked with Bella Cullen.

That reminded me. I had a funny feeling that Bella was somehow involved in Leah's apologizing to me and her coming to terms with our past. I'd seen the way she looked at Bella and I knew from her brother's thoughts—we'd done patrol duty one night—that she had feelings for the girl that could never be hers because she was mated to a vampire.

In some ways, it was almost like what she'd gone through with Sam and I, wanting someone that she couldn't have because they had their soul mate. But it was different because Bella had had Alice before she and Leah had met. For some reason, having it occur that way rather than the two of them being together beforehand had generated a different effect on Leah.

It changed her. And now she was here apologizing for past scars that she'd been a part of creating and I was standing like a brain-dead monkey trying to absorb it all. I shook my head and pulled my hand away from Leah's. The awkwardness was still there despite the fact that I felt like a massive weight had been suddenly lifted off of me.

"I never blamed you, Leah," I told her seriously. "I got pissed sometimes, but I never blamed you for any of it. I'm glad that we can put this behind us finally. I want my best friend back."

Her face became soft, the usual Leah-fierceness disappearing altogether. "I do too."

"We'll make it work," I said firmly. "We're both stubborn bitches, so it's not like we could stop without seeing all the way through, huh?"

Leah smirked. "Stubborn bitch, huh?"

"Yeah, that fits you," I chuckled. "Actually, you were more of an arrogant bitch, but you're not as cocky as you used to be. I miss that. I always thought the cocky Leah was sexy and I bet you'd get a number of different girls to swoon over you if you were to go back to it."

"You think so?" Leah asked, cocking her head to the side.

I smirked. "You're Leah Clearwater, you tell me."

"You're right, thanks."

We both turned out to the ocean. The sun was slowly beginning to set as the waves continued to gently move about. A seagull flew by, squawking once before flying in the opposite direction as the two of us stood there in silence.

"Hey Leah?"

She glanced at me. "Yeah?"

"Do you think we'd be better off if I became the Alpha and took charge?" I asked, looking at her out of the corner of my eyes.

Leah took that into consideration for a good minute or so. "I do. My mom and Randolph are doing the best they can to get the other geezers to see their point of view, but it's just falling on deaf ears because the Council is made up of a bunch of douchebags. No offense to your father, but I think he's kind of a lost cause, you know?"

I nodded solemnly. "I know. It hurts, but I don't think I can do anything to change his mind."

"Not unless you become the Alpha," Leah reminded me. "You'd be the one calling the shots and there isn't a damn thing any of them or your piece of shit brother can do about it." I winced at the mentioning of Jacob and Leah shot me an apologetic look. "Sorry."

"It's okay," I murmured. "Because you're right, Leah. Both my brother and my father have fallen from the respectable men they once were. My family is pretty much gone now. All I have in my life is Sam and that's it." I looked into her eyes. "I'm glad that we're giving up on our feud and trying to be friends again, Leah. It'd be nice to have someone else."

She lightly punched my shoulder. "I'll be here for you. But seriously, Raina, you're a fucking badass when you need to be, so I think you're good. I've got your back either way."

"Thanks Leah," I replied, smiling and nudging her back. "Alright, enough with the overly mushy crap, I think we've made our points for the day. I'd better get back to Sam before he has a nervous breakdown thinking we got into some huge, bloody fight."

"Sam, a breakdown?" Leah asked, arching an eyebrow. "That doesn't sound like him at all."

I winked. "You don't know him the way that I do, my dear."

"My dear? The hell?" Leah rolled her eyes. "You are so weird, Raina."

"You're not the first person to tell me that," I smiled wryly. "You won't be the last."

"Alright, well, go on back to your man-candy," Leah teased. "Later on, Raina."

"Later Leah."

We went our separate ways, Leah heading in the direction of her home while I went back in the direction that we'd come in. Sam was looming near some trees, staring up into the sky. I looked upwards once I'd neared him and saw that the sun had finally set and the moon and stars were out now, illuminating the sky with a blanket of white.

"What'd you two talk about?" Sam inquired.

"Leah apologized. I apologized. We made up from the past and we're going to try to work out our problems in the future. It may be a while, but the fact that she actually apologized and seemed sincere in wanting to be friends again…it means a lot and I want it to work."

He seemed surprised momentarily, but he nodded in understanding. "I'm sure it will."

We both sat down on the ground next to each other and stared up at the sky. The moon in particular was always a thing of beauty to me, a symbol of power and a symbol that went along with my being a wolf. I'd always enjoyed looking up at the moon at night. It brought me peace with its mysteriousness and its beauty. Hell, I used to dream about being on the moon.

"Things are starting to change," Sam mused quietly. "The wind is different. The animals in the woods are different. It feels like something is coming. Maybe I'm being superstitious or too drawn to the old ways of thinking, but I really feel like I'm connected to nature and that nature knows something is going to happen soon."

"I've felt it too," I admitted. "Especially when I'm in wolf form, it's like my senses are more attuned to what's going on around me and I can feel things."

He turned his head to look at me. "What do you think it means?"

I considered it and looked at him. "It means that we need to be prepared for whatever comes our way in the coming months. Whatever happens, we must do our duty and protect our loved ones and the innocents of La Push and of this land. If it means siding with vampires, then I am open to it because I know that the Cullens will want to protect their loved ones too."

"Agreed," Sam nodded. "Forming an actual alliance with the Cullens would be incredibly beneficial because we could aid each other. The only problem is that the Council refuses to accept their help and wants them killed because they're "a threat". We need to figure out another way in talking to the Cullens to form a stronger alliance."

There was no other way. Unless…

"There's only one way that we can do that without betraying our pack," I murmured.

Sam looked at me, but I turned away from him and looked up at the moon. Looking up at the moon and its pale white glow made me think of an inverted form of the Yin-Yang. In Asian culture, Yin was the evil and Yang was the good. But for me, I pictured it reversed when I thought about myself and Jacob in those positions, with Jacob as the black, the Yang, and myself as the white, the Yin. I thought about what our relationship had become, about the rivalry between Yin and Yang and about everything I'd felt, seen, heard and learned.

"Do you mean…?" Sam's voice trailed off as I slowly turned to face him.

"If things don't go the way we need them to," I stated. "We take over."

**A/N: So sorry for the super long delay in this chapter, I got caught up with other stuff. I know that most of you wanted to see Sarah's bonus chapter first, but I decided to take the advice of one reviewer (terribly sorry, your name escapes me) that suggested Raina's next so it'd be vampire, wolf, vampire. I liked that, so that's what I ended up going with. Anyways, I hope that this chapter pleased those you who like Raina and gave those of you who were neutral a little push towards liking her more.**

**So yes, hinting at a wolf takeover. And the Leah/Raina feuding finally coming to an end. I think this was a good chapter. I am really enjoying showing the different points of views of my characters, it really lets you see things from new perspectives.**

**Once again, sorry for the lateness. Sarah's is the last on the list and then no more. Then Blood Solstice will be done, done and DONE. Then I can move on to the Bloodshots.**

**Okay, so I originally goofed on the Yin-Yang part, so I just had Raina picture it in reverse. My bad. Sorry about the original mixup.**


	85. Bonus: Fate

**Disclaimer: I don't own the Twilight saga by Stephanie Meyer, I only own my own characters and ideas. It's about time we finished Blood Solstice for good, yes?**

**Fate**

**Sarah's POV**

I felt the wind blow over me, lightly caressing my skin like silent fingertips. I was lying in the grass beneath a tree, thinking about everything that had happened in the past few months. My life had been fairly normal up until the day I'd met Bella, then it became a twisted nightmare. Now, however, things were different.

I was freed from the mental prison that James and Victoria had shackled me in. I'd woken up.

I didn't know where I was right now, mentally, emotionally. Everything had happened so fast it felt like yesterday I had been a human with a family and now I had nothing save for the immortality that I never asked for. Thinking about it, I did like what I'd become, but I wasn't so sure that it was worth all the things I'd lost.

I sighed as I thought about it all. I remembered when I'd woken up as a vampire, confused and afraid of what was going on. That was the day I'd fallen into Victoria's web. I hadn't realized it until now, but she was ultimately the one responsible.

_I opened my eyes, looking up at the darkened sky. What? Where am I?_

_I felt strange. Colder. No. Not cold. No temperature. My body…it felt different too. Blinking did nothing. I didn't feel the need to breathe. What the hell? What's going on?_

"_She's awake," came an unfamiliar male voice. _

_I felt my body tense up. Move, it said. I jumped up to my feet and let out a growl, my chest rumbling. I stopped. Looked around, confused. Everything around me…where in the hell was I? I didn't…did I know this place? _

_Two people. Red eyes, pale skin, smiles. My instincts told me danger. I crouched down. I didn't know why, but I felt safer that way. No feelings in my muscles. _

"_Well hello there," cooed the female. Long, curly, fire colored hair. Beautiful. "You don't need to be afraid, we're not your enemies."_

_I growled again. Enemies? What? They were strangers. I don't like…why does my throat hurt?_

_My throat burned. Like a fire, searing my skin. I clutched it, wincing in pain. It hurts. Why?_

"_She needs blood," the female said, smacking the other one in the shoulder. "Go fetch our little newborn here something to eat."_

_The male, long blonde hair, very attractive. He scoffed. "Why should I?"_

"_I'll kill you if you don't," she snapped._

_He glared. But he didn't argue and he ran off. Very fast. I clutched my throat and stared at the curly haired woman. Who was she? Why was she here?_

"_What is your name, sweet one?" she asked, taking a few steps forward._

_I stepped back. My name? What was my name? I thought. Blurry images. My thoughts felt grainy, like an old movie. Nothing was clear. One word came to me when I thought of name. _

"_S…" I tried to speak, but the burn made it hard. _

"_Go on, you can do it," she said sweetly. "I am Victoria. What is your name?"_

"_Sarah…" I breathed out. Sarah. Was that my name? It felt like it. Sounded right. But what was with my voice? It sounded…weird. Unfamiliar. What was going on?_

_Victoria smiled. "Sarah. I like that name."_

_The odd male returned. A sweet, mouthwatering scent filled my nostrils. I moaned. My mouth watered, the burn intensified. I felt hungry. Whatever it was, it smelled good. I wanted it. _

_I wanted, I wanted it, I WANTED IT._

"_MINE!" I snarled, flinging myself at the food. Looked human. Didn't care. My body moved, sinking my teeth into its flesh. Warm and sweet, a liquid that tasted like Heaven. It guzzled down my throat, easing the burn. I moaned again. It tasted so __**good**__!_

_Eventually there was no more. I growled. I wanted more! The haze around me cleared and I pulled away from whatever it was I'd drank. Then I saw. Lying at my feet, a human. Dead. I stared down at the body. I looked at my hands. Blood. I had drank the human's blood._

_I shuddered. Oh no. No…what had I done? What…what was I?_

"_Would you like to know what you are?" Victoria asked. She was by me now. I stared at her._

"_I…"_

_Victoria smiled. "Come." _

_She motioned for me to follow. I did. I didn't know why, but I followed. She led me to a small pond. It looked familiar. A flash of an image, two people I didn't recognize, laughing. I pushed it away and stared in it. I gasped. _

_Red eyes. Pale skin. Beauty. I touched my cheek. What was I?_

_Victoria's lips brushed against my ear. "You are a vampire, dear Sarah."_

_Vampire? What?_

_The male was there, my other side. He grinned at me. "Welcome to your newer, better life."_

That was how it'd all started. They lied to me about my family continuously, feeding me with their twisted words while my newborn brain didn't know the difference between hearing something and actually believing something. I became so full of rage that my rage and thirst for revenge was all that fueled me, as well as James' false love.

I was so stupid. I was ashamed of myself and everything I'd done.

"I need to clear my head," I mumbled to myself. And I was growing thirsty. I needed to hunt too.

I got to my feet and looked around. The Cullens had told me about their lifestyle; drinking animal blood instead of human blood. I'd been drinking human blood for so long; I feared that I'd forever be a killer. Yes, a killer.

When I'd been mind-fucked by James and Victoria, I hadn't cared about what I'd done. But now that I'd woken up, I couldn't stand the idea of killing humans. It'd taken some time, of course, since even after the fact I still killed humans. It wasn't until I'd had the talk with the Cullens, namely Carlisle and Esme, that things had started to change.

Ironically, that very same day, I happened upon a family of campers. My inner beast had told me to kill them for their blood, but when I got closer, I saw my family there in their place. I wasn't sure if I believed in any sort of deity, but if there was a God, then that was his way of reminding me of what I'd gone through. Could I really do that to someone else?

No. I couldn't. So I left and didn't feed for a while. Hell, I still hadn't fed yet. I was amazed by how little the burn in my throat affected me up until now. Now it was pretty irritating. I wondered if I could really survive off of animals like the Cullens.

_Might as well try and see for myself_, I thought.

I dashed into the forest, smelling the air for a potential target. I had no clue what I was looking for until I happened upon an odd, less-than-nice smell. My nose crinkled. I looked around for the source and found myself coming face to face with a mountain lion a few feet away, growling.

_**This**__ is what the Cullens feed on? Yuck. This thing stinks_, I groaned inwardly.

Still, I had to try for my own sake. I crouched down and snarled at the overgrown cat. Funny how I'd always been fearful of them when I was a human, now I was the predator. I liked that feeling of power; it was definitely a nice bonus to being a vampire.

The mountain lion literally jumped in the air and, against its own will, ran off into the forest. I laughed at how entertaining that had been and decided to chase after it. Even if it stunk, I could have some fun chasing it around for a while, at least.

I spent the next few minutes entertaining myself by chasing around the large cat. It tried to fight back at several times, but only succeeded in hurting itself, which I found amusing. True, this could be considered animal cruelty, but I figured that it didn't matter much since the animal was going to be my source of food in a short while.

I got bored eventually so I pounced on top of the lion and crushed its head against the ground. I sniffed it again, cringed, and decided to be quick about feeding. I sank my teeth into the top of its neck and drained it of its blood. I practically gagged while doing so; its blood tasted as bad as it smelled, which was a horrible combination. Yuck!

Regardless of the foulness, it did ease the burn in my throat some. Once the lion was fully drained, I kicked the carcass aside. I didn't feel like dealing with it any time soon. Maybe some hunter would find it and use it. I didn't know and I really didn't care either.

The disgusting flavor lingered on my tongue and I felt like gagging. How in the hell could so many vampires survive off of that? I was beginning to think that this transition was going to be a hell of a lot harder than I'd initially thought. And I _knew_ that it would be hard in the first place.

"Nothing's ever easy," I grumbled.

I skulked off, not really sure of where I was going. I'd promised the Cullens I wouldn't leave their territory before I'd gone out on my own. I could tell by sniffing the air that I was nearing the limits of their territory, so I decided to go back. I wasn't afraid of going past it, but truthfully, I had nowhere else to go and no one else in the world.

What I did have was a second chance. Not only a second chance to live—the Cullens could've killed me and, thanks to Bella, the girl I'd wanted to kill before, they chose to spare me—but a second chance at a family. Whether or not they'd fully meant it, the Cullens had offered me a place in their family. I wasn't sure what to think, but the idea that they were willing to actually _give _me the offer said a lot about them.

It gave me some form of hope. Right now, I wasn't sure about it. Did I want a family? Yes. But did I want to overestimate my own abilities and end up regretting my choice? No.

Bella was a human. I still struggled around humans, hell I had to resist the urge to kill her when I'd spoken with her in their own home. I was beyond thankful that their mind reader wasn't present during that or I probably would've been torn limb from limb then and there. It was obvious that Alice didn't like me too much and didn't trust me. I couldn't say I blamed her.

No, if I decided to accept their offer, I needed to be ready. I refused to fuck it up.

As I was moving, a sweet scent hit my nostrils. I immediately stopped breathing because I recognized it as human. Sure enough, I could hear several heartbeats to my left and my inner beast instantly craved their blood.

_Damn it_, I cursed. _Why did this have to happen now of all times?_

The scent was incredibly potent despite my attempt at not breathing. I increased my pace, but the pull was too strong for me to keep moving. I decided to stay in place until the humans passed by since the heartbeats were coming closer. I jumped into the nearest tree and hid amongst the leaves, distracting myself with other thoughts and smells.

Eventually I saw the humans. There were three of them, two adults and their son, who looked to be around my age. I watched them quietly, hoping they'd go away fast so I wouldn't have to deal with the temptations anymore.

"Slow down there, son!" the man shouted.

His son turned around and chuckled. "Sorry Dad, I thought I heard something so I wanted to go and check it out. Whatever it was, it's gone now."

_Crap. He heard me? Damn, I should've just booked it when I had the chance instead of daydreaming like a damn idiot._

"What did it sound like?" the woman, obviously the mother, asked curiously.

"I don't know," the boy replied. "Maybe a deer? Or a bear or something like that."

"A deer I don't mind, but a bear would be dangerous," the mother said, glancing around worriedly for any sign of danger.

"Your mother's right," the father agreed. "We can't risk it if we spot a bear or a lion. In fact, I hear that mountain lions are far more likely to be out here than bears are. We should keep moving so that we avoid a potential encounter."

The boy sighed. "Oh, fine. Personally, I think it'd be exciting."

"Your idea of excitement is not shared," the mother sighed. "Come now, dear. Let's just enjoy our nature hike without worrying or thinking about wild animals, shall we?"

"Yes Mom," he replied.

For a moment he stopped and looked around the area. His eyes stopped on the tree that I was in and he frowned. I was concealed by leaves, holding my breath as best as I could. His eyes lingered on the tree for a good minute or so before he shrugged and walked off after his parents.

I waited until they were completely out of sight before I let the breath I'd been holding in go and allowed myself the luxury of breathing once again. It felt weird when I didn't breathe, like I was holding my breath, yet I could hold my breath for as long as I wanted. Doing so for too long made me feel incredibly uncomfortable. I needed to be able to smell, otherwise it drove me nuts.

"Way too close for comfort," I muttered to myself, jumping down from the tree. "I need to get the hell out of here."

I didn't waste time walking; I sprinted away from the forest in the direction of the Cullen mansion. Maybe talking to someone there would help me more than wandering around aimlessly and running into more humans. It only took me about two and a half minutes to reach their massive house, at which point I slowed my pace down.

I sniffed the air, curious to see how many of the Cullens were actually home. Strangely, I could only smell one Cullen. I recognized it as the matriarchal figure in the family, Esme. I bit my lip as I considered going to speak with her. I knew full well that Esme was not the fondest of me considering all I'd done to her family.

I had to try, though. So I quietly made my way to the location of her scent. She was in the back of their house, tending to her garden. I stopped when I saw it. It was beautiful. I hadn't seen a garden like that since…my mother's.

"Hello, Sarah," Esme greeted, not looking away from what she was doing. She was crouched down wearing a casual outfit while digging a hole.

"Hello," I replied, taking a few more steps towards her.

After a moment, she stopped and stood up to look at me. "Something I can do for you?" Her voice wasn't harsh or cold, more so neutral. There was a hint of strain in her eyes and I knew her reason why, but I wouldn't judge the woman because I understood completely.

"I…I was wondering if we could, maybe, talk?" I asked, rubbing the back of my neck. What if Esme said no?

She dusted herself off and offered me a small smile. "Alright, sure. Come inside."

I followed her silently inside of their home into their living room. She sat down on one of several comfy looking easy chairs; I sat down on the couch. I glanced around for a brief moment, wondering where everyone else was at. My eyes ended on the caramel haired woman, her eyes appraising me with curiosity.

"Where's everyone else at?" I inquired.

"My husband is working, Edward went out by himself, Alice and Bella are out spending some time together and the others went on a road trip," she replied. "So what would you like to talk about? Or were you hoping to speak with Bella again?"

I shook my head. "No, it's probably good that she isn't around. I was…I wanted to talk to you about what you offered me before, about maybe joining your family."

Esme nodded understandingly. "Carlisle and I had a feeling that you would be coming to talk with us about that at some point in time. I tried asking Alice, but she didn't seem to know since you had yet to make a decision."

"I...I wanted to know if that offer still stands," I murmured. "I understand if you choose to decline it, I would. I've been thinking about it a lot lately and I would kind of like to see if I could fit in with your family. I tried drinking animal blood today, in fact. It didn't taste good, but I was able to do it. I could adjust in time, I think."

"Of course the offer still stands," Esme said, offering me a smile.

I sighed, relieved. "I wasn't sure. I mean, considering everything that's happened…"

"Sarah," Esme interjected gently. "You need to stop worrying about that. I know that we've had problems in the past, but those weren't your doing. Bella explained to us what happened to you and why you were the way you were. I understand. It's not easy being a newborn, especially when you have two people telling you all these things that are really lies."

"Do you hate me?" I asked, biting my lip.

Esme seemed taken aback by my question. "Certainly not. I hold no blame towards you whatsoever for what happened."

"Oh." That surprised me, but it eased me at the same time. "It's just that, well…you don't seem to be very happy right now and I thought it was my doing."

Esme blinked. "Oh no, no, no, no, dear. It's not you at all. I've got a lot on my mind right now, that's the main reason. I promise, it's not you, you don't need to worry. In fact, I'm glad you stopped by because it gives me someone to talk with."

"How come you chose to stay home?" I asked, shifting to get more comfortable.

Esme chuckled. "Someone has to tend the garden, yes?" Now Esme was smiling brightly unlike before and the mood had changed. I felt better now and it was much less awkward, which I was extremely grateful for. "Bella has been helping me as of late. I must say, I'm overjoyed to have a companion since only Carlisle has ever helped me. He's usually busy at work, though."

"You and Bella have a strong bond, don't you?" I'd noticed it when I was in their home, the look in Esme's eyes when Bella had been near me.

"Yes," Esme replied. "I love Bella deeply and I will admit that I'm incredibly protective of her, even more so than my other children. Don't get me wrong, I love them all the same, but for me, Bella holds a special place in my heart. I'd always wanted a daughter like her when I was a human, so I considered it a blessing in disguise when she joined this family."

I gave her a curious look. "I remember Bella mentioning she'd never really had a mother before she met you."

Esme nodded, a hint of anger flashing in her eyes. "Whoever brought Bella into this world was a horrible woman who had no business ever calling herself a "mother". She treated Bella like garbage and I, for one, would have never stood for that. I think that's why Bella is so loving and endearing toward me; she never had a mother and I'm the closest thing she's ever had."

"That's a good thing," I murmured. "I can tell she loves you very much."

Esme's eyes became placid, filling with love and warmth that seemed to emanate from her and surround the very room we were in. I could feel it blazing off of her and it eased me even more than I already was.

"She's a sweetheart," Esme said, beaming. "She's a tough, independent girl, yet deep down she's the sweetest little love bug, just like Alice. True, she may not always think before she acts, but she's got a good head on her shoulders and a golden heart. I think that's what counts is what's on the inside more than what's on the outside."

I listened to her words and remembered something that my mother had told me. It was almost the exact same thing that Esme had just said. It brought back a memory of the night that Bella had came to our home. I'd gone to my mother, wondering why we were taking a stranger in when we didn't know anything about her.

"_Mom, why is she really here?" I asked my mother, scowling. "For all we know she could be a serial killer or a fugitive on the run from the law."_

_My mother chuckled and rolled her eyes. "Come now, Sarah, we can't make judgments about her simply because we don't know her. And besides, just look at the poor dear. She's skinny, pale and utterly torn, like she's been on the run forever. I could never turn her away, could you?"_

_I bit my lip. "Well…no, but…are we really going to take her in because of how she looks?"_

_She shook her head. "No. How she looks helps in some ways, sure, but I could tell the moment I looked into her eyes that she was scared and lonely. You can tell a lot about someone from their eyes, Sarah. They're the portal to the soul, after all, and they always show what's in the heart of the person that they belong to."_

"_Is that some spiritual thing you read?" I asked, lifting an eyebrow._

"_Oh, stop," she chuckled. "I mean it, though. Don't look at Bella's appearance, look at what you see inside of her and trust your heart. She's not a bad person, I can feel it. I think she's down on her luck right now, but maybe in time, she'll be able to pick herself up."_

"_If you say so," I replied, sighing. "I'm going to go to bed, then."_

"_Alright, goodnight Sarah," she said, kissing my cheek._

"_Goodnight Mom," I returned the cheek kiss and hugged her before heading up the stairs._

"_I love you," she called._

Something hit me at that moment. I'd never told her I loved her before she…

"What's wrong, dear?" Esme asked, looking at me concernedly.

I blanched. "I never told her I loved her that night," I whispered, staring down at the ground.

Esme stood up and sat near me, wrapping an arm around my shoulders. She squeezed my shoulder tenderly and pulled me closer to her. I stared into her eyes, full of warmth, and decided to be brave and wrapped my arms around her, hugging her.

"I'm sure she knew you loved her," Esme whispered soothingly. "Mothers always know."

I rested my head against her shoulder. "I wish I could've told her and my father…and my siblings…I wish…"

She started to slowly rock me back and forth. "It's okay, Sarah. They knew. They will always know that you love them, no matter what."

I let out a shaky breath. "I know, I still…" I sighed and squeezed the caramel haired woman, breathing in her scent. Now I saw why Bella loved Esme so much; she was a powerful, love filled rock that would always be there for support.

"Do you believe in Heaven, Sarah?" Esme inquired.

"I don't know," I replied. "My mother did. The others had different thoughts. I wasn't sure whether or not I wanted to believe. I tried for a while, then I stopped, then I tried again. I couldn't make up my mind. Do you?"

Esme nodded, rubbing circles into my back. "I didn't at first, but then I started to believe. I had nothing else in my life, so having faith in something sounded like a good idea to me. I found that having some form of faith gave me stability. Now, I'm not saying you need to believe as I do as that would be wrong. I'm merely suggesting it, perhaps as a method to help cope."

I looked up at her curiously. "What do you mean?"

"Well," she began, smiling softly at me. "If you choose to believe in Heaven, then you'll know where your family is. You'll know that they're always watching from above. That's how I look it, but you shouldn't do it simply because I suggest it. Find strength in whatever way you can, Sarah, that's the best you can do for yourself."

I soaked her words in as we sat there in silence for a while. Eventually I pulled away from the kind woman's body, but she stayed near me, which I was grateful for. I thought about what she'd said, about the choice I had in front of me and everything else.

After a while I turned to face Esme, who was smiling at me, warmth still in her eyes.

"Thank you, Esme," I murmured. "For comforting me."

She nodded. "You're welcome. It's what's right."

"May I ask you something?"

"Certainly."

"If you believe in Heaven…does that mean you believe in fate, too?" I asked.

Esme considered that for a moment, pursing her lips in thought. "To be honest, I've never given much thought about fate. I suppose that I do believe in fate in the sense that I think that it does play a role in our lives, good or bad. To me, fate is omnipresent. It's neither good nor bad, and it can be changed by a person if they choose to."

"Really?"

"Yes." She nodded. "I see fate as being a guide. It lights up a path that you choose to take. There are times when you must follow that path regardless of the consequences, but there are always forks in the paths at one point or another."

I thought about what she was saying. Esme chuckled next to me. "I must sound ridiculous going on about all of this, don't I?"

I shook my head. "No, it makes sense to me. Thank you."

"Any time," she replied, standing up. "I think I'll go and water my flowers. You can stay here for as long as you'd like. If the others return, don't worry, they know you're welcome here."

As she started to walk away, I reached my decision. "Wait, Esme?"

She paused as I stood up and turned to look at me. "Yes?"

I took in an unnecessary breath and released it. "I'd like to join your family."

**FIN**

**A/N: At long last, I can pull this story to a close. 85 chapters of craziness and weirdness and...well, you know already. It's been fun, peeps. I enjoyed this story. I know it wasn't perfect, but hey, perfection's overrated and this was my first story. I claim those as my excuses. :P**

**There you have it. Every bonus chapter, as promised, has been sent out. You have been inside the heads of eight different characters, some good, some bad and you now have a hell of a lot to look forward to when the sequel rears its head. There are three trailers and a Tumblr, as well as two audio books. They haven't been updated (I understand completely, don't get me wrong), but the fact that they are THERE is what means a lot to me. So thank you, everyone, for your kind words and support. I appreciate each of you.**

**I can now declare that the first chapter in the Solstice Saga has come to a close. What's next on the horizon? The Bloodshots, detailing the time period between Blood Solstice and its sequel. Those won't be up for a while, but soon, I shall begin them. That way you'll get your Blood Solstice fix despite it being over with. And when the time comes, the sequel will be released and the second part of the Solstice Saga can begin. I can't give an exact date since I am trying to turn Blood Solstice into a book (on chapter 14, woo!). Wish me luck in that.**

**One final note. Actually, two. **

**The first note is that those of you who are reading Broken Aurora, my other story, if you didn't get the memo (it's cool, no worries), I wanted to make sure that you all knew that it will take time for Broken Aurora to be updated. I know, it is sad, but mark my words, I AM NOT DROPPING IT. I am trying to write a book and deal with school, but I will juggle between those two for the fan fiction. **

**The second note is this. I have found someone wonderful enough who is willing to do the drawings for my story. She knows who she is and she'll have to put up with me, but I think that it will work out marvelously in the end. If anyone else who has artistic abilities is interested in doing drawings for it or for my fan fictions, let me know. No one has to, but I think it'd be cool if we could. :)**

**That is all. Thank you all once again. Hollowgo over and out.**


	86. NEWS: YOUR ADVICE

Hello, everyone.

I know it's a little odd to see an update for something that ended quite a while back, but I have come to the realization that, as many of you are my intended audience, you are the ones that I should go to in order to get advice. Any and all cooperation would be greatly appreciated here, because I am honestly depressed and uncertain on what to do.

So, to begin, most of you know by now that I am turning Blood Solstice into an original novel. No sparkling, fangless vampires, no Cullens, no wolves. It's all being replaced and revamped into completely original people and whatnot, though the plot is very similar. Perhaps it's not the most original idea, but it's a starting point for what could be a great series. And yes, Amara will be involved in it. She's popular with some of you, which is cool, so it's a given that I would include my first original character.

Let me cut to the chase. I finished it.

It's not perfect, but it's done. 52 chapters, a whopping 190,000 words. Therein lies the big problem; it's too big for a first time author. No editor will accept that and even if they did, I would need to cut it. And, while I know that there are parts that may not be necessary, I don't really like the idea of cutting it too much because it detracts from the story. I've already stressed out about that since I first learned of this and it hasn't really changed much since. I either sacrifice who I am as a writer-the kind of person who may write a crap-load, but I'd like to think it helps-or I delve into e-publishing. The saving grace for e-publishing is that, should you be a traditional reader, certain sites allow you to turn an e-book into a paperback book.

Maybe this is silly of me to do, but I wrote this book because a) I enjoy writing, b) I like vampires, c) this got a good following and I figured I could keep that and d) I wanted to write a book for gays (you love too, after all). When I made that poll asking if people would buy it if I made it, the number who said yes without question (I am assuming you were being honest and not doing it for my benefit), I was thrilled.

I guess what I'm really asking is if you would still read it despite the long length. I know, this fan fiction was longer, but there's a difference in that you would be using your money to purchase this book, whether in e-book form or paperback form. I know I'm basically rephrasing my poll question, so I apologize for that, I just need advice. Anything you, my readers, can give me is welcome. You can reply via PM, I don't mind.

Thank you all,

Hollowgo


End file.
